Term 1 | Week 10 | 01 April 2020
“You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your mind… and your neighbour as yourself."
Matthew 22:37-39
From The Principal
Once again, thank you to all of our community for your adaptability, positive encouragement of one another and capacity to pull together in tough times to care for one another and keep learning happening. We all know the adage that ‘necessity is the mother of invention’ and that has certainly been the case over the last week as we have all shifted our way of working, connecting and learning. It has been inspiring to see the level of enthusiasm by students, staff and families to embrace the challenge, upskill, adapt, create, grow and change to ensure learning continues.
The staff are also so thankful for the patience, support and graciousness of families during this significant upheaval to the normal routines of learning and life. We are all learning as we go and as we test out our processes we are learning that many work, but also that some need adjusting and that other processes need a different approach. We are grateful for all the feedback and are meeting daily to look at ways to enhance the learning opportunities available to students across the College.
As the economic impact of the crisis begins to bite, I understand that for a number of families the situation is going to create significant financial stress. As I have previously said, the College is determined to hold our community together and to support all our families during this time of difficulty and need. College Council is meeting this week to discuss the best way for the College to support struggling families financially. More details will follow in the next few days, but the simple message is to not be afraid to reach out and let the College know of your circumstance.
College pastoral care staff are contacting each family this week to see how they are managing under the current circumstances. We are gathering feedback about what is working with home based learning and what could be improved, as well as about the impact that other factors associated with the current situation such as isolation, mental health and financial hardship are having on our students and families. The College Executive is meeting almost daily to consider the latest issues and respond to emerging needs.
Finally, thank you to everyone for being responsible and practicing social distancing. Every effort made means one less possible source of transmission which ultimately will result in someone’s life having been saved.
Mr Robert Tobias
Principal
Off The Deputy's Desk
As we move into the online learning platform I have conducted some research regarding tricks and tips for parents who are about to undertake home learning with their child. These are all quite simple and practical and will hopefully assist you with the journey that you are about to embark on. We need to work together and in partnership as we embark on this new mode of learning.
Don’t panic
Your children need a strong role model from you and that you are showing resilience with regards to this changing situation. Try not to leave the TV news on in the background as this may colour your view.
Find out what your child is learning in class
Knowing what your children have been learning means that you will be able to use and identify lots of opportunities to engage in conversations with your child.
Establish routine
Children and teenagers need structure and routine. Work with your child to come up with daily and weekly goals. Goal setting allows your child to visualise their time spent learning and will assist them to provide the motivation to turn these goals into a reality. Goals should be large and overarching. Your child’s planner has some excellent tips for goal setting that will be of assistance to students and parents.
Make a schedule
Once you have identified the daily tasks it is important to put them into a daily schedule. Your child’s planner will be an invaluable resource here. Allocate realistic periods of time for each task-it is better to overestimate than underestimate because you want to set your child up for success. Get your child to identify the more challenging and creative tasks and schedule these for the morning-that’s the time when the brain is at its most alert point.
Technology
When your child has an activity that doesn’t involve technology, encourage them to make the decision to turn off notifications and put their phone on silent or leave in another room. Get your child to use the technology in creative ways rather than just watch tutorials and complete quizzes. Remember that kids are social beings and will need to interact with their peers via social media, Skype or gaming (all within reason). Provide them with this opportunity by scheduling some social time in.
Create authentic learning experiences if possible
Don’t hoard at the supermarket and show that you care for others. This demonstrates social responsibility and discuss this with your children. Consider different ways to communicate with and support family and friends.
Connect with your child
Try to view this time as a gift and not an inconvenience. Go outside for a walk, enjoy the sunshine, laugh and play together.
Be kind to yourself
These are extraordinary times. Know that you are not alone. Reach out to teachers, other parents, friends and family. We will reach out to you through our pastoral care system.
Open and maintain communication channels
Keep in contact with your child’s teachers and Welfare Leader or Stage Coordinator. The key to getting through this unprecedented situation is communication, empathy and working together.
Mr Darren Parks
Deputy Principal
Secondary Update
Looking after yourself whilst learning from home
Teenagers cope with change in different ways. Some embrace change and find it easy to adapt to the new routine of home-based learning, whilst others feel anxious, isolated and struggle to manage their time.
The Pastoral Care team has been working hard to keep students connected to their Pastoral Care teacher and Stage Coordinator as we transition to home-based learning. Each year group has a Pastoral Care Google Classroom which focuses on key themes to support students during school closures and social distancing. These theme’s include:
Physical Wellbeing: the Sport and Coaching team regularly upload fitness activities and challenges for students to participate in. These include instructional videos to support them to complete a range of physical activities and encourages them to upload photos or videos of their physical activity.
Spiritual Wellbeing: regular prayers and Bible readings are uploaded. Rev Sal has moved her chapel services online and these are also uploaded to this platform.
Emotional Wellbeing: missing out on events with friends, hobbies and sport matches can be incredibly disappointing for teenagers. This area provides support for processing feelings and encourages students to feel connected in a time when they can’t be together in person with others.
Social Wellbeing: each platform allows for regular challenges for students to stay connected on the stream. Different year groups have engaged students through discussions about pets, pictures of study areas and mental puzzles. This platform allows for social interaction with their peers and their PC teachers.
Mental Wellbeing: mindfulness and staying happy is an important part of coping with change. Teenagers are struggling with not being able to chat to friends, participate in sport and in class routines. To support them, podcasts and clips about mindfulness and links to the ‘Happiness Lab’ are included. Regular resources are uploaded each week.
The Pastoral Care lesson this week focused on time management. Students were encouraged to use their school timetable and planner to complete set activities and listened to members of the SRC talk about how they are managing their school work whilst involved in home-based learning. The attached sheet has been created to support students to develop a routine in line with the guidance provided by the Director of Teaching and Learning. This sheet supports students in developing a routine and reminds them of the importance to stay connected with their teachers.
Please encourage your child to stay connected with their peers and Pastoral Care team by viewing the Pastoral Care Google Classroom daily and participating in the activities uploaded.
If you would like to talk further about these strategies, please feel free to contact me at the school.
Mrs Amanda Middleton
Director Secondary School
Primary News
Remote Learning
I wanted to write today to thank the entire EAC Primary community for the way you have all pulled together over the past few weeks to support each other during these unprecedented times. I applaud the teachers for flipping their classrooms from the physical to the largely digital world in such a short amount of time. I am in awe of the ways that students have adapted and simply logged on and kept up with the learning. And I congratulate the parents who are supporting their kids in their endeavor to keep up to the daily tasks that have been set. I empathize as a parent myself with two girls that it is not an easy task to work from home whilst also playing teacher, doctor, counselor, fitness instructor, choir master and caterer (are you kids eating you out of house and home also? Any wonder there’s a rush on the grocery stores!).
As you know, the Primary school kids are using the app Seesaw to connect home and school. Each week, timetables are set with many tasks appearing on Seesaw to interact with at different times during the day. Special announcements appear in the students feed and we’re working hard to ensure initiatives like Storytime with the who’s who at EAC, Daily Fitness with Mr Evans and video posts from the classroom teachers keep our students connected to EAC.
We’ve all enjoyed the comical memes and social media posts of parents coming to terms with these uncharted waters that is home learning. I read one post where a parent had stated on the first day of home learning two of her students were suspended and the teacher was stood down for drinking on the job! Another warning the neighbours if they see her kids locked outside the house, that they are having a fire drill and to mind your own business. I’m sure you’ve chuckled at a few others. Keeping our sense of humour is so important during this time.
We have been making our welfare calls to families to hear how things are going at home and there has been some great feedback regarding the remote learning routines that we have been able to act upon or research better ways to deliver content and feedback to our students. If you are finding any aspects challenging, be sure to communicate with your child’s classroom teacher or myself to see if there are ways we can adapt to help your child’s learning needs. Till then, see you on Seesaw!
Mr Wayne Cross
Director of Primary School
Useful Resources
Amber Update
Amber is feeling a bit sad at the moment as she is missing her friends at school. She is a little confused about where everyone has gone but is still working hard to stay connected at school. Amber attends school everyday and visits the students who are still working at school as well as spending time with the staff helping them plan their lessons.
