Deputy Principal, Wellbeing
School Photos - 2022
Dear parents, carers and guardians
I am writing to let you know about changes to the provision of Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) in our school for the remainder of Term Two.
RATs will continue to be distributed, however, from Monday 23 May 2022, students will no longer be recommended to undertake either twice weekly RATs. Students who are household contacts to attend school must continue to do RATs (5 negative tests over a 7 day period) or who have symptoms.
The ongoing supply of RATs to families in our school will ensure that parents and carers will have them should they need them if their child is a household contact or has symptoms.
Families must continue to notify the Department of Health and the school if their child returns a positive RAT result. Additionally, you should inform us if any of your children are household contacts.
Kristen Waldron
Deputy Principal Wellbeing
School Photos - 2022
School Photos 2022 – The Hamilton and Alexandra College – Senior School
Annual school photos, including sibling photos, will be taken at The Hamilton and Alexandra College Secondary Campus by Arthur Reed Photos on Friday 27 May 2022.
There is no need to return any forms or money to school.
Unique image codes will be issued to all students on/after photo day so families can register online to view images when they become available in the web shop.
Registration is simple, just follow the three simple steps on your child’s personalised flyer once you receive it and remember to add the codes for all your children attending this school.
Even if you registered last year, it’s important that you do again this year using your child’s 2022 image code to link their images for the current year with your contact details.
When images are ready to view and in the web shop, all parents who have registered will be notified by SMS and email.
Once registered, please wait for notification that 2022 images are online to view before making your purchase.
Kristen Waldron
Deputy Principal Wellbeing
Wellbeing
Parents: seven reminders that will get you through
This week my newsletter inspiration comes from the wise mind of one of my favourite parenting educators and speakers, Michelle Mitchell. I have many phone discussions with parents each week about frustrations and difficulties they are facing with raising their children, particularly during the challenging adolescent phase.
Michelle offers seven reminders for parents that are worth sharing and thinking about. I will share some of her reminders this week and then again in a fortnight.
Reminder statement 1: “It’s only season one.”
“If you knew me before my 20s you never actually knew me. You knew Season 1 of me.” Author unknown
Season 1 looks like a messy, smelly 14-year-old boy who grunts and has one-word answers to almost everything you say. You feel like you barely know him anymore and you wonder what is going on in his world. Season 1 looks like a headstrong 15-year-old girl who blames you for everything in life that doesn’t go her way. You don’t know how to let her know you are on her team. Season 1 is a difficult time for everyone, but we must normalise the seasons of life. If we don’t, we may give up prematurely.
And while you are reminding yourself, take a trip down memory lane. It’s really easy to forget what Season 1 felt like for you. I’m sure that you did things that you knew your parents didn’t approve of. You might have gone with the crowd and made decisions you later regretted. Mistakes are unfortunately a part of Season 1.
Reminder statement 2: “I won’t use a full stop.”
When your tween or teen has a bad moment – one of those deliberate mess ups that causes your world to spin – NEVER put a full stop at the end of that incident. Stop, breathe for a moment, and choose a comma. A “mess up” could be any number of things – sexting, drug use or any poor or uncalculated decision. Know that the moment you use a full stop your imagination fixes them in that place – forever. It pauses their growth. You basically take a 13 year old, and add a beard, partner and a few kids … and imagine them unable to cope with their responsibilities.
Be reassured of this – many things won’t transfer to their adult years. Their worst moments will look more like a comma rather than a full stop. As parents our job is to look ahead. If you are wise, you will allow your imagination to take their best self into the future, rather than their messiest moment.
Reminder statement 3: “I am the parent.”
The tween years can be blissful, or at the very least manageable. Parenting a teenager isn’t always fun. It can be a sacrificial time for parents who have to invest, love and care more than they are thought imaginable. That responsibility can become a heavy weight. Know that when your child wants you out of their world, they need you in it the most. It’s helpful to remind ourselves that parenting grows us up too. Dealing with our own shortcomings makes it as easy as possible for our relationship with our teens to stay intact. After all, a parent’s love is a child’s greatest advantage in life.
For the whole article from Michelle, please use the link below.
A reminder to students and parents, that headspace can be accessed via the telephone and also online. Headspace offers students support for their mental health in a safe and confidential way, and can be accessed outside of school hours.
https://headspace.org.au/online-and-phone-support/
Kate Couchman
Student Counsellor