From the Principal's Desk
Dear Parents & Guardians,
This past fortnight I taught all Kindergarten classes and all Year 6 classes. With Kinder, I taught them some tongue twister rhymes with some movement activities associated with them. Whilst they all thought that they were just dancing and singing and having some fun, the real learning was actually working together, learning from each other and reminding the teachers about how important sensory experiences are for children, especially in the infants' grades. I’m sure many of the children went home and informed their parents that Mr Reardon really needs to improve his dancing efforts, however, it was wonderful to teach Kindergarten and as I walked away from each class, it was so evident that their classroom and teacher together are in fact their happy space at school. Might I say, there are times that I base my big decisions in life on how much fun something will be, maybe not always wise, lucky I have Mrs Debrincat and Mrs Brunetta to keep in check my enthusiasm. That’s why I love Kindergarten, because most of the children have the same behaviours, come to think of it, maybe I just never grew up! I’ll have to ask Mrs Reardon that question?
Last week I commenced an antibullying program with all three Year 6 classes. We started with a quick quiz to understand the content that they already know. You would be amazed to know, the majority of the students were not fully across this challenging social behaviour that I’m sure all will experience in some form as they grow into adults. I will continue to teach them about how to respond to bullying, even when you are scared and overwhelmed by what is happening to you. There will be lots of videos to show how the bullying cycle operates as well as role plays to practice how to deal with the situations when they arise.
It was obvious from my lessons last week that I need to work with the students in Year 6 to tease out what bullying is and is not. Many seemed to be confused with the notion that teasing, rejection, random acts of violence or physicality and conflict constitute bullying. I will need to spend time with them explaining that whilst children often tease or fight, this bickering should not be confused with bullying. Bullying is a lack of power as one person is powerless to stop the teasing or physical abuse. Bullying is the selective, repetitive oppression of one person by another person or group.
The other thing I was reminded about during my lessons last week is that if you think your child is being bullied then handle it with care as children often don’t want to admit that they are on the receiving end of bullying. Some kids keep it close to them so, as a parent, it helps to be on the lookout for warning signs such as: items being stolen, changing how they go to school and the withdrawal from usual activities.
My lessons with Year 6 last week motivated me to include some strategies you might want to consider if you think your child may be bullied:
1.Listen to their story - Children who are bullied need someone to believe their story. Use common sense to differentiate between bullying and more random antisocial acts. Kids can be nasty to each other, yet this doesn’t constitute bullying.
2.Deal with their feelings - A child who is bullied probably feels scared, angry and sad. The degree of emotional intensity is an indicator of the amount of bullying. Recognise and validate their emotions. Give them an opportunity to talk about how they think and feel.
3.Get the facts - Get a clear picture of what happens, including who is involved, the frequency and what happened prior. Get them to be as specific as possible. An accurate picture will support you in determining your next course of action.
3.Give them coping skills - With a clear picture you can start giving your child some help about how he or she may deal with the bullying including using avoidance strategies, being more assertive and changing poor body language. This will all be covered with the Year 6 students during my lessons.
4.Get the school involved - Bullying is best handled when both parents and teachers are involved. Approach the school through the appropriate channels. Go onto the school website and read the school antibullying policy as it will outline the guidelines that need to be followed.
5.Help build your child’s support network - Kids need a group of friends to support them when they experience bullying so look for practical ways to broaden friendship groups.
6.Build their self confidence - Provide your child with regular encouragement. Let them know through your words and how you relate to them that they will get through this.
Finally, whilst it may not be helpful at the time, it is worth remembering that children who experience some form of bullying often come out stronger and more resourceful because they have experienced difficulties and they know they can overcome them.
I leave you with your own thoughts about the above to consider.
Go Gently,
Michael Reardon
Principal