Clyde North Campus News
End of Term
When we think of 10 weeks, we think that's a long time. However, as we've seen, 10 weeks flies by very quickly. And so, first term, 2023 has ended. It is without hesitation that I state Term one has been very successful for staff and students, and I hope parents have seen that also. The success of Term one is a result of the care, resilience, good humour and genuine love and respect staff and students have for one another. This was clear at the year 12 parents’ evening last week.
As the term comes to an end, I share you with you some final highlights and look back at what we achieved so far in 2023.
Year 12 Parent Evening: Informative and Relational
The focus of this evening is to reinforce the role parents play in their son/daughter’s final year of schooling. Parents are critical in supporting their child in the areas of health, wellbeing, and connectedness to home, school, and friends. This year we supported parents with a session from Elevate education a leading evidence-based skills provider which our Year 12 students have been engaging with this year already.
Since 2001, Elevate has been transforming the way study skills programs are run across Australia. Drawing upon over 20 years of research into the habits of the country’s top students, Elevate's high impact seminars & workshops help students improve their study techniques, increase motivation, build confidence, and lift exam performance.
Elevate presenter Bec, provided insightful tips and strategies for parents to support their child in:
- Time Management – how to really construct and stick a study timetable.
- Motivation – what it looks and how it can work to balance out your child’s hectic final year.
- Dealing with Technology.
There was no doubt that the Technology conversation was powerful. Parents and their son/daughter were introduce to the concept of self-regulating behaviour rather than controlling behaviour when it comes to managing the use and addiction of technology and social media. There are several apps that we can all use to regulate our time and use of technology. I encourage all parents and children to check out these innovative and fun ways of self-regulating behaviour in relation to technology recommended by Elevate.
Following on from this presentation, our college counsellors hosted a session on stress, called waves and storms. This is a highly successful way to manage conversations with our young people around stress and worry. Many a parent/caregiver knows only too well that when they ask, ‘are you ok?’ the response from their child is yeah. The waves and storm approach provides a different question, “are you feeling like you are in a storm or a wave right now?’ During this session the counsellors used an interactive method to educate both young people and parents/caregivers on what a storm is and what is a wave and which of the two needs more attention or support. Each parent/caregiver and young people went home with a wave/storm card to use as a prompt for those ‘are you ok’ questions.
The remainder of the evening provided parents/caregivers and their son/daughter to attend one of the following seminars hosted by our expert staff:
a. Careers – what am I thinking of doing next year with Robyn Cardamone (Careers Counsellor)
b. VCVE Vocational Major – seeking some clarity and direction with Paul Woodbridge (VM leader)
c. ATAR – what is it really and is it that important? With Carolyn Ellul (senior years curriculum leader)
My sincere thanks to Robyn, Paul, Carolyn and Jeannette Valencia who provided us with wonderful freshly baked treats to enjoy prior to the evening. Thank you to the parents and students who came and made this event very special.
I encourage all parents/caregivers to take the opportunities provide by the college such as these because they are important in supporting you staying connected with your child’s education from years 7 to year 12.
Term in Review
There is no doubt that 2023 so far has been a tremendous success in many ways especially students reconnecting with their learning and their peers. Much of the success has been our growing confidence that we are back in full time face to face learning with COVID whilst still a concern, not overshadowing how we engage with one another at school.
Three successes I would like to highlight are:
Mobile Phone Policy: Congratulations to students who have shown maturity and wisdom in supporting this new policy and leaving their phones in their lockers all day.
College Captains’ podcasts each Monday morning: This has been an outstanding success in showcasing how effective and powerful student voice and leadership can be.
Harmony Day: There is no doubt that this is one of the best days in the school calendar. Once again our campus was awash with the joyous colours of the diverse cultures and traditions that make our school amazing. This year we focussed on Australia’s Indigenous culture with elders conducting a traditional welcome to country, smoking ceremony, and showcasing the art of playing and tradition of the didgeridoo.
Whilst the term has been most productive and successful , we are still concerned with vaping and the impact it is having on students in all schools including primary schools. I urge every parent, caregiver, and guardian to check in with your child, remember if they are vaping at school, they are bringing the devices to school, therefore a critical conversation and action must first take place at home. We thank you in advance for your support.
Finally I wish you all a most joyous Easter and safe holidays with your family.
Julie Banda
Deputy Principal - Head of Clyde North Campus