Principal’s Report – Issue 17

Dear Parents

Building Resilience

Children love to be praised. It is one of the joys of living and working with them to see them display pride and happiness when they do something well and we, whether parent or significant other, observe their achievement. Most importantly, children love to please those they care about the most – their Mums and Dads!

As parents, this can be difficult to remember at times, particularly after our children have done something mischievous or wayward; or we’ve had a busy, demanding and tiring day; or we are just not feeling that well.

The task of being a parent is, to say the least – quite a challenge! There is no instruction kit available, user manual, or teachers’ guide to follow that comes with the privilege of being a parent. However, what is available is the support and experience of those we love and trust, our parents, grandparents, friends and neighbours who, through their life experiences, may be able to assist us with the challenges we face each and every day.

As parents we want to help our children to deal with life’s challenges, as well as build the necessary skills to deal the with these when they arise.  We want to help develop resilience in our children. Resilience is defined as our ability to cope with problems and change and bounce back after these challenges. Below are some practical tips for parents about how to develop positive connections with your child’s school.

Resilient people have:

  • Self-esteem –feel good about themselves and have a sense of being special and value just because who they are
  • Skills – skills to cope with stress and challenges
  • Support – Good Role Models – at least one caring adult
  • Outlined below some of the ‘tips’ for how parents can help children become more resilient.
  • Parents are the most important people in a child’s life. There are many things parents can do to foster resilience.

Action

  • Show children you love them and accept them just as they are. Assure them whether they succeed or not, they have the same intrinsic value.
  • Model positive attitudes and values.
  • Have realistically high expectations for achievement and behaviour.
  • Foster success – encourage your children in whatever area they are good at and value.
  • Take time to listen to your children.
  • Teach your children to solve problems and make decisions.
  • Teach children about spiritual awareness – the capacity to reflect, to know their life is valuable, to know they have inner resources, to be prayerful.

Encourage children to accept themselves as unique and special and to be accepting of the uniqueness of others.

Confirmation

Last Sunday our Year 6 students received the Sacrament of Confirmation in what were two very special and memorable ceremonies.  The celebration was the culmination of many weeks of preparation, which involved Religious Education lessons, student retreats and parent meetings. We recognise and thank the many people who have been involved in the candidates’ preparation.

  • The Most Reverend, Peter Whitely Vicar General of Perth, who conducted the ceremony on Saturday and ensured it was meaningful to the students and their families, and to Fr Greg for his wonderful support all families, staff and children at Infant Jesus School.
  • Mrs Janelle White and Mrs Amanda Edwards who assisted with the educational program and preparing the children for the Sacrament.
  • Ms Clare Moffat and Mr Frank Colangelo who assisted with the Confirmation preparation.
  • Mrs Faith Rico and the Parish Sacramental Team for all their hard work in ensuring that all elements of the sacramental preparation were well organised and clear for everyone to follow.
  • The staff for their support at events leading up to the Confirmation and their attendance at the celebration on Saturday evening.
  • The parents, as prime educators of their children, who have helped them on their faith journey.
  • The Parish community for their involvement and assistance with the Mass. Congratulations to all involved.

Mobile App – Connected

We were made aware at the Board meeting the other night that parents have had a few issues with the new Mobile App ~ Connected. The P&F Executive also raised the issue with me at our meeting on Wednesday. I apologise for these difficulties and struggles that parents are having as we transition to this form of communication, but at the same time these little problems happen when you are trying to implement new technologies. I asked the P&F if they could gather the issues (via email) that parents are having with the Connected Mobile App and I will address these at the P&F Meeting on Tuesday night. Better still come along to the meeting!

I want to make it very clear that as a Leadership Team and a School, we are trying extremely hard to keep lines of communication open between school and home. We want to provide parents of this school access to information that is informative and valuable. I think we would all have to agree that the school has come a long way and we have really tried to open channels of communication with the school and home. To give you an example of this, look at what we currently have available to parents in the form of digital communications:

  • The Veritas
  • School Website
  • Connected App
  • Seesaw
  • SEQTA
  • Parent Online (Teacher parent booking system)
  • SEQTA Engage – for parent to access student reports
  • SMS messages
  • Email

Some parents feel that there is too much information, others feel they don’t receive enough. The use of the mobile app, school newsletter (Veritas), SEQTA Engage and Seesaw will be the preferred methods of communication with parents.

Parents are strongly encouraged to download the School Mobile App. Important and relevant information is shared via this App. Next term, it will become a more integral communication tool as we move to the Veritas being posted potentially only once a fortnight!

Our new Integrated Mobile App (CONNECTED App for Infant Jesus School) will simplify communication no matter what the information:

  • Announcements – Messages/Push Notifications to the entire community or to specific classes/groups.
  • Important Dates – Conveniently displayed calendar events.
  • Newsletter – Latest Newsletter and link directly to newsletter archive page.
  • Absentee – Electronic absentee notice emailed directly to the school and a copy to the parent. Parents even sign their name before submitting the form.
  • E-Forms – Electronic Excursion/Incursion Permission Forms emailed directly to the school and a copy to the parent. Parents even sign their name before submitting the form.
  • Contact Details – List of School Contacts to allow direct access via email or phone call.
  • Other Links – Direct links to our current website and other helpful services.

Once the App has been correctly installed it will ask for a password (ijs1954).  This will only need to be added in once.  To nominate which feeds (classes, etc) that you would like to subscribe to, please go into settings and select your children’s classes, P&F and any others required.

Faction Cross Country Carnival

Just a reminder to all parent that the Infant Jesus School Faction Cross Country Carnival will be held tomorrow Friday, 15 June at Lightning Park in Noranda. The aim of the carnival is participation, so all children are encouraged to give it a go. Please see further information in the ‘Sport News’ section of the Veritas. This carnival will begin at 9.00am with our Year 6 students running 2000m.  Our fabulous P&F have organised some morning tea for Parent Spectators.

What you can learn from children

  • A king size waterbed holds enough water to fill a 186sq m house 10cm deep.
  • If you hook a dog leash over a ceiling fan, the motor is not strong enough to rotate a 19kg boy wearing Batman underwear and a Superman cap.
  • However, if you hook a dog leash over a ceiling fan and tie it to a paint can, it does spread paint on all four walls of a 6x6m room.
  • Garbage bags do not make good parachutes.
  • Always look in the oven before you turn it on because plastic toys do not like ovens.
  • The spin cycle on the washing machine does not make earth worms dizzy.

From My Readings . . .

Devil at Home, Darling in Public

“Why does my child behave well for others, but not for me?”

This is a common question many parents ask. It’s frustrating!

I remember my primary school-aged children having very poor table manners at home, yet after sleep-overs and visits with friends we were always complimented for having children with beautiful manners.

“They showed my kids a thing or two about manners,” was the type of comment we received.

When one daughter was thirteen, she barely had a civil word for anyone who lived under the same roof as her. Yet following a weekend staying at a friend’s house, the supervising parents remarked how communicative she was with them.

“What do you do get such a lovely teenager?” our friend asked. “Send her to you!” was my reply!

So why do kids behave well for others and save their worst behaviour for their parents? It’s simple really…..because you love them.

It’s hard to be good all the time. When we are fully accepted by others we tend to show them our true selves warts n’ all.

The same theory applies with all our relationships, including dating. When you first started dating, you more than likely put huge energy into making the best possible impression. In the early days of dating you more than likely dressed to impress, were always ready on time and wore a perpetual smile.

When the relationship became more stable, you probably loosened up. You didn’t always dress to impress; you may have turned up late a few times and you were less are fussed about presenting your best possible face all the time. In short, familiarity breeds contentedness.

The same happens with kids. They become so relaxed with their parents that they will show their worst side to them.

They’ll be very polite to their teacher, barely speaking out of turn in class yet they can be downright rude and overbearing at home.

They’ll be friendly to peers at school but painful for siblings at home. Such is the way of family-life. 

It’s important that kids know how to behave.

We’d all love our kids to behave appropriately all the time, but the reality is they won’t.

Most kids have L plates when it comes to learning how to fit in and behave around others. They make mistakes, yet they are always on a path to improvement…or should be.

It’s important that they know how to behave. That means parents teach their kids good manners; they teach them right from wrong; and also, you teach them how to behave well in a variety of social situations so that when they are outside the house and around others, they know how to behave in public.

Sometimes kids are worse in public than at home

This happens with toddlers who are really on a huge learning curve. It’s easier to teach them in the confined, organised environment at home. When they are in public spaces, such as supermarkets, they are so much harder to control!

Teaching kids to behave

Here are four smart strategies you can use to teach kids of all ages to behave well – both outside and inside the family home:

  • Modelling
  • Mentoring
  • Messaging
  • Manoeuvring
  1. Modelling:Kids are born mimics. The minute you become a parent you become a walking, talking social studies lesson (as in how to be social, generous and pleasant to others). They need to see adults and significant others such as parents behave well, behave generously and use appropriate manners (cos’ they will speak like you in public). Model the behaviours you want in your kids… as much as is humanly possible.
  1. Mentoring:Good behaviour comes easily to some, but many kids need to be taught the nuances of behaving well and socialising. Boys, in particular, benefit from a parent who is willing to invest time and energy into helping them behave well. Toddler and teens both benefit from explicit teaching and coaching in what to do and say in the company of others. They benefit from hearing messages such as “Say thank you”, “Look your teacher in the eye when you speak”, “Address her parents by name”.
  1. Messaging:Astute parents give kids social scripts that they can use in a variety of situations. This social scripting starts when we tell a toddler to say hello to a relative and continues to provide more complex scripts to use in a variety of situations such as in a restaurant, at a friend’s house, at school, even online. It also helps if kids rehearse their lines before they use them in social situations. Behaviour rehearsal is particularly important for boys who are usually tactile, practical learners.
  1. Manoeuvring:A great way to prepare kids to excel is through manoeuvring social situations much in the same way as sporting codes create junior versions of their games, so kids can learn the basics without being overwhelmed by adult rules. Look for opportunities for kids to socialise at home in ways that mimic situations that they’ll encounter in public. For instance, once a week set up your mealtimes like a restaurant, so kids learn how to behave in a restaurant situation.

By Michael Grose

Parent Presentation: Cyber-Safety

A reminder about the Cyber-Safety presentation by Mr Paul Litherland, renowned cyber-safety speaker and owner of Surf Online Safe. He will be presenting two workshops, one for parents and one for our Year Five and Six students. The parent workshop will be held on the 20 June at 6.30pm in the School Hall. Please register for this event using the ‘Form’.

Paul will share his experiences as a WA Police Officer in the Technology Crime Investigation Unit and speak about the need for students and parents to remember the impact of their digital footprint, maintain levels of privacy when using apps and apply methods to remain safe in an online environment.

https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=Iy-FxTM2KU-zhlHaU-NeI2_eQieF-KhGs26VsZBufqFUOU1XRDFBQThTUkE3RTA4QTY4N01ITFlHSS4u

Three-Year-Old Program 2019

The Three-Year-Old Kindergarten at Infant Jesus School is an educational program for Pre-Kindergarten children.  The program at the school is very much play-based and helps the children develop independence and creativity by offering interesting and fun activities, that are developmentally appropriate, in a semi- structured form. The program follows a routine similar to Kindergarten where the children are in the care of a teacher and a teacher assistant for the duration of the session, but parent help is encouraged.

Who May Attend the Program?

The 2019 program is offered to children who will have turned THREE by 30 June 2019 and plan to continue attending Infant Jesus School in 2019 and beyond. Regulations prevent us from taking children until they have turned three years of age. Please note that enrolment at the Infant Jesus School Three-Year-Old program does not guarantee a place in the Four-Year-Old Kindergarten Program. Interviews will be conducted for both places.

Interested parents are asked to contact Mrs Cheryl Macpherson at the school office for enrolment forms for 2019 Three-Year-Old program.

Prayer for the Week

Prayer for our newly Confirmation children

As the children in Year 6 continue their journey of faith we recognise and remember it is the Spirit that is alive in our hearts and lives today.  The following prayer focuses on the Spirit and its many special gifts.

Spirit of love – show us how to love.

Spirit of truth – help us to be honest.

Spirit of wisdom – teach us the best thing to do.

Spirit of gentleness – make us gentle in our ways.

Spirit of  God – live in our hearts.

Did you know?

  • An ant can survive for up to two days underwater.
  • The letters in the abbreviation e.g. stand for exempli gratia – a Latin term meaning for example.
  • The plastic tips on shoelaces are called “aglets”.

Thought for the Week

The only way to have a friend is to be one.

RALPH EMERSON

Kind regards

Paul Hille
Principal

#ExpectGreatThings

© Infant Jesus School 2017
17 Smith St, Morley WA 6062
Tel: (08) 9276 1769 | Fax: (08) 9276 2998

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