Student Wellbeing

SWPBS – We Are Safe

Over the last 2 weeks we have shared in our newsletter our School Wide Positive Behaviour System (SWPBS) principles of ‘be connected’ and ‘be responsible’. This week we wanted to share our last principle of ‘we are safe'. Safety is a fundamental principle that ensures our school is a place where students can learn, play, and grow without fear of harm. By prioritising safety, we create an environment where everyone can thrive and feel secure. The principle of ‘we are safe’ not only includes our physical safety, but also us feeling safe in the environment, cyber safe and psychological safety.

The key expectations for being safe are straightforward yet vital. We wanted to share what these look like in all settings.

We keep our hands and feet to ourselves - we understand that physical boundaries are important in maintaining respectful relationships and preventing accidents. This includes the way we play in the yard, ensuring there is no tackling or rough play. 

We move appropriately around the school - whether in classrooms, hallways, or playgrounds, we avoid unnecessary risks and ensure that everyone can move about safely. When we leave the classroom during learning time, we move in groups of 3, this always ensures that there are multiple students who are supporting each other and can also get help if required. 

We follow instructions - which is crucial in maintaining a safe school environment. Whether it’s a teacher's direction in class, a rule during recess, or a safety procedure during an emergency, following instructions helps us all stay on the same page and avoid potential dangers. 

Another area of focus is our Digital Learning Spaces. In all our classrooms we have our Digital Learning Spaces expectations on display and taught by classroom teachers. In our ever changing digital world, the importance of this is more paramount than ever. The ‘we are safe’ expectations in our digital spaces include the following.

We keep personal details private - we educate our students about the importance of not sharing information like their home address or phone number with others. If they are asked to do so, we encourage our students to speak to a trusted adult for advice. 

We remove ourselves from an upsetting or uncomfortable situation - Online for students at home, this could include a heated argument in a game, or someone trying to contact them online they do not know or are not friendly with. We encourage students to calmly remove themselves from the situation and seek help from a teacher or trusted adult. This could also include when searching for something online and an inappropriate image or site pops up.

Next Tuesday the 10th September at 7pm, we have our parent cyber safety session run by ThinkUknow, which again will support the way we work with families to help keep our students safe.  Here is the link to rsvp: https://forms.gle/heZ3TKcrNAQkHpwj8

janine.hough@education.vic.gov.au     

bradley.ryan@education.vic.gov.au           

Janine and Brad.