Wellbeing
Settling Into The School Year
Welcome to Week 4! We now have all students onsite (except for Prep’s who still have Wednesdays off) and learning is well underway. Now is a good time to discuss practical strategies to help our kids settle into the school year.
1. Time for a debrief
At the end of a busy school day, it is important to make time for a brief conversation about “how their day” was. This could happen in the car trip home, while you are cooking dinner, or in bed at night at the end of the day. It is common for a lot of children to say “good” and move on so other questions might include:
• What did you learn today?
• Tell me one good thing about today?
• Is there anything that didn’t go well today?
• Who did you play with?
• What did you do at snack and lunch today?
• How is your teacher?
Allow children to “feel” their emotions. Don’t try to tell them to “stop crying”, or say “you’re OK, you don’t need to be upset” or “you will be fine, don’t worry!”. These don’t help to reduce anxiety, but they do dismiss the child’s feelings, which can add to their upset. Instead you could say “you’re feeling really sad, would you like to talk about it?”, or “I can see you had a hard day at school, would you like a hug to help you to calm down?”. Allowing your child to express their emotions (which may also manifest as anger, whining and shouting, as well as sadness) is the healthiest response here. Make sure you don’t add to their feelings though. There is a difference between empathising with them and projecting your own feelings onto the child! - excerpt taken from an article by Sarah Ockwell-Smith, ‘How to help Children Settle into School’.
Additional resources you may like to check out:https://raisingchildren.net.au/school-age/school-learning/school-homework-tips/talking-about-school
2. Not to overschedule
Families are very busy hubs of activity, and it is important to try and strike the balance between having our kids do some activity after school and not doing too much activity. A sporting activity can be a productive outlet to burn up energy. Also, a creative outlet like music, drama, or dance can be a great alternative to school academics.
Look for signs of your child being too tired. Check-in with them to see if the activity is “too much” and “if they are enjoying it”. Most importantly, ensure your child has days where they do nothing after school and can just play, unwind, and relax.
3. The importance of good sleep
It is crucial to ensure your child is getting enough sleep every night. The Australian Parenting website (raisingchildren.net.au) suggests that:
“At 5-11 years, children need 9-11 hours of sleep a night. For example, if your child wakes for school at 7 am and needs approximately 10 hours sleep per night, your child should be in bed before 9 pm.”
Below for some additional resources about sleep and sleep routines:https://raisingchildren.net.au/pre-teens/healthy-lifestyle/sleep/school-age-sleep https://raisingchildren.net.au/school-age/school-learning/school-choosing-starting-moving/starting-school#starting-primary-school-
What We’ve Been Up To
Miss Cora and Miss Smillie have started the first Seasons for Growth group of the year this week! Seasons for Growth is an early intervention education program that aims to teach children that change is a normal part of life, how to name and care for feelings, problem-solving skills, how to make good choices, and how to develop support networks. Children benefit from learning how significant changes can impact their lives and the program provides a space for participants to learn the knowledge, skills, and mindset required to understand and respond well to such experiences.
The first session starts with Autumn. This session focuses on getting to know each other and beginning to build trust and safety within the group. The group worked together to develop guidelines and boundaries for the Seasons for Growth group. Miss Cora and Miss Smillie look forward to continuing with Autumn and reflecting on changes in our lives next week.
The Wellbeing Team were also excited to welcome our 2025 Prep parents! Amidst the joys and tears of celebrating the milestone of the first day of school, we enjoyed a cuppa and conversation.
