As we look back on 2021, the challenges it bought and the moments that it has helped us to celebrate and honour, we see so many examples of our new school values;

AUTHENTICITY

2021 has asked that every member of our community stay authentic to their own personal narrative, but it has also asked that the school stay true and authentic to who we are and what our purpose is. A huge part of being authentic means firstly understanding who we are as a school and as a community. The school review this year helped us to look closely at our students, our community and our data and understand in great detail (without hiding anything!) We were able to celebrate many successes such as the consistent implementation of the school’s literacy and numeracy instructional models, the work on our school wide wellbeing program and the fantastic work of our specialist teachers. Through this process of understanding who and where we were, we were able to set some realistic and exciting goals for our future - goals that enable us to further define who we authentically are, as well as who we want to be.

CONNECTION

For a school with community being a proud part of our identity, a global pandemic requiring social isolation was always going to be tricky. There’s no denying that we have all felt the loss of our social and communal connections, cementing the importance of social networks. Throughout this year we have seen students, staff and families persist with finding new ways to foster and maintain relationships under varying pressures; it is no surprise that (all things considered) we have done exceptionally well.

Here at school, this year’s periods of isolation have reinforced to what extent learning is a social enterprise. Time spent at school is not only about learning to read and write, it is also about communication, empathy, patience and diversity. Our partnership with Social Learning Studios provides us with a framework to guide the development of our social-emotional skills, which we will continue to focus on for years to come. Guided Play has made a remarkable impact on our youngest students’ development and will continue to be implemented from F-2 next year.

Our community remains, with new perspectives and skills. Like muscles after exercising, we have endured stress and need time to restore, but we will be stronger as a result of our hurdles this year. For those of you who graduated this year (students and families), we can’t wait to welcome you back with open arms at a school event in the future.

RESPECT

The challenges that 2021 (and 2020!) have dumped on our relationships with ourselves, our families and our community have meant that we have had to work extra hard at approaching all of these relationships with the respect that they each deserve. This evolved model of respect has meant thinking more carefully before we say or write something, or thinking deeply about who we are communicating with and what experiences they may have had before our interaction. Sometimes this thinking has even had to be applied to our interactions with ourselves! At BNWPS this year, we faced the challenges of using online meeting spaces in respectful ways, as well as engaging in respectful communication when these platforms (or the world!) were not going the way that we expected or needed them to. As part of our vision for the future, BNWPS continues to take part in respectful relationships and interactions with the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, and the land that they have cared for for so long. Next year, to continue to foster respect and connection, we will be holding our annual Wominjeka picnic, where Wurundjeri elders will carry out a welcoming ceremony. We look forward to seeing our whole community there to respect the narrative of the land and its people, as well as finally being able to gather together for the first time in nearly two years.

CREATIVITY

The proverb ‘necessity is the mother of invention’ was apt more than once this year! Over the past 12 (...24…) months, everyone has experienced multiple moments of being thrown into situations and roles we were not used to operating within. With the esteemed responsibility of supporting our tiny humans to reach their full potential, we have all collaborated to make it work!

Creativity is art, problem solving, production and experimentation. Creativity is about making something that did not exist before - by combining or changing what used to be. We can create beauty, solutions, connections, culture, strength, happiness and knowledge. Creativity rarely stands on its own - by creating something, we are often creating or facilitating so much more.

A wonderful example of this is our new STELA building - just a few years ago our school had a grassy hill that was out of bounds and some tremendous infrastructure needs. Our School Council led an admirable campaign that allowed us to create an incredible new, purpose built learning area for our students. A precinct of learning areas filled with opportunities to explore, read, perform, research, connect and learn. The creation of these spaces will support students, staff and families to create new knowledge, new skills and new solutions for many decades to come.

Looking ahead at 2022 and the bright, shiny possibilities it holds, we are excited to see how these values will be lived. We know that whatever the year brings, the community will face it with a knowledge of who it authentically is, a living respect for its people and its land, a willingness to explore and embrace new and existing connections and the drive to creatively overcome challenges.

Have a wonderful, happy and restorative break everyone.

We look forward to seeing you all next year

Hannah and Keir

The Nor'Wester

BNWPS is committed to Child Safe Standards and prevention of child abuse

Issue 40 · 17 Dec 2021

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