Wellbeing Report 

School Drop Off

In the mornings, some children may need a little extra support and reassurance when you drop them off at school.  This kiss and drop is staffed from 8:30am where extra staff are available to help.  Mary and I are happy to offer reassurance, to walk students down to their classroom, communicate with the classroom teacher and also give you a call.

If your child is feeling overwhelmed settling back into school, please give your child’s teacher a call. Always acknowledge their feelings as this will give them a sense of control. Predictability is important for children to feel confident from the beginning so please be punctual at drop off and pick up time at the end of the day.

Tips-

• When kids are emotionally flooded, let them burn it out.
• Try to give them more time to follow home routines and help them by being calm and reassuring. 
• We need to step into their world and use helpful language, for example, “I know you are trying”.
• Remember their developmental capacity, especially under stress.
• Watch, wait and listen.

Grade 6 Transition 

The Wellbeing Team have been busy supporting our Grade 6 students transiting to secondary school.  The students have been comfortable sharing their excitement and worries about going up to Year 7. Many students are worried about issues that adults would not necessarily be concerned with. For example, “what happens if…..I can’t find my classroom, I miss my bus or I forget where to go”?  The students have been supportive of each other’s nerves and problems and we talk through the worries together. We will continue to check in with the students each until the end of the term. 

On Monday we had a Grade 6 Transition Question and Answer session with Upper Yarra Secondary College.  Principal, Scott Tully and Wellbeing Coordinator, Tracey Smedley offered practical advice and responses to a range of questions to help students, parents and carers navigate the secondary system. If you are looking for any assistance, please let us know. 

Woori Gift Giving Tree Community Appeal-Xmas Tree Wanted

In a couple of weeks, Veronica, Lily and I are excited that we are going to run our annual Christmas Gift Drive again. We need a Christmas tree and we are interested if there is anyone in our community who would like to donate a tree for our appeal. After such a challenging year for everyone we really want focus on reaching out to our families who may have a tough Christmas. No matter how big or small, if you have an old tree that you no longer use please give me a call.     

Sleep

How Much Sleep Do Children Need?

• Babies: at least 15 hours sleep and up to 20 when they are very young
• Toddlers & Pre-schoolers (1 - 5): about 12 to 14 hours sleep
• Primary School: about 10 to 12 hours sleep
• High School: at least 8 hours but up to 10 hours sleep

Many children regularly complain when they come to school that they are tired, couldn’t get to sleep or they had a late night.  This impact on their ability to tune in and retain their learning and can affect their relationships and problem solving skills.   As adults we understand how we are affected when we are over tired and I would like to encourage parents to actively have reasonable expectations about bedtime routines. 

Friendships

The Wellbeing Team have been supporting students on “cool” and “uncool” friendship behaviours.  Ask your child how they are being a cool friend by-

• Asking to join in   
• Using a kind voice
• Standing up for a friend
• Agreeing on rules in a game
• People are not property 

Free Happy Families Membership

Veronica and I are thrilled that a number of families have joined the Happy Families membership.  We have had lots of positive comments that parents and carers are enjoying the website. If you haven’t got around to joining, it’s not too late. The Happy Families membership gives you access to a number of resources which will help families, staff and students to thrive.  Every member will receive a weekly "Lighten the Load" email, which includes a quick, easy to apply tip from Dr Justin, as well as some updates about other features in the membership. There is a library of parenting resources which offers calm assurance, direction and solutions you can try out on your families. 

Click on the link to join: https://members.happyfamilies.com.au/woori-yallock-primary-school

Head Lice 

This week, we have had another case of live lice found in the junior school.  We ask parents to work with us to keep our reports low and to continue to treat and monitor your children’s hair. Please notify the office or tell your child’s teacher when you treat your child so lice alert notes can issued on COMPASS.  Reminder-any child found with live lice will be excluded from school until they are treated. 

World Kindness Day Saturday 13th November

In 1998 the World Kindness movement started in Japan and this day is now celebrated in over all over the world.  The idea for World Kindness Day is to spread kindness with small things.  The tradition means for people to be kind and to try and encourage kindness over hatred. Whether it’s helping someone out, taking the time to ask how someone is doing or complimenting someone, the day of the game is kindness and we all have it in us. 

There is some scientific research that suggests-

• Kindness is contagious Researchers from the Stanford Social Neuroscience Laboratory when people see someone else being kind, they are more likely to act kindly towards others. 
• It pays to be kind People who are constantly kind produce 23% less of the stress hormone, cortisol.  Due to the lower levels of stress, people who practice kindness age slower than the average population. 
• Kindness lowers blood pressure  Good feelings release the hormone oxytocin, which dilates the blood vessels and lowers blood pressure. 

Service Supports & Agencies

During the lock down there are many organisations across Yarra Ranges offering support and assistance.   For community relief and support agencies, click on the link at:

https://www.yarraranges.vic.gov.au/Council/Coronavirus-Updates/Community-relief-and-support-agencies

For people looking for food relief, CIRE at the Yarra Junction hub, have food parcels and they have free bread on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. The Yarra Junction hub is open during lockdown for essential services only; food relief and they are a Centrelink Access Point. This service can be accessed by appointment where the school Welfare Team can refer families. If you are interested or know of any one you would like to recommend please contact me. During the school holidays people can enquire directly at CIRE.  They are located next to the Yarra Junction Post Office and they are open Mon-Fri: 9am-4pm.

Don’t forget to connect with the Resilience Project resources online for parents. There are some fantastic resources to promote wellbeing in families:

https://theresilienceproject.com.au/at-home/parent-carer-information/

The last few weeks it has been great catching up with parents and carers.  If you need help with school uniform, a food hamper or enquires for other services please call Veronica, Lily or myself. Have a fantastic fortnight and we will see you around the school.