Heard on the Hill Term 3, Week 5

From the Principal

Bonjour à tous, and Wanju

I hope that you all got out into the Djilba sunshine across the weekend to warm up a little and see the flora starting to wake from its slumber.

As we lead into our NAIDOC week celebrations, I would like to invite you all to view the video The Journey of Health and Wellbeing. The video will give you language and concepts to understand and use when having conversations with students and others who are still developing their understanding of the support needed to close the gap for Aboriginal people.

Thank you to the Executive team who covered for me while I was at the WASSEA conference last week. The conference provides a regular opportunity for me to horizon scan. The AI train is really gathering momentum. For what makes the difference to students this is the area that I found most interesting. However, there was also the usual Director General address that discussed directions and current challenges for our system. Being the data nerd that I am, I was really interested in the last session on demographics and census data trends. Growing GDP, growing population, continuing housing and labour shortages, etc….

I hope that you have a great week and get actively involved in activities to celebrate NAIDOC week.

En Avant

Nuts and Bolts

From Wednesday 16 August – Wednesday 23 August, I will be having a medical procedure and will not be in the school. Andrew Healy will be the site manager in my absence. I will be working remotely and will still be able to be contacted via email.

Kelly Anderson will be on LSL in Term 4. We will be running an extended Expression of Interest process to fill the position. The details of the process, roles description and conditions will be made public on Friday when the EOI opens.

BeYou In Focus Webinar - Promoting Healthy Boundaries to Promote Staff Wellbeing

Summary of key concepts and messages

• There are different types of boundaries, for example, emotional, physical, and resource boundaries. Boundaries can be difficult to navigate as we all have different values and beliefs, perspectives, and ways of being.
• Boundaries help people “set realistic limits on participation in a relationship or activity” (American Psychological Society).
• Our boundaries can involve understanding where our needs start and where another person’s, begin. This can help us set realistic expectations on how we engage and participate in a relationship or activity.
• Boundaries can be influenced by a range of factors including our family, culture, and past experiences and they can be flexible.
• Boundaries are the ultimate self-care, and our wellbeing is a precious resource.
• Boundaries are a process and need practicing.
• Healthy boundaries take time and practice to implement and maintain, show yourself compassion and patience when first starting this practice.
• It is important for leaders to model healthy boundaries.
• It can feel uncomfortable to create new boundaries for ourselves. This discomfort doesn't make the new boundary wrong.
• Practicing saying ‘no’ in a way that is comfortable for you, can give you time back in your day and week for other priorities, for example having some additional time for activities that give you joy and recharge your battery. 

Fact Sheets

Be You Fact Sheets help you explore and gain knowledge on mental health and wellbeing topics, and to share information and ideas with your learning community.

Specific Be You Fact Sheets discussed included:

• Communication Skills for Educators - https://beyou.edu.au/fact-sheets/relationships/communication-skills-for-educators
• Before Recommending Additional Support - https://beyou.edu.au/fact-sheets/mental-health-support/before-recommending-additional-support
• Recommending Additional Support - https://beyou.edu.au/fact-sheets/mental-health-support/recommending-additional-support
• Educator Wellbeing Resources - https://beyou.edu.au/resources/educator-wellbeing

Other References

• Boundaries and School Staff Wellbeing (linkedin.com) by Melinda Phillips (https://www.compassionateschools.com.au)
• Circle of influence https://resources.franklincovey.com/blog/focus-on-your-circle-of-influence

NAIDOC Week at BSHS 14-18 August 

BSHS is celebrating NAIDOC Week from 14 to 18 August. The Cultural Inclusivity Committee needs your support to make this year's NAIDOC the best ever! This year's NAIDOC theme is For Our Elders. We will be trying to get many elders into the school throughout the week.

On Monday 14 August during period 2, we will have a special whole-school NAIDOC assembly with special guests.

There will be an official opening of the student hub - its official name is Koolangka Kadadjiny Wardarn (Children Learning by the Sea).

In the weeks leading up to and including during NAIDOC week, it would be great if you could incorporate some aboriginal content into your curriculum. The SBS website has a range of resources.

Parent-Teacher Interviews 22 August

There is a Parent-Teacher Interview session scheduled for Tuesday 22 August 3.30-5.30pm. Please read the attached information carefully. Any questions can be directed to your line manager, and then to me.

Rachel Campbell will send all teaching staff a log in to Parent Teacher online (the application used to generate interview bookings) so that you can get your appointment times prior to the event.

Afternoon tea will be provided before it commences and we also hope to have a coffee van, and maybe even some food vans, onsite.

We will also be adding parent information sessions to this event, to support our delivery of the Healthy Minds SEL program. Year 6 parents will be able to attend a session from 3pm, followed by Year 8 parents and finally Year 11 parents. Thanks to Tina for organising this opportunity.

Workforce Survey for 2024

This week I will email out a survey for staff to complete outlining your workload intentions for 2024 and any possible leave that staff members may be planning.

The information gathered from this survey is used to assist in planning for 2024 staffing. I appreciate staff taking the short amount of time to complete their responses.

Ball Coordinator -  2024

Congratulations to Almarie January who has accepted the role of Ball Coordinator for 2024.

If you would like to offer assistance to Almarie in organising this event, please speak with her directly to see what support you can offer.

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.

KINGIA ARTICLES

You can now submit your articles for the Kingia 2023 edition.

The deadline for the articles is FRIDAY, 8 September (Term 3, Week 8). 

No articles are accepted after this date, unless prior arrangement with Ellie Horsfall.

If you need to supply more than 10 photos, please drop your photos into the folder on the M drive (storage_admin) called Kingia 2023.

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.