Principal's Report

What a great fortnight our students have had. Last week saw our Year 4-6 students participating in the Swimming Carnival: with 31 students moving to the district competition next week. And, following our recent tennis trials, we have three students representing our school in the district tennis competition on March 8.

This week also saw students across the school commemorate the anniversary of the 2008 speech issued by Kevin Rudd, apologising to the Stolen Generation. Whilst our Preps did not delve all the way into Kevin Rudd’s speech, they read the story “Sorry Day”, explored what it means to be sorry and discussed how saying sorry is an important part of restoring relationships. We are so proud of our littlest community members for sharing their own experiences of apologising and being sorry. 

Kevin Rudd’s moving apology can be viewed here:

We proudly acknowledge that we live, work, play and learn in Wurundjeri Country.

School Council Elections

It’s that time of year where we call for nominations from our parent and carer community to join School Council. The FNPS School Council is a group of active and passionate individuals who are dedicated to improving the outcomes for our students and our school. 

Joining the FNPS School Council or one of our sub-committees is a great opportunity for our families to gain an insight into the governance structure under which our school operates and be actively involved in our school community. With regards to the minimum time commitment, School Council members are required to attend eight School Council meetings per year, along with eight one hour sub-committee meetings per year.

Joining School Council involves a nomination and, if the number of nominations exceeds the number of vacancies, an election process. For further information on the election process, including how you might nominate yourself or someone else, please refer to the attached School Council Elections – Information for Families document which also includes the timeline for this process. 

To view the Notice of Election, which outlines the number of vacancies for 2024, please refer to the attached document FORM 2 – Notice of Election. 

Both these documents can be found on the School Council Elections page in this newsletter.

Unfortunately, electronic nominations are not permitted. To self-nominate, or to nominate another community member, please pick up a nomination form from the front office.

Should you have any queries, please feel free to contact me via email:

tania.sorbello@education.vic.gov.au

Rainbow Day

On Monday 12th February, FNPS held our Rainbow Day fundraiser. Lots of people dressed up in wonderful outfits and brought gold coin donations to support the LGBTQIA+ community. We raised a lot of money which will be donated to Minus 18.

If you don’t know about Minus 18, it’s a not for profit organisation supporting the queer youth community. They put on events such as the queer formal and pride march. They also provide resources and help for teens who need it most. All of your contributions will help so many people. 

Thank you for reading and have a great weekend!

Bea – 6BA

Student Arrival and Pick-up

There have been an increasing number of students arriving at school quite early each morning. Please be advised that staff supervision begins at 8:45am and children are not supervised in the yard before this time. We ask that parents and carers ensure students are not left unsupervised before official supervision begins.

This is also a reminder to families that, in the interests of keeping your children safe, we ask that you do not double park during drop-off or pick-up times. Double parking causes congestion on the street and creates blind spots for children and families attempting to cross the road. Whilst I understand the difficulties around parking in our area, accidents can inadvertently happen in the blink of an eye, so I ask that all families refrain from this activity. 

Upcoming Events

Parent / Carer -Teacher Meet and Greet

Our Parent / Carer - Teacher Meet and Greet afternoon is scheduled to be held on Wednesday  21st February 2024 from 1:20pm – 6pm. These 10 minute appointments will be an opportunity for you to meet your child’s teacher and share any relevant and important information about their learning preferences. Appointments are currently open through Compass. Please reach out to the office if you require assistance booking your time.

Students will finish at 12:45pm on this day so, if required, please contact TheirCare for supervision for the afternoon. 

Teaching and Learning Update

Following two years of our Library being used as classrooms, we are so excited to be able to reinstate the space as the FNPS Library. Over the past three weeks, our Librarian Michael, has been busy auditing resources and restoring the Library to its former glory. We are hoping to commence official Library Lessons in the coming weeks; we’ll be sure to let you know once the area is complete so you can pop in and take a look.

Our Maths and Literacy teams have also been spending the past few weeks undertaking resource audits and putting together lists of items required for purchasing which include new maths manipulatives, take home readers and library books. We can’t wait to add these materials to our already existing collections.

To that end, I would like to thank all of our families for payment of their family contributions, along with their donations to our Library and Building Funds. These additional funds support the purchasing of these wonderful new materials to enhance your child’s learning experience. 

Finally, I would like to thank those families who have contributed to our Student Support Fund; ensuring every FNPS student has the opportunity to participate in school incursions, excursions and camps.

Chinese New Year

Last week, the children and staff immersed themselves in learning about Chinese New Year. The children explored the cultural significance of this celebration and, through Visual Arts, made artistic representations of this year’s Chinese Zodiac sign. As we enter into the Year of the Dragon, a Yang Earth sign representing confidence and resilience, may you experience the fortune and success symbolised by the noble and powerful Dragon.

Take a look at some of the amazing works produced by the children last week.

When School Means Anxiety

For many children, the beginning of the school year can mean reconnecting with friends; sharing tales of holiday adventures and slipping back into the routine of learning. For many other children, however, this return to school can bring with it heightened levels of anxiety and trepidation about the year ahead. Below is a great article from the Happy Families website, discussing the manifestation of this anxiety and the ways in which we can support our children to thrive at school each and every day.

As the first day of school edges closer, we get busy organising school uniforms, picking up book orders and sorting out art supplies. There are new shoes to buy and after-school activities to plan. It’s exhausting, and expensive, but for many families it’s also exciting.

Parents feel anticipation. We get our lives back (at least a bit) once the kids are back at school. It means relief!

Our children don’t always feel as positive as we do though. Many kids experience anxiety – sometimes profoundly – with fears about new classes and teachers, or maybe even new schools and friends.

Anxiety can be hard to recognise in our children. They don’t typically say, “Mum, I’m feeling genuine and deep fear about going to school next week.” For a start, they’re typically not that ‘verbal’, preferring to keep their fears to themselves. Secondly, they may not actually recognise what they’re feeling. As parents, our job is to watch for signs of anxiety so we can coach and support our children.

What does anxiety ‘look’ like? Sometimes it can look like illness. ‘I don’t feel well’, or ‘My tummy hurts’, are common complaints. Unfortunately too many parents accuse their children of being hypochondriacs rather than understanding the source of their pain.

Other times it can show in the form of defiant or angry behaviour. Our child acts out, argues, and creates conflict – at home or at school. We think they’ve got an attitude problem or a behavioural problem, but they’re actually worried and don’t know how else to show it except via anti-social outbursts. And then we get them in trouble!

Whatever form anxiety takes, anxious thoughts are actually a sign of a brain that is doing its job. We are wired to keep ourselves safe. Anxious thoughts are the brain’s way of saying, ‘You might be in danger’. When our brain identifies a threat – real or otherwise – our fight or flight response is triggered. Our bodies are flooded with neurochemicals that build anxiety. It all comes from feeling unsafe. Whether the danger is real or not is entirely irrelevant.

When it comes to school anxiety, we may feel that our child is safe. But we don’t know what they know. They may be fearful of a teacher, a fellow student, or simply being away from us. It could be the school yard, the school bus, or the toilet block. Telling them, ‘You’ll be right. Don’t worry about it. Stop being so silly’, is not going to help them overcome their anxiety.

Instead, I recommend the following:

Name It

My favourite saying on this topic is “If you can name it you can tame it.” Talk to your child about what anxiety is, how it makes you feel and where it comes from. Research shows that putting feelings into words can disrupt the brain’s anxiety instincts and alleviate negative emotional responses.

But timing is everything. As emotions go up, intelligence goes down. Talking about things in the middle of an anxious moment won’t help. Wait for a time when your child is calm and open to conversation. Then speak to them in a way they can understand about why they feel anxious. Explain that their brain is simply trying to protect them. Tell them that it is normal to feel this way and that there are ways they can help themselves to feel better.

Brave Thoughts

Brisbane psychologist, Karen Young, says kids should use brave thinking to replace negative thinking. We need to teach our kids that when anxious thoughts are occupying our brain, there’s no room for other happy thoughts – they’re crowded out.

But we can replace anxious thoughts with brave thoughts. ‘Brave thoughts (‘I can do this.’) lead to brave behaviour. Calm thoughts (‘Breathe in… breathe out.’) lead to calm behaviour’, Karen says. Encourage them to talk back to their anxious brain, with brave thinking.

Provide Practical Support

Sometimes our anxious kids may still need a little bit of practical support from mum and dad as well.

Think about your child’s individual worries and brainstorm (with their input) ways to tackle those worries. If your child is starting a new school, help them become familiar with the school before starting – take a tour, meet the teacher and see where the facilities are. Or, if your child is worried about seeing friends, organise a playdate for the week or two before so they have a chance to reignite friendships.

It also helps to get back into the routine of school at least a week in advance. Take some time to work out all the worries about uniforms, and how to pack their backpack and lunch boxes.

Shower Them With Love

The last and best thing you can do for your anxious child is to show them love. Love is associated with reduced depression and anxiety, and it’s an easy thing to do for our kids.

To combat first day anxiety you could put a small toy in their backpack that has a kiss on it, or give them a kiss for each hand to take with them. You could write funny notes on their lunch bag or pop a little picture of yourself in their backpack. It could be any little token that helps them to feel safe and brave and loved.

Understand

Finally, be understanding. Don’t dismiss or disapprove of the anxious feelings, even if they seem to be sticking around. Being brave takes time. Back to school anxiety is very real and can be paralysing. But it doesn’t have to be. Name it, explain it, teach brave thoughts, and always, always give love and you’ll find anxiety significantly decreases (for your kids and you)!

For more articles and practical tips on supporting children, head to Happy Families - Resources and Advice

Go gently,

Tania