School Review

Every four years, schools take part in a school review to set a new Strategic Plan. This involves looking back over the previous four-year goals to celebrate the successes and look through the data to set directions for moving forward in the next Strategic Plan. This year Solway is taking part in a school review.

On Monday 25 March the Review Panel will be spending some time at Solway meeting with students, parents and teachers to get an understanding of the school. We are asking for parent contribution to the review. At 9:00am on Monday 25 March, the panel would like to meet with any available parents to gain a parent perspective of Solway over the past four years. If you are able to attend, please register your name at the office so we are able to ensure we have adequate space for the parents and panel. It is vital we get feedback from all stake holders.

Parent Helpers

Kate Nancarrow will run parent helper sessions at school next term. To be a parent helper, you must attend a session with Kate (or have attended one of these sessions in the past), have a valid Working with Children Check, and sign our Child Safe Code of Conduct. Parent helper information sessions will be held at 2:30pm Monday 15 April or 9:00am on Friday 19 April in the conference centre. Please register your attendance via the office.

SRC Fundraiser

On the final day of term, Thursday 28 March, the SRC will be running the Term 1 fundraising event. This is a free dress day with a hair/rainbow theme for the Leukemia Foundation – Worlds Greatest Shave. Blood cancer strikes young. It is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in Australian children, having a big impact on students and schools across the country.

Students can support this day by bringing along a gold coin donation and dressing up in rainbow colours and having wacky hair! At the end of the day, the school will assemble at the performing arts deck and a staff member will be taking part in the World’s Greatest Shave, shaving their head in front of the school! We look forward to seeing the rainbow of colour and witnessing the shave before we head home for the holidays.

As treatment plans requires patients to undertake blood transfusions, other ways to help include donating blood. If you are eligible to donate blood, you are urged to do so. Please click the link below for more information and how to register https://www.lifeblood.com.au/blood.

Traffic Safety

Last week I met with our Crossing Supervisors to gain a perspective from the footpath and they indicated some of the behaviours they are witnessing. These dedicated supervisors are continually worried about the safety of our students. They have requested that we keep in mind to take care and pay close attention to road rules around the crossings, especially stopping at the flags, please do not enter the crossing. We would prefer our students are a few minutes late in the morning, rather than being injured. Please take your time, follow parking signs and use your indicators.

When students are exiting cars at drop off, please ensure they are getting out on the passenger side of the car at the footpath, not behind the driver into oncoming traffic. When crossing the road, please use the crossings provided.

Clean Up Australia Day

A huge thank you to the 2024 Green Team members, Ms Brooke Danaher and Ms Bec Smith, who took part in our annual Clean Up Australia Day at Gardiners Creek. A thank you to the rest of the school who took part in Clean Up Australia Day at Solway! The yard was left looking very clean!

School Photo Day

Class photos and student individual photos will be taken on Tuesday 26 March. We expect to see all students in full school uniform with black or white socks and school coloured hair ties. The day's running schedule is quite tight, so please avoid appointments for students on this day. It would be a shame for a student to miss their class photo. Year 6 students are asked to bring along their Year 6 tops and wear their black polos (if they have one) for their class photo.

All students have an individual photo taken for our school records. The Photographers will take leadership group photos on the day, time permitting.

Year 5/6 Camp

We wish all of the year 5/6 students, teachers and parent helpers a wonderful time on camp! We hope the weather is kind to them and that the camp is lots of fun! A very big thank you to the parent helpers Neha, Manoj, Robyn, Chris, Erin and Lisa, along with the staff Josh, Nina, Rebecca, Kate, Tim, Tom, Ryoko and Sarah W for attending. Without this support, camps would be unable to go ahead.

Harmony Day

Harmony Week is this week, however with the year 5/6 Camp, Solway will celebrate on Wednesday 27 March. Students can come dressed in clothes for any cultural background or wear a touch of orange – the colour for Harmony Day. We look forward to celebrating the diversity of all in our community.

End of Term – School Holidays

How quickly the end of term arrives! It has been a short, however very busy one, so it is no surprise that our students and staff are tiring and looking forward to a well-earned break.

Over the school holiday break, parents can struggle to keep their children occupied and grapple with the guilt of trying to ensure their children are not bored. As I mentioned this time last year, over the holidays, I encourage you to welcome this feeling, to let your children find some time to engage their brain in boredom. In Brene Brown’s book: Atlas of the Heart, she discusses boredom and explains that when her children were young and bored, once the “I’m soooo bored” was over, often she would find them doing something really important, like daydreaming or creating.

Boredom allows our children to find their own things to do and, as Brene mentions, allows them an opportunity to create. I have heard a child psychologist recently discussing a therapy for teenagers on how to be bored. Our children live in a world of instant and constant gratification. They are no longer given time to be bored. If waiting for a train or bus, most people reach for their phone and scroll. When I went to school, we had to look around, engage and chat with other students and make connections or create. I encourage you to look for opportunities to allow your children this time to be bored and see where it takes them once they get past the initial complaining!

‘Children need time to themselves – to switch off from the bombardment of the outside world, to daydream, pursue their own thoughts and occupations, and discover personal interests and gifts.’

And it doesn’t matter if your child doesn’t have any apparent personal interests or hobbies that they can pursue independently.

‘Just letting the mind wander from time to time is important… for everybody’s mental wellbeing and functioning.’

‘A study has even shown that, if we can engage in some low-key, undemanding activity… the wandering mind is more likely to come up with imaginative ideas and solutions to problems.’

https://www.melbournechildpsychology.com.au/blog/the-benefits-of-boredom/

Please note that school finishes on Thursday 28 March at 2:30pm for the end of term. There is no school on Friday due to Good Friday Public Holiday.

We wish our families a safe and happy Term one and Easter break.

Lyn Rodda

Principal

Chess Club