Learning and Teaching

Curriculum at St Fidelis Catholic Primary School

At St Fidelis Catholic Primary School, we are committed to equity and excellence for every learner. Our curriculum enables students to become active, engaged learners who develop essential knowledge, skills, and dispositions to contribute to the common good.

Our teaching and learning are grounded in the Science of Learning and aligned with the Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools (MACS) Vision for Instruction and Vision for Engagement. We use evidence-based practices, including explicit instruction and high-impact pedagogical strategies, to ensure learning is clear, purposeful, and effective.

Guided by an understanding of cognitive science and working memory, we design learning experiences that support mastery of foundational knowledge and promote deep understanding. Our knowledge rich curriculum equips students to think critically, solve problems, and navigate an increasingly complex world.

The Vision for Engagement underpins our commitment to calm, respectful, and inclusive learning environments where students feel safe, valued, and motivated to learn. Through our Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS), we provide targeted instruction and intervention to meet the diverse needs of all learners, informed by high-quality assessment practices.

Together, our curriculum and pedagogy reflect a holistic and distinctly Catholic approach, nurturing the intellectual, social, emotional, physical, and spiritual growth of every child, and enabling all students to flourish.

Inquiry Learning

Inquiry learning at St Fidelis Catholic Primary School is aligned with MACS Inquiry frameworks and grounded in evidence-based practice. Learning is intentionally designed around rich questions and knowledge-building sequences, supported by explicit teaching to ensure students develop deep understanding.

Students are guided to think critically, ask meaningful questions, and apply learning across curriculum areas, building the skills, dispositions, and knowledge required to engage thoughtfully and responsibly with the world.

STEM Innovation and Design Space

The opening of the NEW STEM Innovation Space in Term 4 2020 was a welcome addition to the St Fidelis students and teachers. After the COVID lockdown, the students were introduced to this exceptional facility and it is hard to imagine St Fidelis without it.

As learners, the students have the opportunity to build their skills as collaborators, researchers, thinkers, self-managers and communicators in an environment that supports inquiry learning. Students have the opportunity to explore their project-based learning and focus on finding solutions to problems in an imaginative, creative and collaborative way.

The STEM innovation Space serves many purposes such as a Robotics Centre, a design space, Green Screen filming studio, a construction area, a space to learn about computer animation, a place to learn coding skills and programming skills just to name a few.

Students in Foundation to Year Six engage in a one hour weekly lesson with our specialist Digital Technologies teacher and their classroom teacher and use their very own ®LEGO Coding Express Kit where they learn coding concepts, such as sequencing and looping.  They are also introduced the BEE BOT an exciting friendly little robot for teaching sequencing estimation, problem solving and just having fun.

St Fidelis Students win at the STEM MAD Showcase!

A huge congratulations to our STEM MAD (Making a Difference) Showcase winner Emily M. (3/4), and Luca S. from Year 3/4, Chloe P. (3/4) and Demetrous M. (5/6) who made it to the finals. We could not be more proud.

The STEM MAD Showcase aims to address real-world problems and demonstrate how students in Catholic schools take action that matters and was an incredible experience for the students.

We were lucky enough to have Emily’s and her classmates STEM MAD journey, our amazing STEM specialist Mr Joe Frazzetto and the St Fidelis STEM Program and STEM MAD finalists featured in a video by MACS. Watch it below.

English & Literacy

At St Fidelis Catholic Primary School, English teaching is grounded in evidence-based practice to ensure all students develop strong foundational literacy skills. We use a systematic synthetic phonics approach, explicitly teaching grapheme–phoneme correspondences to support reading, spelling, and writing.

Through explicit instruction, knowledge-rich units, and ongoing assessment, students build fluency, vocabulary, comprehension, and writing skills across a range of texts and purposes, becoming confident and capable communicators.

Mathematics

At St Fidelis Catholic Primary School, Mathematics teaching is grounded in evidence-based practice to ensure students develop strong conceptual understanding, fluency, and problem-solving skills. Through explicit instruction and carefully sequenced learning, students build secure foundations in number, reasoning, and mathematical thinking.

Ongoing assessment and targeted instruction ensure students can confidently apply their mathematical knowledge across a range of contexts.

Digital Technologies

Digital Technologies at St Fidelis Catholic Primary School are integrated across the curriculum to develop creativity, problem-solving, and digital capability. Students from Foundation to Year 6 engage with age-appropriate tools, including robotics, coding programs, and Google Apps for Education, applying critical thinking and collaboration to authentic learning tasks.

Through explicit teaching of safe, responsible, and ethical technology use, students become confident, capable, and responsible digital learners, prepared to thrive in a contemporary world.

Physical & Sport Education

All students participate in weekly Physical Education lessons led by a specialist teacher. Lessons develop knowledge, skills, and confidence to participate in movement, games, and physical activities, promoting healthy, active lifestyles.

Our Sport Education program extends learning through teamwork, strategy, and skill application across a range of sports, helping students build confidence, collaboration, and a lifelong love of physical activity.

School Sports Program

The sport program is a part of physical education that includes the development of sport skills, an understanding of the origins and rules of various sports and an appreciation of codes of behaviour.

Junior school students participate in a range of physical activities with their peers in pairs, small groups and as a whole class to focus on co-operation, consideration of others in games and play, following rules and procedures, and the safe use of equipment and space.

Middle school students participate in an ‘intra-school’ weekly sport competition where they apply the motor skills (learnt during physical education lessons) to specific modified sports. During ‘Sport’ the students continue to develop their understandings of the concept of fair play and respect for all participants (team, opponents and officials).

Upper school students participate in intra-school and inter-school sport.

St Fidelis Primary School is an affiliated member of School Sport Victoria’s (SSV) Coburg District. During the year, our Year 5/6 students have the opportunity to participate in a variety of sports against schools within the Coburg District as follows:

Term 1: Basketball, Softball & Bat Tennis; Term 2: Australian Rules Football, Soccer & Netball; Term 4: T20 Blast Cricket

SVV Coburg District Sport

Years 3-6 students also have the opportunity to compete at SSV Coburg District sport carnivals as follows:

Term 1: Tennis & Swimming; Term 2: Cross Country Running; Term 3: Athletics

All competitions in the Coburg District provide students an opportunity to challenge and extend themselves by enabling successful individuals and teams to compete at division, region, state and national levels of School Sport Victoria (SSV).

Annual Sports Carnival

At St Fidelis all students have the opportunity to participate in our Annual School Sports Carnival which focuses on team games promoting team work and fair play.

Sports Australia

St Fidelis is a member of ‘Sports Australia’. This membership gives our school the opportunity to apply for government grants to conduct the ‘Sporting Schools’ program.

The ‘Sporting Schools’ program for primary schools helps to provide a range of sporting programs that will increase children’s interest and participation in sport. It also aims to create stronger links between children and local sporting clubs, nurturing a lifelong love of sport.

In 2019 we conducted a 5 week tennis program with our Year 3/4 students. Utilising the government funding provided, we were able to engage local professional coaching, purchase tennis racquets, balls and nets. It was a great success!

Into the future, we will continue to be involved as a member of ‘Sports Australia’ and utilise this initiative to further promote interest and participation in various sports and develop stronger links with our community.

Opportunities for our students to be involved with sports clubs are regularly advertised in our school newsletter.

Some existing links between our school and local sporting clubs are as follows:

*The St Fidelis Basketball Club (also known as ‘The Saints’) is an independent club of the parish and school of St Fidelis. The St Fidelis Primary School and the parish of St Fidelis have no oversight or responsibility for the conduct of the St Fidelis Basketball Club, their members past or present, or their financial or legal business or the conduct of their members, families and supporters – present and past.

Extra Curricular

St Fidelis offers a range of learning opportunities that fall outside the realm of normal curriculum.  An extracurricular activity is designed to enhance the students’ social, academic, creative or intellectual learning. Some examples of what is offered at St Fidelis are:

Year-Level Classes

At St Fidelis Catholic Primary School, our classes are thoughtfully structured to support students’ learning and growth at each year level. From Year 1 to Year 6, teaching is tailored to the developmental needs and curriculum expectations of each student; ensuring learning is purposeful, engaging, and targeted.

In 2026, our Year 5/6 students will learn in a small, multi-age class that fosters a supportive and collaborative environment. In the years ahead, these upper-year classes will transition to dedicated year-level classes, allowing for even more focused teaching and personalised learning for every student.

We recognise that every child progresses at their own pace. Teachers use a variety of assessment tools to understand what students know and what they are ready to learn next, designing experiences that foster growth and confidence. Flexible grouping within subjects ensures that all students receive targeted instruction and support, whether in multi-age or year-level settings.

This approach not only promotes academic success but also nurtures collaboration, leadership, and positive role modelling, empowering students to thrive socially, emotionally, and intellectually.

Education in Faith

At St Fidelis Catholic Primary School, we nurture students’ learning within a strong Catholic faith context. Guided by Gospel values, students explore the relevance of their faith through daily interactions, prayer, liturgy, Sacramental programs, and Social Justice initiatives.

Using the MACS Religious Education Curriculum Framework and Caritas resources, teaching is engaging and grounded in Catholic tradition, fostering spiritual growth, connection to the Church, and the development of lifelong faith.

St Fidelis School Prayer

Dear Lord,

Please help us to make St Fidelis
a friendly place where everyone
will feel that because we
love and care about you,
we love and care about them as well.

Help us to smile back
when people smile at us,
to give help when people
need it and most of all,
help us to accept
each other as we are.

AMEN