From the Wellbeing Leader

Madhavi Nawana Parker- Educator Wellbeing

Last week, Madhavi shared some wonderful ways to support children, parents and staff wellbeing. Some of the practical advice she shared was:

Schedule a break: mini breaks can improve productivity and increase your energy. Can you block out 10 minutes of your day to head outside for a walk? Or shoot a basketball? Or for 10 minutes of mindful stretching?

Practice gratitude: think about what are three things that went well for you today? Often we display a negative bias and focus on the problems. By practising daily gratitude we can re-train our brain to focus on the positives. When uncomfortable emotions occur, we can quickly reset.

Joyful activities: quite simply, do the things that bring you more joy and less stress. A staff member has been encouraged by Madhavi’s work and is actively noticing and sharing the moments of joy with her colleagues before getting into the ‘work chatter’

Power of music and laughter: create a family playlist of songs that will pump you up for the day. Play a song before you leave the house or on the way to school. 

For more information about Madhavi Nawana Parker, her services and free resources, please visit https://positivemindsaustralia.com.au/

Chapel and Assembly

Chapel and Assemblies will continue to be livestreamed on our closed group on Facebook each week. 

Please note that our first whole school Assembly will be in Week 7 (Friday 18 March) led by the Seniors.

2022 Class Carers and Friendly Faces

Thank you to parents and caregivers who have kindly offered to be a class carer or friendly face for 2022. 

We are still looking for parents/caregivers who would like to be a class carer for most year levels and we would love your support! 

A class carer is someone who works cooperatively to support the classroom teacher with any areas of need for families. They are there to provide a listening ear to school families and may choose to organise family or parent social events.

Our Friendly Face program which aims to foster and build relationships with new families entering the school community.  Current families in the school are ‘buddied up’ with new families to the school to ease the transition process and encourage new relationships to develop, which in turn helps build community.  This also provides support for new families and may enable them to have another way to access information regarding school and classroom routines.

We’d love to finalise all class carers and friendly faces by Monday 14th February. If you are interested in either of these roles for the 2022 school year or wish to find out further information, please email cbergen@stpaulba.sa.edu.au

Brave as can be: A book of courage by Jo Witek

I am always adding new books to my collection and I’m keen to share some of my favourites that have been a great support to the way I work with children and families.

I have been amazed at the way children and their families have shown bravery and courage over the past couple weeks as we started the school year a little differently. This story explains what our bodies do when we feel scared and or worry. It is a lovely story which provides a great conversation starter to help children face uncertainties. 

If you have a book that is a must-read, please reach out and let me know!

Our Inspiring Community: Kate (Seniors)

Congratulations to Kate who was awarded 2022 Junior Citizen of the Year through the City of Port Adelaide Enfield Australia Day Awards. 

Kate is a Junior Helper at Hillcrest Guides and supports young girls aged between 5-10 years old. Kate organises and runs games and craft activities at most Guides meetings. Recently, Kate assisted several girls new to Guides through the experience of a sleepover. Kate also participates in Carry on Guides, a Not-For Profit variety theatre production staged annually by members of the Girl Guide Association in South Australia.

Carly Bergen | Wellbeing Leader