Welcome to Week 6. It seems quite unbelievable that we are already mid-way through Term One and the liturgical season of Lent has begun, with Ash Wednesday being celebrated last week. Of course, on Shrove Tuesday we celebrated the launch of Project Compassion Australia wide, with the CEO of Caritas, The Archbishop and the Director of Catholic Education SA in attendance, along with many other distinguished guests. This was truly a privilege for our school and parish, and we look forward to great support from the St Francis Community for Project Compassion during this Lenten season. Whilst we have not been able to do everything the way we are accustomed particularly in the liturgical life of our school, we have managed to find new and creative ways forward and I feel very grateful that at least we have been able to do this.
Wellbeing
Through our understanding of neuroscience, we know that in order for children’s brains to be engaged and ‘switched on’ for learning, they first must feel safe and happy. As educators, our understanding of the importance of creativity, of brain function, and of children’s agency in their own learning are key factors to inform our professional learning and pedagogy. During this last week our students have been completing the Pulse Check-In, which is a tool used each term in all Catholic schools to assess how students are feeling about their experience of school. Students are asked some simple questions about: Identity, Learning, Relationships and Belonging. Your child’s responses will help us to identify any potential social, emotional or learning needs that they may have. This will then help to highlight trends that may emerge. From this we can then determine strategies to be implemented, monitor progress from term to term, measuring our impact.
Right now, we are very conscious that our children may have a lot on their minds: the interrupted start to school; settling into new classes and routines; the ever-present anxiety around COVID-19; let alone the saturation of media with very frightening images and news of war in Ukraine; and floods in New South Wales and Queensland. We do everything we can at school to keep our focus on ‘normality’, routine, positivity, calmness and engagement. We look also to your support to minimise the impact from media and other sources that can burden our children at this time. We recognise how difficult this might be, but also understand how important it is for our children’s wellbeing.
This Friday we have a Student Free Day to enable our staff to complete the third module in the Berry St Program. The content of this course is very much related to well-being, positive relationships and student agency. We continue to work hard in this space to build staff capacity to support every aspect of our students’ development. I understand a day away from school at the moment may be frustrating for families, but these dates have been booked from the beginning of 2021 in order for the 5 Eastern region schools to be able to participate in this quality program. Hopefully some families will be able to take advantage of the extra-long weekend with the Adelaide Cup holiday on Monday and recharge ready for the second half of the term. OSHC is available for families who may need supervision for their children on Friday.
Children’s University
The Children's University concept is relatively simple: it offers educational experiences for children aged between 7 and 14 years and recognises their achievements through the award of formal certificates and graduations. It has a strong emphasis on experience as a significant learning tool, acknowledging the value of the range of different learning experiences and environments in which children engage.
Each child is issued with a Passport to Learning in which the hours of each validated activity are recorded. Once they have reached the required number of hours, children will graduate from the Children's University. Certificates are presented at graduation ceremonies at the end of the year.
This is certainly something to consider for your child, perhaps as an opportunity to explore their passions. The possibilities are endless. Please see the link below and think about the benefits. We had 11 students ‘graduate’ last year. We would love to see a few more Children’s University’ students in 2022.
James Meiksans
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