Deputy Principal's Report

Dear Parents,

Farewell (for now) to Pat - special assembly 

To wish Pat luck as he heads to St Patrick's for the remainder of this year, we will hold a special assembly next Thursday afternoon at 3pm.  Please feel free to join us in the Hall and wish Pat luck as he embarks on his temporary secondment. 

Mentally Strong Children 

I read a great article this week about how to raise 

mentally strong children (thanks for passing it on Mrs Howell). One of the most important things that we can do for our children is encourage them to be mentally strong, since resilient kids are better equipped to handle challenges and are more likely to bounce back from disappointments.  It is important to take note of the habits that our children are forming and the language they are using, and then devote time and patience to reducing the bad habits/negative language and reinforcing good habits/language. 

According to psychologist Amy Morin, mentally strong kids DON'T do these 7 things: 

1. They don't avoid challenges (or give up on something after an early disappointment)
2. They don't hide their mistakes  (owning up to our mistakes and learning from them)
3. They don't feel sorry for themselves  (accepting that bad things happen sometimes and learning to move on)
4. They don't act like they don't care  (learning that it's important to talk about our problems, with an adult that can help them work through what's bothering them)
5. They don't put other people down (disparaging other people in order to feel better about themselves)
6. They don't easily succumb to peer pressure
7. They don't feel entitled to everything

The full article is here , it really is worth a read. 

Teacher Professional Development Day 

As we're sure you're aware by now, next Friday is a student-free day at St Finbar's.  This is one of our allocated days for teacher professional development. The focus for next week's learning is on the teaching of reading.

We have Mary-Anne Rugg (MACS Learning Consultant) coming to spend the morning session with us and share with us some of the latest research and best practices around the pedagogy of reading. The next session will be training around a new assessment tool that we are introducing at St Finbar's. The final session will be an opportunity for teachers to share and discuss some examples of great practices that they are already using in their classrooms.  

Whilst we understand that these student-free days may cause some challenges for families, they are valuable opportunities for teacher learning and to remain up to date.

Cultural Awareness Training

To develop our awareness of Indigenous culture and ensure we are using appropriate language with our students, our Indigenous Perspectives Leader Lisa Douglas has arranged a series of sessions for staff with Helen Christensen, an Aboriginal Education Officer from MACS.   At our staff meeting on Tuesday, Helen spoke to us about Pre and Post-colonisation. We also completed a group activity sequencing some key events in our Indigenous history; this highlighted some gaps in our own knowledge.  

Social Emotional Learning - stress management 

Year 5 took their SEL lesson outside on Monday.  The students spent some time quietly reflecting upon a stressful event in their own life and how they managed this. 

Year 5 and 6 Incursion

This term's Year 5 and 6 inquiry topic Care for the Kids has a social justice focus. Yesterday Corlien from International Needs Australia came in to speak to the students about her experiences living and working in Africa, and describing the multitude of challenges that so many in our world face. The children then headed outside to roleplay some of these challenges: carrying water, "playtime" with old tyres and school lessons with chalkboards and chalk. Thank you to Mr Tyndall, and the Year 5 and 6 teaching team for organising this valuable learning opportunity for our students. 

Thank you

Michelle Hill & Steele Anderson

Deputy Principals