WELLBEING

This week the Wellbeing team received several invitations for parents and young people to access support through local support agencies that we are keen to share with the SCSC community.

Drummond St Services

Drummond St Services is here for you, running many webinars, groups and events all accessible online. There is something for everyone, from music and movement for kids in lock-down, to support with new babies, to managing uncertainty during COVID-19 and staying connected with worried kids and teens during this challenging time.

The Geelong team will be facilitating a free webinar and then a 4 week group, this is a version of our Parenting teens who worry seminar and the focus is on Staying connected with your Anxious Teen through COVID-19. Click here to register online.

Geelong Regional Parenting Service

Geelong Regional Parenting Service is offering a variety of online workshops and webinars tailored to support the unique challenges of parenting young people. While still offering some of the more established workshops such as “Tuning into Teens” which I highly recommend, in Term 4 GRPS is expanding its’ offerings to include new programs such as “The Dad Workshop,” designed to help fathers tackle the unique challenges of fatherhood.

The workshops start in Term 4, but due to popularity we recommend registering well ahead of time.

TUNING INTO KIDS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Date: Wednesday 14 October – 18 November

Time: 10.30am – 12.30pm

Tuning into Kids is a 6-week supportive program for parents of children aged 3 years – 12 years.

The program aims to:

Help parents teach their children to understand and manage their emotions;
Support parents in encouraging children to express emotions appropriately;
Maximise children’s social, behavioural and learning outcomes.

DADS TUNING INTO KIDS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Date: Wednesday 14 October – 18 November

Time: 10.30am – 12.30pm

Dads Tuning into Kids is a 6-week supportive program specifically for Dads of children aged 3 years – 12 years.

The program aims to:

Help dads to effectively tune in to their child’s emotions;
Encourage dads to strengthen their emotional connection with their child;
Support dads to build skills in emotion coaching to assist their child’s individual needs.

TUNING INTO TEENS - CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Dates: Thursday 15 October – 19 November

Tuesday 20 October – 24 November

Time: 10.30am – 12.30pm

Tuning into Teens is a 6-week supportive program for parents of adolescents aged 10 years to 18 years.

The program aims to:

Support parents to connect and communicate with their teen;
Assist parents with understanding adolescent development;
Help parents to assist their teen to develop emotional intelligence.

Programs provided by Drummond St Services

Drummond St are running all webinars, seminars and groups online – please check under https://ds.org.au/events/ - free and accessible online, including children’s music groups. Seminars on parenting toddlers, teens, managing anxiety and many more.

Year 12 Wellbeing Webinar Series

A collection of webinars presented by renowned psychologist Dr. Michael Carr-Gregg. Each 30 minute webinar is designed to assist VCE/VCAL students to navigate their way through 2020 and beyond. You will walk away with practical and evidence-based approaches to boost mental wellness and build resilience, motivation and connectedness. CLICK HERE to access.

I’d also like to remind students and families that if you are finding it difficult to cope there are resources available to help.

HeadSpace Geelong sent out a reminder to schools in Geelong this week that they are operating on a telehealth model as well as providing a host of online groups for young people and parents.

Beyond Blue also has a specific service in response to COVID-19 that can be accessed HERE.

The SCSC Wellbeing team is also facilitating several groups alongside teaching staff as well as providing counselling support via phone calls. Students can access the team through their mentor teacher or by using the Wellbeing Support Google Doc on Canvas.

I hope you have many opportunities to enjoy the sunshine safely with your family this week.

Mark Philpott

Student Wellbeing Leader

Staying Connected

Raising Learners - Podcast

The Department of Education and Training has funded a 10-episode podcast series through the Raising Children Network called ‘Raising Learners’. It features parenting experts from organisations including the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute, Career Education Association Victoria, as well as the Australian eSafety Commissioner, Julie Inman-Grant.

Raising Learners provides parents with practical advice, tips and ideas for supporting children’s health, wellbeing and engagement at school and at home. Topics include how to connect with your child’s school and community, how to best support your child’s learning, what to expect for VCE and VCAL students and how to keep your child safe online.

These topics were drawn from common questions that parents raised with the Department’s coronavirus (COVID-19) hotline and Parentline.

The first three episodes will be available on 1 September, and the rest throughout terms 3 and 4. Raising Learners can be accessed via podcast apps and Raising Children Network website.

Managing the Coronacoaster webinar

Renowned child psychologist Dr Michael Carr-Gregg is back by popular demand to repeat his Coronacoaster webinar.

On 15 September, Dr Michael Carr-Gregg will again present Managing the Coronacoaster – Tips for building resilient families in the coronavirus era. His first webinar in August booked out in three days, with more than 12,000 registrations.

In this webinar, Dr Carr-Gregg provides tools and strategies for parents and carers to help manage the lock-down period and remote learning. Topics include:

your supportive role
setting the emotional tone
focusing on what you can control
how to deal with disappointment
more resources and where to get help.

When: 7.30pm, Tuesday 15 September

Duration: 45-minute presentation, followed by a 15-minute question-and-answer session

Format: online via live stream

Cost: free