Assistant Principal's Update
Wellbeing and Engagement Update
AUSTRALIAN RESEARCH ALLIANCE FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH
We are fast approaching the ‘pointy end’ of the year when our Year 12 students complete the final few stages of a journey they began 13 years ago when they entered Prep. A range of different tasks will require completing. Pressure will mount. There will be moments of great joy and times of growth as one reflects proudly on all that they have achieved. Challenges will present and there will be difficult circumstances that one will need to adapt to. Great resilience will be required to bounce back from adversity and to navigate the highs and lows of life.
The recent report published by the Australian Research Alliance for Children and Youth (ACARY), ‘Please Just Say You’re Proud of Me: Perspectives of Young People on Parent Engagement and Doing Well at School,’ has generated lots of media attention. The report is based on consultations with nearly 100 Australians in Years 10 and 12. As part of the study, students were asked what they would like to hear and see in the ideal parent, carer or support person that would help them in school. The ‘hoped for’ messages from their ideal support person showed strong and consistent themes regarding the type of support the student wanted. The young people reported they wanted their parents, carers and support people to:
- Focus on the positives, express pride in their achievements often and express acceptance of who they are as a person.
- Remind them that they are loved unconditionally, and that they are always there to help.
- Offer practical guidance and assistance in tackling stresses and other problems at school and in life generally.
- Encourage and support them to follow their own aspirations and make their own decisions for their futures, rather than being pressured to follow their parents' or carers' dreams.
The final part of the in-depth interview with each of the 100 participants was to describe their ideal support person. A strong theme in the messages from students to their ideal support person was gratitude and appreciation for the support that this person had provided them in relation to school and over their lives:
- ‘Thank you for all the sacrifices you have made in my life. You have been there for me no matter the circumstances and I could not be more appreciative of it. You have always been the one thing I needed most, whether I need guidance, someone to rant to or just a smile. Without you I would not be where I am today, you have made my life better in every way, providing the best care and support; given me opportunities to do whatever I desired yet have taught me how to be humble and generous. Thank you for being in my life.’
- ‘You are so kind to me. I can never thank you enough, please let me be as kind to you as you are to me, I’m here for you.’
- ‘Thank you so much for all the support and help for making me who I am. Thank for picking me up when I was down (mentally and emotionally) and helping me grow and mature. I owe you more than I can give you.’
As we near the upcoming examinations, tests and general pressures that the end of the year brings, I think this is worth remembering. Most important to the students interviewed was that those who were supporting them would simply say that ‘they were proud of them’.
To see the full report, please see the attachment below
PROMOTING AND STRENGTHENING HEALTHY FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS
At Kilbreda, our Student Wellbeing Team aims to foster strong interpersonal relationships, trust and collaboration between students, parents/carers and the school. We strive to engage our community in new opportunities to sustain and develop loyalty. We are committed to building strong practices that will provide education and resources for our parent community to support our girls’ education and development. Some upcoming events that the College will be hosting that have been designed to foster a sense of community and strengthen ties between parents/carers and the school are:
PARENT SEMINAR – ‘RAISING AMAZING GIRLS’
Just a reminder that on Monday 26 August, the College will be hosting Dannielle Miller, a passionate and engaging speaker, who will work with our Year 7 students during the day and deliver her signature parent seminar, ‘Raising Amazing Girls’, that evening.
Dannielle Miller is one of Australia’s foremost educators, authors and media commentators on teenagers. She is the author of five books, including the best-selling ‘The Butterfly Effect: A Positive New Approach to Raising Happy, Confident Teen Girls.’
Further information on this parent seminar can be found below.
Attached is some information on upcoming Parenting Forums being hosted by Jewish Care:
- Building resilience in children on the autism spectrum.
- Raising body confident kids presented by Nicki Isaacs from The Butterfly Foundation
FATHER’S DAY BREAKFAST
To all our fathers, male carers, grandfathers, brothers and any other significant male mentor, we extend a warm invitation to each of you to attend our annual Father’s Day Breakfast. This event will be held in the Sister Mary Dalton Hall, on Friday 6 September 2019, 7.15am – 8.30am.
A hot breakfast will be supplied on the morning, making this a wonderful opportunity to interact with your daughter, her peers, other father figures and teaching staff. RSVP is essential so that we can properly cater for the breakfast. To confirm your attendance to this special event, RSVP online via the following TryBooking link: https://www.trybooking.com/BEVGT
Stephanie Smyth
Assistant Principal:
|Wellbeing and Engagement