Heard on the Hill Term 1, Week 3

School Psychologist - Lauren Dragon

• I have been a school psychologist for 4 years and was previously at a High School in the South Metropolitan region, I have also worked in primary schools.

• I like to do pilates, it helps me to unwind and relax!

• I thoroughly enjoy working with young people and promoting wellbeing, working with staff in Student Services is also such a fun and rewarding experience!

Education Assistant - Jenny Byatt

Preivous work history: 

Transferred from Dalyellup College (EA) and TAFE (ESL Lecturing), which I did concurrently for around a decade.

Favourite activity outside of work:

Sleep is awesome, also the beach and annoying my two primary-aged kids, which I seem to have a real talent for.

What do you enjoy most about your role?

The luxury of getting to know the students pretty well.

Education Assistant - Kylie O'Donnell

My name is Kylie O'Donnell I am a Special Needs Education Assistant. I have worked in both Primary & Secondary schools over the past 8 years, most recently at Tuart Forest Primary school in Dalyellup. 

My favourite thing to do in my spare time is waterskiing, snorkelling & mountain bike riding with my family. 

The best part about my job is building positive relationships with students, helping them reach their goals and potential and making a difference to their day! It's incredibly rewarding

Career Practitioner - Peta King

I have worked in a number of schools in the Southwest and also in the Pilbara. I have spent the majority of my teaching career in VET/Careers areas with my most current role being VET Coordinator. My background is in HASS (Politics & Law and Modern History).

I have three awesome kids who keep my life very busy particularly with their sport (three out of the four of us are cricket tragics!). My role as Career Practitioner is a new department initiative, so I am really looking forward to how this will fit in with BSHS and how it will grow.

HASS Teacher - Stephen Ahern

Hello Everyone,

Name's Ahern. Stephen Ahern. 

For the last few years I've been teaching at Newton Moore and really enjoyed it there. Learnt a lot! I'm from Canberra and I taught at a couple of schools there before packing up my car and seeking adventure out west.

Like most Aussie males I love my embroidery - seriously ask me about it! I'll bore you to tears! But you might get a jacket out of it. But it'll cost you. But you might get it at a discounted rate.

I love teaching HASS - it's good to always be looking at different things, tapping into the world of the kids and debunking myths!

I've loved my first few days here - been made to feel so welcome by staff and students alike. Thanks. Can't wait to meet you all!

HASS Teacher - Charlotte Charleson

I am one of the new Humanities and Social Sciences teachers. I have a Bachelor of Business and have just recently finished my Master of Teaching. I taught HaSS and English for a semester last year at Australind Senior High School on a limited registration.   

I enjoy taking walks down the beach with my new puppy. I live close to town and have promised myself I will ride to work one of these days.  

What do you enjoy most about your role? 

Getting to know my students and of course looking out at the amazing view from my room!

Science Teacher - Lewis Williams

I worked 7 years at Dalyellup College before starting at Bunbury Senior and I really enjoy teaching Science because there is rarely a dull moment. In my free time I brew, sail and cycle.

Learning Environment

Preventing Misbehaviour in the Classroom

There are some low key strategies you can use to decrease the likelihood of misbehaviour occurring in your classroom. Most experienced teachers use these, but for many staff new to teaching or still early in their career, or staff who haven't undertaken the CMS (Classroom Management Strategies) professional learning, these strategies may be new. These strategies are great because they really require very little effort but can yield great rewards. Here are a couple to get you started:

Winning Over
This strategy is all about building a rapport with your students.
You can do this by greeting them with a friendly tone when they arrive at your class, using their names regularly, smiling (when you don't have a mask on!), using manners when asking them to do something (please, thank you), showing a personal interest in their life outside of school (sports/hobbies are pretty safe topics).
When you build this connection, students are more inclined to comply with your requests and instructions both in and outside of the classroom. Even if the student has been difficult for you in the past, try this strategy and see if you can turn things around.

With-it-ness
This strategy is all about your awareness of what is happening in your classroom. The more aware you are, the quicker you can pick up any slight behaviour issues that need to be nipped in the bud.
You can do this by scanning the room regularly to check for student attention, making regular eye contact (especially with any who seem distracted), pausing (if someone is talking when you are giving instruction), using student names to refocus them on you, and using proximity - go closer to any students who are talking too much or not paying attention.

We have many staff trained in CMS. If you would like support with trying these strategies, ask your line manager who could be a good mentor for this and who might be good to observe in action, or who could observe you and give feedback. If you are interested in doing the CMS training, please email me and I will note your interest and try to include you in future registrations of this training.

Instructional Skills

Responding to students: in simplistic terms, it is active teaching aimed at increasing active student engagement in learning and reducing poor behaviour. An element of this is through appropriate feedback. When feedback is perceived by the student to be directed at them, performance and behaviour decrease. But when a teacher focuses feedback on the task at hand performance and behaviour improves. As Hattie states: there is no doubt that many factors can help or hinder students success at school. While some of these factors are outside your control, focus on those ones you can influence.

Excursions

Excursions may still continue if they adhere to the DoE guidelines. Any staff member that has an excursion planned for Term 1; please speak to me for clarity about what is required.

OSH Representative

We are calling for nominations for an OSH Representative as Lucia's tenure has expired. The responsibility of the OSH Rep is to report hazards and OSH issues to the Executive team, investigate accidents/incidences and refer matters to the OSH Committee. Lucia can re-nominate if she wishes.

Please submit your interest to me by C.O.B. Friday 19 February.

Staff Car bays

From today, Perkins will be cordoning off some parking bays at the bottom of the oval while they conduct works on the water storage tanks as part of the Gym/PAC refurbishment.

Evacuation and Lockdown Procedures

I am currently conducting an audit on our emergency and lockdown procedures. Part of this audit is ensuring classrooms and office areas have the required emergency signage in place. Can you please complete this short survey in order to do this.

Thanks in advance for doing your part in keeping our school community safe.

Survey Form

EMAIL PROTOCOLS

Email is an important and convenient means of communication that assists our school to provide more effective communication to each other and our school community. We are committed to ensuring communication is respectful, measured, sensitive and constructive and used within DOE ICT Guidelines.

With this in mind, please ensure you are familiar with the Bunbury SHS Email Policy and guidelines when using your @education.wa.edu.au email and associated distribution lists such as BSHS All Staff email.

The aim of these guidelines is to:

• clearly articulate the School’s commitment to the positive use of the email system for communication between staff and our community.
• establish clear expectations for staff, students and parents in the use of email.

BUNBURY SHS INSTAGRAM

BUNBURY SHS FACEBOOK

Something interesting happening in or around your classroom? Having an incursion or excursion this term? Please let me know!

We love to share updates from the school with our community and would like representation from each area of our wonderful school; no matter how big or small.

Please submit stories for our Facebook page via the wufoo link below and include as much information as you can, plus a few images to accompany the article. If you are having trouble with the wufoo form, you can email the information to me directly.(ellie.mackay@education.wa.edu.au)

Don't forget to follow us on Facebook and check out what our students and staff get up to.

Mike's Calendar