Middle Years 

It is wonderful to have students back in class, and the transition to face to face learning has been positive and successful. It is great to have the natural energy and enthusiasm that students bring to the classroom, and the difference between remote learning and face to face learning is significant. This week my highlight has been talking to the students and to my peers: these conversations are incredibly important. 

Thank you to students for reliably and respectfully wearing masks, this is appreciated. We are all adjusting to masks during the school day. 

“The coronavirus is testing - and building - our resilience”

At the start of the holidays there was an interesting article on Resilience on the ABC website by Hayley Gleeson. 

Here are their Top Tips:

• Everyone has the capacity to deal with disruption and change. 
• Most people get back on track.
• Resilient kids tend to meet the world on their terms, are autonomous, independent, cheerful, sociable and have advanced self-help skills.
• Difficult times are important for building and knowing our capacity for resilience.
• You can reframe stress as challenge and opportunity to grow.
• Lean into the difficulties.

In summary:

• Focus on the positives (mindset).
• Pursue goals.
• Practise skills (mastery).
• Look for the silver lining (hope).
• Reflect on the things that matter.
• Remember, there are always some wins.

We are aiming to build resilience in our students, and I commented in recent Wellbeing classes that I feel students have learnt a lot about resilience in recent months. They have learnt about their own capacities to deal with challenges that are outside their control.

I sent students a Teams message outlining our goals and expectations this term. 

“After RLP 2.0…you need to Work hard. Commit to your learning. Get organised. Be proactive. Be kind and caring”.

Finally, I encourage all students to make the most of this term. We are looking forward to seeing you next week.

Article link: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-20/the-pandemic-is-testing-and-building-our-resilience/12645906

Mrs Julia Winter Cooke

Head of Middle Years