Principal's Report
Principal’s Report
Co-Curricular Programs
One of the great strengths of Brentwood is the breadth of opportunities available to students beyond their regular classroom learning. Alongside our strong focus on learning and wellbeing, we want students to be involved in experiences that help them build confidence, strengthen connections, explore their interests and contribute positively to our school community.
Over recent weeks, our students have had the opportunity to participate in a wide range of events and activities, including our Whole School Production (The Addams Family), Music Madness, HEART Week, Market Day, Year 8 and 9 Health and Wellbeing Days, a range of interschool sport activities, and our German Immersion Camp.
The coming weeks will continue to be busy, with the Spring Music Concert, Monash Athletics, Junior (Year 7/8) Sport, our Japanese Exchange program, Year 10 Duke of Edinburgh Camp, Year 11 Formal, Year 10 Work Experience, Year 9 City Experience, and a number of other excursions, incursions and co-curricular opportunities still to come.
These experiences do not happen without the commitment of our staff. On behalf of the Principal Team, I would like to acknowledge and thank the many staff who give their time, energy and expertise to organise and support these opportunities. Their willingness to contribute beyond the classroom plays an important role in creating a rich and engaging school experience for our students.
Child Safety – Who is on your teenager's safety team?
As part of our ongoing commitment to child safety and wellbeing, we encourage families to continue having open conversations with young people about who they can turn to when they feel worried, uncomfortable or unsafe.
The National Office for Child Safety describes a young person's “safety team” as a group of trusted adults who will listen, believe and help when support is needed. For teenagers, this might include parents or carers, other family members, a teacher or staff member at school, a friend's parent, a coach or another trusted adult in their community.
One simple conversation families might have at home is: “If something happened and you didn't feel comfortable telling me straight away, who are the other adults you would trust to help you?”
Families might also consider establishing a simple code word that a young person can text or say if they are ever in a situation where they feel unsafe and need help, without having to explain everything at that moment.
Creating a network of trusted adults reinforces an important message for all young people: if something doesn't feel right, they don't have to manage it alone.
For more information about having conversations with your young person about child safety, the National Office for Child Safety website has a range of useful resources and conversation starters specifically designed for teenagers. These can support conversations around topics including help-seeking, consent, respectful relationships and personal safety:
Learning Conferences
A quick reminder that we have our Learning Conference tomorrow - Thursday the 3rd of September.
Learning Conferences are a valuable opportunity for a three-way conversation between parents, students and teachers. As active participants in their own education, students are expected to attend the learning conferences with you and are encouraged to reflect on their efforts and discuss future learning goals and challenges with both you and their teachers. In preparation for the conversations, we encourage you to check your child’s Progress Report and Learning Tasks on Compass and discuss with your child their learning progress to date and identify questions you may wish to ask of teachers when you meet.
Aaron Palmer
Assistant Principal – Director of Wellbeing