From the Leadership Team
Lucas Collins, Head of Junior School
Supporting students during times of transition
The second half of Term 4 is a truly unique and dynamic time at schools. This is especially the case for schools where the student population spans from kindergarten to Year 12, such as at Kilvington.
While recognising and celebrating the academic year that has been, it's tough not to
become completely absorbed by the whirlwind of significant occasions taking place throughout the School.
This time of year brings something of a ‘split-screen’ mode of thought and planning for our team; where we are enjoying each moment of our final few weeks together while also preparing busily for the year to come.
For our students, 2023 will bring about changes to what they've known and come to accept as ‘normal’ at school during the past year. Almost all will have different teachers and classmates and will be learning new content and concepts, often via a different timetable and in unfamiliar learning spaces.
While this is a time of great excitement and opportunity for many, it’s also unsurprising that given the scale of change, an unsettling period of heightened emotions can come about for some students.
As teachers and family members, it's incredibly hard not to immerse ourselves too deeply in the initial challenges (and the related emotions and responses) of our students and children as they adjust and adapt to their ‘new normal’.
While our initial desire is often to attempt to intervene and ‘fix’ the situation, Educational Psychologist Vanessa LoBue argues that, in the medium and longer-term, these well-intentioned attempts to ‘solve’ challenges for our children can actually have a negative impact on their resilience, problem-solving skills and emotional recognition, regulation and awareness.
Instead, it is recommended that families employ a range of positive and proactive strategies to support children in times of change and uncertainty. The first, and most critical of these, is to validate but try to avoid amplifying the emotions and concerns your child is experiencing.
Listening to them and empathising with how they’re feeling is critical, even when we may feel that these emotions are excessive or disproportionate to the issue. Other suggestions include:
- Identifying ‘pillars of stability’ – people and routines in your child’s world that remain unchanged during unsettling times.
- Revisiting previous periods of change and reflecting on how your child used effective strategies to navigate these situations.
- Supporting them to focus on what they can control – perhaps they won’t have their closest friend in their new class/es, but this provides an opportunity for debriefs and updates during break times and social engagements.
We are fortunate to have a dedicated and highly experienced Wellbeing Team here at Kilvington, who support the wellness of each of our students (and their families) throughout the year.
If your child is encountering concerns relating to transition, please consider employing some of the ideas above. Reach out to your child’s class teacher or mentor, as we encourage you to do at any time during the year with any queries or concerns relating to your child’s academic, social or emotional wellbeing or care.
Staffing news
Sonia Murr will join us in 2023 as Academic Dean of English. She is currently a Senior English Teacher at McKinnon Secondary College. Sonia has also had previous experience as Learning Area Leader-English at Woodleigh School and Head of House at St Leonard's College. She has a Graduate Diploma of Education from Monash University and Bachelor of Arts from RMIT University.
Congratulations to John Knap who will take on the role of Dean of Wellbeing-Fethers from the start of next year.
We will farewell Philip Thiel, Academic Dean of English, Ben Wood, Dean of Wellbeing-Fethers, and Alan Clarke, International Student Coordinator, at the end of this term. We thank these staff for their wonderful contribution to the School and wish them the very best in their new roles.