Thrive & Flourish

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

Welcome to Week Four of Term Four. We wish the Grade Five/Six children and their teachers all the best for their camp in Canberra this week. This camp is a fantastic opportunity for the children to learn about and experience life in our nation’s capital. It is also a great chance to spend time with friends and teachers in a learning capacity outside of the classroom. We look forward to hearing about the highlights of their time away from the children when they return. 

For those currently unwell, we hope for a speedy recovery for you. 

For those who’ve welcomed a new addition to the family, we extend our warmest congratulations on this happy occasion.

For those families who’ve experienced a recent bereavement, please know you are in the prayers and thoughts of all in our community.

Attendance

Parents/guardians are responsible for making sure that all children attend school every day unless they are too unwell, in which case the school must be advised. If families are going to be away for an extended period, (eg: family holiday), we ask that prior notice is given to the school, so that if parents wish, a learning program can be put in place for their children. 

If parents would like support with this, please feel free to contact a member of the Wellbeing Team. We thank you for your support with this.

PBIS    

Our current total of tickets for this term is…………

What a fantastic effort to achieve so many tickets. Our goal is to reach 3500 tickets. We are so close!!!!! 

Well done to the children on their enthusiasm for collecting raffle tickets and helping to build a positive and affirming community here at Sacred Heart.

Our current whole-school blitz is focusing on wearing hats outside.

Our school Sun Smart Policy states that children are required to wear their school hat when outside. This includes before school, during play breaks, when participating in Physical Education lessons and others times when they may be outside. If children do not have a hat, they are to sit under the verandah area in the quadrangle. 

Well done to the school for being so responsible and ensuring they are wearing their hats outside.

Helping Children Cope with 

Children like routine. They thrive on knowing what happens when. But life doesn’t stay the same – people move houses, move towns, change jobs to name a few. As we approach the end of the school year, we know that changes will have taken place when we return for the 2025 school year – classroom location, teachers and classmates. Although exciting, for some children, changes to routine, environment and familiar tasks can become a little overwhelming.

Parents can play a vital role in helping their children learn how to cope with change, arming them with valuable life skills along the way. According to a growing body of research, children learn how to cope with change and ups and downs of life by developing resilience.

For years it was considered one of the inherent traits we were all born with but psychologists today now know that it’s one of the most important qualities parents can teach their children (along with compassion). And the earlier this resilience-building is started the better.

And how do they learn it? Apparently by watching us. Studies have shown that children as young as two years old copy the coping, stress-management and thinking styles of the adults around them. And they can sense if parents are anxious or worried and will tend to mimic that.

Reinforcing this “it starts at home” message, Andrew Fuller, consultant psychologist for The Resilience Foundation and author of Tricky Kids, says resilient parents raise resilient children. Fuller describes resilience as “the happy knack of being able to bungee jump through the pitfalls of life”.

We can use these strategies to help children manage change:

1. Be prepared to answer a myriad of questions – and create an environment in which they feel safe about asking you anything about the changes they’re facing. Asking questions helps them process change and the answers they receive from the people they trust most – that is mum and dad – will help them transition. If you don’t know the answer, it is okay “I don’t know, can we ask at school tomorrow?”
2. Give warning (where possible) – like adults, some children will not cope well with change being sprung on them. If you can, start talking through the changes early so they can get their head around it as well as formulate all those aforementioned questions. Changes to school routines are communicated by the school. You can discuss these with your child before they arrive at school.
3. Stick to routines as much as possible – try not to change everything at once. If you have routines in place like bedtime rituals, the books you read, even the TV shows you all watch, try to keep those in place where possible. 
4. Let them grieve - when any of us move, change rooms, or make any kind of change in life, we leave something behind. Let your children talk about what they miss and try to point out all of the wonderful things about the new routine or changes in their life.
5. Be prepared to weather the change – many children don’t adapt immediately and there may be tears. Expect that it can take time for children to adjust. 

If you are concerned, please speak to your child’s teacher or a member of the wellbeing team.

Wellbeing Support

Wellbeing support can be accessed in the following ways:

• Any staff member can arrange for a referral to Student Wellbeing if they have concerns about a student’s wellbeing.
• Parents can also request support for their child/ren by contacting a member of the wellbeing team at school.

Email:

Tony McDonald: tmcdonald@shtatura.catholic.edu.au

Felicity Bryant: fbryant@shtatura.catholic.edu.au

Deb Turvey: dturvey@shtatura.catholic.edu.au

• At times, a student may be referred to an external support service. We also respect the fact that some students and parents may prefer to seek professional support independent from the school setting. In such cases, Sacred Heart values working collaboratively with external support services. We encourage parents/carers to communicate with the school if there is a significant issue affecting their child’s wellbeing.

If ever you need help sorting out personal or family issues, give CatholicCare Victoria a call.  They offer many services to all members of our community – ALL FREE.

Tony, Deb and Felicity.