Student Engagement & Wellbeing News

Tournament of Minds

The two Tournament of Minds teams are hard at work undertaking preparation for their long term challenge. Both teams have selected the STEM challenge and are working collaboratively to design solutions to the challenge problems. This week, the teams will start to build and test their designs. Teams are also required to present their designs, how they work, and explain how their design provides a solution to the challenge problem. The teams are learning about how to best work together to overcome obstacles, and I look forward to seeing how they continue to persist through the challenges that the tournament will bring. Well done so far!

Tier 1 Universal Practices at MPWPS

Positive whole school, universal practices help to create an inclusive, supportive and engaging school climate. These practices build the conditions for optimal student learning, development and wellbeing. The following are the initiatives and programs that the school adopts, building the foundation for Tier 2 and Tier 3 practices.

Tier 1 Practices to support Mental Health & Wellbeing at MPWPS:
School vision, values and purpose statement	This drives everything we do at MPWPS, and we encourage our students to live our school values through their behaviours.
Rights & responsibilities framework	Supports school wide consistency in understanding our rights and responsibilities as learners at MPWPS.
Social and emotional learning: Resilience, Rights and Respectful Relationships	Supports our whole school approach to respect and equity.
School-wide behaviour expectations	Supports consistency in behaviour expectations and management across the school.
Restorative practice – restorative chats and class meetings	Allows teachers to scaffold conversations with students to support conflict resolution and rebuilding of relationships. Enables students to have a voice in things that matter in their classroom as well as share their feelings and work together to make improvements to their learning environment.
Mental Health in Primary Schools initiative	Trained teachers to support a whole school approach to mental health and wellbeing.
Learn to Learn program	Supports the development of positive classrooms at the beginning of the school year.
Attendance procedures and processes	Procedures and processes in place and aligned with the Department of Education to support students to engage and re-engage with schooling.
Protect - Child Safe Standards	Supports schools to comply with the Child Safe Standards and respond to signs of child abuse.

Elisha Katsonis, Assistant Principal & Mental Health and Wellbeing Leader.