Student Wellbeing
Hi everyone! Wow here we are in Week 3. The term is ticking along, possibly a little faster than we may have anticipated.
Whilst we have had some great weather since we last chatted, these past couple of days have brought with it the reminder that the cooler and wet weather is possibly around the corner and the desire for both big and little people to stay rugged up and snooze the alarm is very tempting!
However, the importance of ensuring students are at school in readiness to start their day when the school bell sounds is vital.
Lateness matters
Several studies have shown that late arrivals to school and absenteeism have a negative impact on learning outcomes. By the mere nature of arriving late and missing school hours, students receive fewer hours of instruction than those students who are in class when the siren sounds. But not only does a student who is consistently arriving late to school establish bad punctuality habits, their lateness can also disrupt the learning of other students in their classes.
The following advice is adapted from an article and clearly explains how frequent lateness to school impacts on our children’s wellbeing and their learning.
We all run late sometimes. For your child, arriving late to school occasionally won't cause major disruption. Inevitably, children will feel sick or tired some mornings, or other situations will prevent them from being on time. But chronic lateness eventually takes its toll on a child's overall educational experience. Missing just 10 percent of the school year in the early grades causes many students to struggle in primary school, and lateness in later grades is associated with increased failure and dropout rates. Fortunately, parents can help prevent this from becoming frequent enough to negatively impact their child's school life.
Disrupted routines
One of the most important aspects of school is that it is organised, scheduled and predictable. Students depend on the structure of the day. They know where they have to be and when. They know the main purpose for being in school is to learn and that routines are in place precisely to help them focus on that learning. When students are repeatedly late, these routines are disrupted. Children who are often late have trouble settling in and mastering routines. This can throw off their whole morning or even their day, especially if the late commute to school was stressful.
Encouraging your child/children to organise their bag etc., the evening before will assist the family unit to have a smooth start to the day without too many complaints.
Mrs Kerry Browne
Student Wellbeing Coordinator