Heard on the Hill Term 2, Week 10

From the Acting Principal

Kaya

We have are in the last week of term, which is also one of the more difficult weeks to navigate. Country Week has a very big impact on the school, apart from the obvious collapsing of classes and having few senior students in attendance. This absence of senior students does filter into the lower years, and makes teaching that little bit more challenging at this time of the term. I hope that all the hard work teachers have done throughout the term in having clear expectations of student behaviour, work output and application in general will make this week no different to the others.

As part of this week we have two big ahead: Thursday with our reward activities, Friday with an excursion for 250 students to BREC. With these two days having such a big interruption to the normal school day there is no need to have a ‘class party’ during the other days.

On a bigger scale regarding education, the Minister for Education, Hon Dr Tony Buti MLA, has announced a review in senior secondary school pathways and make recommendations for potential reforms. If you are interested in what is happening go here for an overview: Pathways to Post-School Success.

 Earlier I sent an email congratulating Billie and Geoff for the music showcase held in the PAC last Thursday night. I just want to acknowledge them again here for such a wonderful night. I really enjoyed listening to the music presented and I am in awe of the talent shown by our students. What I experienced on that night is testament to their commitment to this program;  recognising the hard work of both teachers and students in this discipline.

Our return to school on Monday 17 July is a school development day. An agenda is attached/included in this Heard on the Hill. Please ensure you bring a device to the sessions presented.

Lastly, have very well earned break for the next two weeks. Look after yourself and participate in relaxing activities to recharge your batteries.

Self-care Over The Holidays

Self-care over the holidays – BeYou

Educators and families may be juggling work commitments, social events and planning for holidays at this time of year.

Finalising reports, staff changes and planning for the term ahead can all take their toll.

What does this mean for our stress levels?

The stress we might be feeling is not just anxiety about the events themselves -  it’s also about the loss of routine and the security that gives us. Time pressures can lead to sleep, exercise and healthy eating disruptions. 

What happens when we’re stressed?

Adults might feel overwhelmed, become less patient and become forgetful and distracted with less time to give others.

Children might exhibit behaviours more typical of younger children, have shorter concentration spans showing less capacity to follow instructions, test previously established boundaries, have more heightened emotions (be more likely to cry or act out).

Supporting each other and beating stress

Here are some ideas for staying calm and connected in your school or service:

• Maintain physical and emotional connections with children and young people on an individual level. In all the busyness, keeping the personal connection is just as important as at any other time of year.
• Try to keep routines as intact as possible. Establishing a sense of calm predictability will reduce tension, especially at busy times of day. Maintain rituals such as lunch or rest times. This provides everyone with a sense of familiarity and structure.
• Keep a core of known, favourite experiences for children and young people to engage with as they go through out of routine celebrations. For children these might be sensory and creative materials such as playdough, clay, painting, drawing or dramatic play props or spaces to spend time in alone.
• Also, keep part of the room familiar, arranged as it usually is and use visual supports to assist memory – timetables of events and communicate any changes. Children and young people may need to hear and see extra detail about what is happening next.

Remember to be kind to yourself and others. There is a lot going on and things can feel very demanding.

More information can be found at: https://beyou.edu.au/stories/implementation-support/self-care-over-the-holidays

Thank you for all your efforts and support over the term. Take care of yourselves and enjoy a well-deserved holiday break.

Career Information

The "Looking to the Future" report (better known as the Shergold Report) was released in 2020. The report focused on a review of secondary schooling and transition pathways for students.

Recently, MyFuture held a Webinar with Professor Peter Shergold reflecting on the report and the three years since its release. Throughout this presentation, Professor Shergold highlighted the importance of career guidance and support for students, along with the role that all teachers can play through the delivery of their content. He highlighted the value of embedding work readiness skills or general capabilities into our lessons.

The recording of the webinar has been released. Please see the attached link. This page also has a number of other previous webinars if you are interested in having a look through them.

Workload Advisory Committee

Workload is often the main cause of staff stress or anxiety. Our school has a workload advisory committee, which was set up as part of our focus on Staff Wellbeing in our previous business plan, and which we continue to support through the new Staff Wellbeing Committee.

Staff Representatives for this year (continuing their 2 year tenure) are: Renee Chapple, Luke Marinoni and Adam McGill.

If you have workload issues, please discuss them first with your line manager, as many of these can be resolved quickly and easily.

If you have an issue that cannot be resolved, please submit it via either the survey link provided here, or on the document below (which can also be found in the School Templates folder on your desktop.

A copy of last week's Leadership Minutes can be found below.

Social Media Content

We love seeing students in action, whether in a classroom setting, in an incursion or off-site for an excursion or camp.

If you are conducting any activities you think are suitable for our school's Facebook or Instagram pages, please submit your content through the link below.

Please contact me with prior warning if you would like me to attend a session, lesson, activity etc if you would like me to take photos/videos to accompany your story.

If you have taken photos on your phone/iPad and are unsure of how to transfer these to me, please send me an email or come and visit me and I can assist you.

Submit your Facebook post using the link below.

Schoolzine

Keep up to date with all the latest news for staff and parents via the schoolzine app. You can access Heard on the Hill, the school's website, Facebook page, calendar, Connect, and more via the homepage of the app.

This easy-to-use app also sends you notifications when newsletters have been published.

See below for how to download the SZapp.