Student Wellbeing

Understanding and Engaging Boys

Thank you to all of the parents that attended the Understanding and Engaging Boys Parent Night last Wednesday. 

It was evident that Tarun gave you all some important and practical advice for your boys, big and small. 

We are keeping in touch with Tarun and he will send me the powerpoint to share with you and any news about upcoming parent workshops online or in person. 

How has this professional development helped the teachers at St Raphael's change their approach?

Since the whole school staff PD in July, staff at St Raphael's have been proactive in changing what they are doing for the boys in their homerooms and levels. We have a lot to work on but here is what we are doing so far.....

• Physical activity and brain breaks - staff are building a fun and engaging repertoire of activity and brain breaks that they can use during the day.
• Differentiation -  this has always been in the forefront of what we do at St Raphael's but we now have a greater understanding of 'why' we need to differentiate. 
• Expectations - all students need to be able to achieve success in their own way. Allowing more time, personalised independent tasks, breaking tasks down, support staff, concrete materials. 

Now that we all have benefited from the wealth of information that Tarun has shared with us, we can work together for our boys and just as importantly, our girls!

Cyber Safety with the Preston Police @ St. Raphael's

On Tuesday, August 16th, the Preston Police spoke to the Years 3 - 6 students about online safety.  As you know, we take digital safety very seriously at St. Raphael's, and we want to continue that support for our students.  The police provided a fantastic insight into areas that we can remain safe online, and just as important, to remain respectful at all times.  Three points that were pivotal in their presentation were:

1. Be very careful about what you share.  Don't share anything you wouldn't want someone else to see; don't share passwords and especially don't share information that is private to you and your family (home addresses, etc). 

2. Be responsible with who you play with online, and make sure that you know them. If at any point there is someone online that the child doesn't know, they must tell you as their adult in your care and supervision. 

3. And, more for you as parents: Be aware of what your child is doing online. If you allow them to have a device, and they are downloading apps that are not for educational purposes, then they must have your consent (apps such as snapchat and youtube have a recommended age is 13 and over). Get your child to share with you what they are doing in these apps, and to continually have a conversation with you regarding what they are saying online, and who they are talking to.  These areas, among many more, highlighted the importance of digital safety for all, and to ensure that students adhere to the digital agreement they signed at the beginning of the year whilst using ICT @ school. 

House Points for July

House Points winners for July are Burke!!!!! Well done Burke House!