Principal Report - back to school  

Dear families,

It has been a busy return to school for children and staff. I am sure it has been for families as well, re-establishing routines in the mornings and after school. We have been focusing on the same areas, school procedures, health and wellbeing, and also academic achievement. 

The excitement of being back at school is still there for us all. What was maybe missing in first week or two, was the stamina to get through a full week. I am pleased to say that we can see this building day by day. Social connectedness has been evident between children as they have moved from a socially distant world to being back with friends in person. There have been some tough social moments for children but with kindness, care and support the staff have helped children positively re-connect with each other. 

This week has been a wellness week for staff. We have had a meeting-free week and our shared focus has been on re-connecting through fun, healthy activities each day. A thank you to those staff that kindly shared their time either running an activity or by attending.

On Monday 2nd November we will have a Curriculum Day, with staff focusing on their own professional practice. Tuesday will be a public holiday. School will be closed on both days and there will be no OSH Care.

We hope that this weekend opens up some safe opportunities to catch up with your friends and family members, after such a long period of staying at home. In our house, it is all about a 

K-Mart trip to spend their pennies.

Book Week 2020

Last week we celebrated Book Week. It was a great way for our children to show their love of reading through a school dress-up day. The outfits on show were amazing with lots of thought and creativity displayed. Marg Nettlebeck retired this year, after 20 years of service to Rolling Hills. It was very fitting that she was the judge for the book parade, given her love of seeing children enjoy literature. The following students won a prize, Evie Brown, Belle Grasby, Texas Whitling, Xander Harrington, Connor Hartley, Shia Daniels, Luke Ryan and Emily Williams. 

Back to School - Bits and bobs

- Children are welcome after 8:40 am on-site. We have staff there to supervise them. If you are going to be really early please make a booking for OSH. 

- If you have a child with a cold or bug they need to stay home and if you think it is needed a COVID test. If your child is tested then you will need to share the results with the office so they can return. 

- It is getting warmer - hats are a must for sun protection. 

- Drink bottles - we still cannot use our drinking taps and the taps in the toilets are not safe to drink from. Please pack two drink bottles. Ask your children to ask a teacher/staff member if they need a drink. This is safer than drinking from toilet taps.

- Teachers will place a tub with their bottles by their class doors so they can get to their water bottles.

- Adults still need to meet children off-site and if you do need to enter the school you must wear a face mask. A few parents are catching up away from school without masks. We are expecting an inspection of our COVID plans soon and this practice does put you at risk of at least a conversation by the Public Safety team.

Overall, I would like to say thank you for your commitment to helping keep our school safe and most importantly.....OPEN FOR LEARNING. 

Back to School - Academic 

I am pleased to share that overall our children did not fall too far behind. Less than 10% have shown that they need a push to move back to where we think they should be. We have launched a program called STRETCH for those students and we have hired some of our existing teachers to share their skills in this area. I am confident that we will be sharing with those families the gains their children have made before the year is out. 

We have also increased our focus on the students who have shown that they have thrived in remote learning. The children who have a love of Writing and Maths have been working with Mrs. Cripps, Miss Saffin, Mr. Wilson, Mrs. Minton and Mr. Smith in a group we are calling SPOTLIGHT, to showcase their skills in these areas. We will report back on their successes in a future newsletter. Thank you to the staff for giving up their time. 

Back to School - Health and well-being

It is normal for children to be tired at the end of the day or week, especially after such a disruptive year. These are things that we have changed gradually in our house, that I thought I might share.

1. Earlier bedtimes - the early nights have been a challenge, but day by day we have knocked 10-15 mins off the going to bed time. Our children are less tired and we have more time free in the evenings.
2. Healthier lunches for school and dinners - we have a few nights of the week where we are adding more veggies and more fruit options for desserts.
3. Less screen time - we are back to weekends only for iPads/tablets. This was the hardest to change. We had become reliant on this as adults, for ensuring peace and quiet. We have also removed TV in the mornings and have tried to limit after school.
4. Activities at the weekend but not overly active. We are trying to build stamina so our children can last the week at school.
5. Lastly, talking through the best parts of the day and what we are looking forward to the next day.

These are just things we have re-introduced in the Bradley House. They were there before...but maybe they got a little overlooked. I am sure  you have your ideas for your own house and children, that work for you. The main thing I would like to share is that change is not easy, especially when it is a change that children may not want, but as adults, we know the change is going to help. One less meltdown or tantrum after school or at the weekend, has to be a good thing for everyone in a family.

I wish you all well and we look forward to seeing you on Wednesday 5th November. 

Craig