Berry Street Training

Our staff were very privileged to engage in the very well known Berry Street Education Model (in the world of Education) training last week for two days. This was the first two days of a four day training course. We will be engaging in the next 2 days in June, 2023.

The Berry Street Education Model (BSEM) is a practical approach to teaching and learning that enables teachers to increase engagement with students with complex, unmet learning needs and successfully improve all students’ self-regulation, growth and academic achievement. The pedagogical strategies incorporate evidence-based trauma-aware teaching, positive education, and wellbeing practices.

You will likely start hearing your children referring to phrases such as ‘Ready to Learn , Brain Breaks and Positive Primers’. The Domains within the Berry Street Education Model are Body, Stamina, Engagement, Stamina and Character, all anchored by Relationship.

Our staff have agreed to start by tweaking our Morning Circle Time to include Positive Primers, announcements and values, strategically planning brain breaks for the whole class at intervals throughout the day this year and will work towards introducing Ready to Learn Scales and developing Ready to Learn Plans for each student next year.

To our amazing ETRS community,

Please see below a list of resources that may be of benefit to you and your families as we navigate these uncertain and devastating times. Be safe everyone.

https://headspace.org.au/explore-topics/supporting-a-young-person/natural-disasters/https://headspace.org.au/explore-topics/for-young-people/natural-disasters/https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/victorian-floods-october-2022-australian-government-disaster-recovery-payment

Please see below a video story of Birdie and the Flood - a great little resource in terms of explaining floods to the younger people in our lives.

https://vimeo.com/725152250?fbclid=IwAR1lETrwZcSD9pUPVUAd2Ku4jQtEvZ27uKcFdzBjMpOikFOxoGZL-QUtswE

Here is another helpful resource to support you during this crazy time we are experiencing - it has some links to videos, podcasts and reading material on coping with floods.

https://d2p3kdr0nr4o3z.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/2022/10/20111238/Helping-your-children-in-a-flood-emergency.pdf

Dear Parents/Caregivers,

School attendance continues to be an area of focus and improvement for our school. Please take a look at this graph below. It provides some very insightful information on student absences. We understand and appreciate that at times students are away for illnesses and family commitments. These are unforeseen circumstances that do not relate to the information below, however every day counts!

Why going to school is important

Going to school every day is the single most important part of your child’s education. Students learn new things at school every day. Attending and participating in school will help your child develop:

important skills and knowledge to help them learn
social and emotional skills such as good communication, resilience and team work.

Children who attend school every day and complete year 12 have:

better health
better job opportunities
higher income across their lives.

There is no safe number of days for missing school. Each day a student misses puts them behind

Tips to help improve your child’s attendance

Talk to your child about school and how important it is. You can ask them how they feel about school, what they liked and if there are any problems.
Reward good behaviour and not bad behaviour. For example, if your child refuses to go to school, do not let them have access to their phones or the internet.
Set a good example. Show them how you keep to your own commitments.
Encourage your child to take on hobbies that your child enjoys such as sports and clubs. This will help them develop positive relationships outside of the classroom.
Have a set time to do homework and go to bed.
Leave all technology out of their bedroom.
Pack their school bag the night before with everything they need.
Have a set time for breakfast.
Plan to meet up with a friend so they can travel to school together.

If your child is going to be away, please notify the school as soon as possible via a message on Class Dojo, a call to the office, an email or note explaining the reason for your child's absence.

If your child is away unexplained, you will receive a text message from the school. If this happens for 2 consecutive days, your child's classroom teacher will follow up with a phone call or Dojo message. If there are multiple days unexplained then you will receive a follow up phone call from our student wellbeing team

If you are concerned about your child's attendance, please let your child's classroom teacher know about your concerns as soon as possible or alternatively contact either Anthea or Nicole in the Student Wellbeing Office.

Strive for 100%; everyday counts!

Prep 2023 Information