Assistant Principal Update
It has been a pleasure to welcome our community back to MEPS to start another new term of discovery and learning together. The yard has been full of smiling faces as students have reconnected with each other after the holidays and settled easily back into their classroom and yard routines.
The Importance of Community and Belonging
Our first assembly of the term gave us a chance to pause and think more about history and the world around us while we acknowledged the importance of ANZAC day at school. Many students took this further and have since shared their family's involvement and traditions in recognizing ANZAC Day in the community by joining local services and commemorations. It is wonderful to hear about so many students that are engaging in their local community in such a meaningful way. Being part of these important moments in the community and at school create a strong sense of belonging that helps children to feel connected to those around them.
During our recently concluded school review, the visiting team worked with students to gain their perspective and one message that came through strongly was that our students were very proud of their school. One way to show this pride and sense of belonging is to wear our school uniform correctly and with pride to show everyone that you belong at MEPS. As the weather turns colder, you can assist your child in making sure they are prepared with the appropriate uniform if they are in need of a new size. The new MEPS beanie has been a hit with the kids as it cools! Our uniform shop is a great support to our school with new and second-hand uniforms and is open Tuesdays 1:30-3:30 and Thursdays 8:30-11:30. Students will be asked to remove non-school items and parents contacted if extra assistance is needed to meet the uniform expectations.
Digital Citizenship- Inform and Empower
Last term our school started working with Inform and Empower to assist our learning community in better understanding how to successfully navigate the digital world. Students learned more about their digital footprint, internet responsibilities and how to keep themselves safe online. This term our learning will continue and be supported in the upcoming weeks with a classroom incursion focused on healthy digital habits. Students will be learning more about screen time and green time balance, sleep habits, and when to "put down the tech."
Mental Health and Wellbeing
An important aspect of taking care of student's overall health is to maintain and care for their mental health and wellbeing. Later this term, our senior students will be working with Speak and Share, an organization that encourages conversations and learning about mental health, to educate and reduce mental health stigma. Speak and Share's mission is to ensure that family, friends and communities should never again see anyone in Australia suffer from the devastating impacts of poor mental health. Our 5/6 program with Speak and Share is intended to support students in developing emotional literacy and explore practical strategies and techniques that they can apply in school, at home and in their daily lives. Our Year 6 students are assisting us in trialling a wellbeing check in service during their weekly library times this term to better track how they are feeling when at school and privately let the teacher know if they want further discussion about an aspect of school or home that is bothering them. We are looking forward to their feedback to learn how effective they think this support is for them.
Kind regards,
Darren Thresher
Assistant Principal
Mt Eliza Primary School
Respect, Resilience, Responsibility, Connectedness and Challenge