CYBERSAFE WEBINAR

As part of our plan to support child safety and the protection of all students in our care, we have a great opportunity for St Ita’s parents to participate in a free webinar Inform and Empower- Raising Kids in a Digital World on March 23rd @ 7.30pm

This webinar will help educate and offer support strategies to parents and carers about: Cyberbullying, current trends in child/teen online behaviour, Unsafe apps and social media, parent/child communication, managing devices in the home, managing conflict around digital devices, balancing screen time, explicit/adult content, and where to find helpful information

To register your spot in our St Ita's Parent webinar “Raising kids in a Digital World.”

Simply follow the link: bit.ly/23march2023

This is a perfect platform for dialogue between school and home with the appropriate / inappropriate use of the devices our students are using.

We thank you for working with us to make all our students at St Ita’s to feel safe and supported.

SCHOOL REVIEW

I would like to extend a big thank you to all the students, teachers and parents who contributed to our school review last week. Ms. Amanda Smith and Mrs. Marianne O’Rourke conducted the process over three days, and the outcomes were really reflective of how we are operating as a school.

The review process looks at what we are doing well, and what we could do better, as we move through the process of developing a four year strategic plan. An outline of the review process will be made available to the St Ita’s community in the coming weeks, which will outline the direction the school will be taking over the next four years.

THE CLASSROOM TEACHER IS YOUR FIRST POINT OF CONTACT

A gentle reminder to all of our parents community that we are working extremely hard to build positive Parent/Teacher relationships at St Ita’s, which is in line with our whole school approach to positive behaviours.

If you have any concerns, or issues relating to your child, your first point of contact is always your child’s classroom teacher. Your child's classroom teacher will generally have a very good understanding of most issues or concerns relating to your child.  We believe that open, honest and respectful conversations between parent and staff result in the best outcomes for everyone.

 GASTRO AT SCHOOL

Within the last week we have had several staff, and a large amount of our students away from school with gastro like symptoms. It is becoming very clear that the gastro virus it is working it's way through all grade levels at St Ita's. If your child is showing any signs of gastro please keep them home until they have been symptom free for a minimum of 48 hours.

NEW FLAG POLES AT THE FRONT OF OUR SCHOOL

Our school flag poles have recently been relocated from inside the school fence, around to the front of our school on Victoria St where they sit proudly and patriotically.

The Australian National Flag

The Australian National Flag has three elements on a blue background. The Union Jack in the upper left corner (or canton) acknowledges the history of British settlement. Below the Union Jack is a white Commonwealth or Federation star. It has seven points representing the unity of the six states and the territories of the Commonwealth of Australia. The Southern Cross is shown in white. This constellation of five stars can be seen only from the southern hemisphere and is a reminder of Australia’s geography.

The Australian Aboriginal flag

The top half of the Australian Aboriginal flag is black to symbolise Aboriginal people. The red in the lower half represents the earth and the colour of ochre, which has ceremonial significance. The circle of yellow in the centre of the flag represents the sun. Mr Harold, a descendent of the Luritja people of Central Australia, designed the flag.

The Torres Strait Islander flag

The green panels at the top and bottom of the Torres Strait Islander flag represent the land and the central blue panel represents the sea. The black lines dividing the panels represent the Torres Strait Islander people. The centre of the flag shows a white dhari (dancer’s head dress) and is a symbol for all Torres Strait Islander people. Underneath the dhari is a white five pointed star. The points of the star represent the five major island groups in the Torres Strait and the colour white symbolises peace. The star also represents navigation as a symbol of the seafaring culture of the Torres Straits.

HELPING CHILDREN TO BUILD TEAM WORK SKILLS

We take a look at the importance of building team skills from a young age, and what you can do to support your child. From collaborating in a sports team to putting on a class play, teamwork is a big part of primary school life. And mastering the art of being a team player will help your child succeed not just at school, but throughout their lives.

‘Getting along and engaging with others is the building block of many things in life,’ says chartered clinical psychologist and parenting adviser Claire Halsey. ‘From a young age, children need to learn how to give and take, share, take turns, play to their strengths and draw in other people to fill the gaps. It’s a core social skill.’

Ian Brember, founder of Big Hat Bushcamp, agrees. ‘It’s a vital life skill for everyone, regardless of age,’ he says. ‘Whatever a child ends up doing as a job, they have to be able to work with other people. They also need to build relationships, whether with family members, friends, neighbours, colleagues or customers.’

Learning to work as part of a team will help your child hone many social skills, such as patience, empathy, communication, respect for others, compromise and tolerance. It also helps them develop confidence in themselves and trust in other people.

The primary school years are packed with opportunities for them to develop those skills, and children who get to grips with teamwork from a young age will act as positive role models for other kids, too.

Recent research from Germany’s Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and Duke University found that children as young as three understand the value of teamwork, but that doesn’t mean it always comes naturally.

‘Children are innately selfish,’ explains Ian. ‘They’re born with the drive to have their basic needs for food and comfort met, and it’s only through the lessons they learn in childhood that they begin to move away from that viewpoint.’

This means it’s quite normal for children to have difficulties with teamwork at first: you only need to watch a toddler snatch a toy from their playmate, or burst into tears if someone sits in their favourite chair, to see this in action.

‘They’re the centre of their own world, and their needs come first: it’s very hard for them to put those aside to allow someone else’s needs to be met,’ says Claire.

But while teething problems such as pushing and shoving, tantrums and being a sore loser are to be expected, over time, children will get used to being part of a team rather than a lone wolf.

‘By the age of three to five, most children are able to do some give and take, share with others and show some empathy towards other children,’ Claire explains.

The primary school years are an excellent time to cultivate the teamwork ethos your child will draw on throughout their life, and many activities inside and outside the classroom are designed to help children get used to being team players. These include:

Problem-solving tasks, often in science or design technology, such as building the tallest possible structure using dry spaghetti and mini marshmallows as glue.

Partner or group work, with more able children helping those who are having difficulty with a task.

Group reading, where children take it in turns to read passages from a set book.

Music, playing simple instruments like recorders, keyboards and percussion to put together a piece of music.

Forest school, taking part in outdoor activities such as building shelters and lighting fires.

Team sports such as football, hockey, rounders, netball and relay races.

Debates, working as a team to argue for or against a particular issue.

Putting on a school play or a class assembly.

Circle time, where every child is given equal opportunity to speak.

School forums, where elected child reps meet with staff members to discuss issues that are affecting their class.

Often, children continue to collaborate outside lessons, playing team games like football basketball netball or tag at break time.

There are many ways to give your child opportunities to practise their teamwork skills at home. You might like to try:

• Board games and party games like Scrabble, Top Trumps, Charades, Jenga and Ludo: great for developing important social skills like taking turns, collaboration and compromise.
• Cooking: challenge siblings to work together to follow a recipe and bake a cake or even cook dinner.
• Putting on a play, show or music concert with siblings, friends or other family members.
• Art projects such as making a large collage or mosaic, or construction projects like making a LEGO
• Helping each other with homework:a great way for older children to support their younger siblings, while also developing vital skills such as communication and patience themselves.
• Active outdoor play such as football, basketball, building dens or obstacle courses, and even building a snowman in the winter.
• Team games like the classic passing a balloon between the legs and parachute games where children have to work together to keep a ball aloft: great if you have a group of kids to entertain.

Just keep in mind that teamwork can be challenging for children (and especially for siblings!), and be prepared to intervene if things are getting too competitive or confrontational.

Because teamwork doesn’t come naturally, many children struggle with it, whether that’s because they’re shy, have a tendency to be bossy, or struggle when they’re on the losing team.

The good news is that there’s plenty we adults can do to help our children become better team players.

• Emphasise the importance of being part of a team. Teams are more than just their strongest members: everyone has a role. ‘As parents, we can help our children find their strengths and develop them,’ says Claire. ‘Real resilience is knowing what you’re good at and playing to that.’ If, for example, your child isn’t a natural striker, they might be better suited to playing in goal for their football team.
• Build their confidence.Children who are shy and reserved might find it difficult to be part of a team, and get walked over by more forceful characters. ‘Teachers and parents can help by giving quieter team members their own job to do,’ says Ian. ‘This shows that you believe in the child and builds their confidence.’
• Demonstrate teamwork at home. There are dozens of opportunities to collaborate: for example, one sibling could fold the washing and the other put it away. You and your children could devise and cook a menu for a special meal, or join forces to plan a family day out, including transport, route and itinerary.
• Enrol in an after-school club.‘Everything we do in our sessions is a team-based activity, from den-building to fire-lighting and camp fire cooking, aimed at teaching children important life skills,’ says Ian. An extra benefit of joining an extracurricular club is that children get to socialise with a different group of peers, expanding their social network.
• Encourage fair play.Good ground rules – such as taking turns and being kind – are essential for teamwork, so set clear guidelines for team activities. ‘It’s even more effective if children come up with the rules themselves, as then they’re more invested in them,’ says Claire.
• Keep in touch with school.If your child is finding the teamwork side of school hard, talk to their teacher. There are lots of strategies that can be used to help kids become better at being part of a team, such as picking names out of a hat for team leader positions rather than always calling on the same characters, or getting older pupils to run playground games for younger children.
• Seek help if you’re worried. If you’re concerned that your child has social difficulties that are making teamwork hard, ask to speak to the school’s special educational needs coordinator (SENCO) for advice. But be realistic – even adults sometimes find it hard to be a team player, and most children will get better with practice.

Andrew Osler

St Ita's Principal