25 Mar 2020
A MESSAGE FROM PRINCIPAL JO SCOTT
Dear Parents and Carers this message contains:
- my personal thoughts and reflection
- suggestions on how to approach home learning
- advice from counsellors and links
- remember children learn by observing
- work pack information for parents and carers
- links to education sites, resources, activities
MY PERSONAL THOUGHTS AND REFLECTION:
There is no doubt this past week has been difficult and stressful for everyone – families, students and families. As we continue to respond to the virus, we must understand that many in our community will be facing economic difficulties and that we need to be mindful of their emotional wellbeing and our own.
I have been overwhelmed by how the staff at Singleton have pulled together. They have been working hard to support students, every day our team is putting in tremendous effort to prepare online and remote learning resources. Teachers have also been sharing their skills and knowledge running sessions on the use of Canvas and Sentral as examples.
Please contact the school if you need support. I personally thank all our families and students who are working in supermarkets, chemists and others retail suppliers and in the medical and health professions who are dealing with unprecedented demands.
SUGGESTIONS ON HOW TO APPROACH HOME LEARNING
You might be inclined to create a minute by minute schedule for your kids. You have high hopes of hours of learning, including online activities, science experiments, and book reports. You’ll limit technology until everything is done! But here’s the thing ...
Our kids are just as scared as we are right now. Our kids not only can hear everything that is going on around them, but they feel our constant tension and anxiety. They have never experienced anything like this before. Although the idea of being off school for weeks sounds awesome, they are probably picturing a fun time like summer break, not the reality of being trapped at home and not seeing their friends.
Over the coming weeks, you will see an increase in behaviour issues with your kids. Whether it’s anxiety, or anger, or protest that they can’t do things normally - it will happen. You’ll see more meltdowns, tantrums, and oppositional behaviour in the coming weeks. This is normal and expected under these circumstances.
What children need right now is to feel comforted and loved. To feel like it’s all going to be ok. This might mean that you tear up your perfect schedule and love your kids a bit more. Play outside and go on walks. Bake cookies and paint pictures. Play board games and watch movies. Do a science experiment together or find virtual field trips of the zoo. Start a book and read together as a family. Snuggle under warm blankets and do nothing.
Don’t worry about them regressing in school. Every single kid is in this boat and they all will be ok. When we are back in the classroom, we will all make course adjustments and meet them where they are. Teachers are experts at this!
Don’t pick fights with your kids because they don’t want to do maths. Don’t scream at your kids for not following the schedule. Don’t mandate 2 hours of learning time if they are resisting it.
If I can leave you with one thing, it’s this: at the end of all of this, your kids’ mental health will be more important than their academic skills. How they felt during this time will stay with them long after the memory of what they did during those weeks is long gone.
So please keep that in mind every single day and be calm, be kind and be grateful.
ADVICE FROM COUNSELLORS AND LINKS
A virus outbreak obviously has many people feeling anxious and and we can all be affected differently. You or your children might feel overwhelmed by the information, conversations and the increased levels of stress in your community.
It can be hard to know what information to trust especially in a situation where things are changing so quickly. It can be helpful to keep up-to-date but it’s also okay to switch off from the 24 hour media cycle if this is getting too much.
Following is some advice accumulated from the Australian Psychological Society (APS) and Headspace to assist your family's mental health as this situation continues to unfold.
Children will inevitably pick up on the concerns and anxiety of others, whether this be through listening and observing what is happening at home or at school.
Providing opportunities to answer questions in an honest and age-appropriate way can help reduce any anxiety they may be experiencing. You can do this by:
- speaking to them about coronavirus in a calm manner
- asking them what they already know about the virus so you can clarify any misunderstandings they may have
- letting them know that it is normal to experience some anxiety when new and stressful situations arise
- giving them a sense of control by explaining what they can do to stay safe (eg wash their hands regularly, stay away from people who are coughing or sneezing)
- not overwhelming them with unnecessary information (eg death rates) as this can increase their anxiety
- reassure them that coronavirus is less common and severe in children compared to adults
- allowing regular contact (eg by phone) with people they may worry about, such as grandparents, to reassure them that they are okay
Coping with Coronavirus - Australian Psychological Society
https://drive.google.com/open…
SchoolTV All Editions
https://singleton-h.schools.nsw.schooltv.me/category-latest…
SchoolTV: Special Coronavirus Report
https://singleton-h.schools.nsw.schooltv.me/…/special-repor…
SchoolTV: Building Resilience
https://singleton-h.schools.nsw.schooltv.me/news…/resilience
SchoolTV: Youth Anxiety
https://singleton-h.schools.nsw.schooltv.me/n…/youth-anxiety
REMEMBER CHILDREN LEARN BY OBSERVING
Keep doing the stuff you love to do (where possible) and the things that are important to you, model that there is a life outside of the hysteria, and ensure you're having conversations about other things as well.
Try not to let the children worry about financial or other stresses that may be occurring in your family as a result of the virus. Provide opportunities for your kids to switch off, watch a movie together or play a board game.
Staying active will help them (and you!) to sleep better, manage stress and boost mood and will provide some much needed fresh air and vitamin D - even going for a walk as a family or down to the local park could be options.
Stay hydrated and continue to enjoy a healthy diet. Getting enough sleep may mean reducing access to TV news and social media hysteria before bedtime.
WORK PACK INFORMATION FOR PARENTS AND CARERS
Note: all families with reliable internet access already have access to ALL the information in the study packs through each subject area in Canvas, they do not need an email or hardcopy.
Only those with slow or no internet should collect study packs. We want to minimise the time and paper required for producing hard copies of these packs and appreciate your understanding in this matter.
Your pack includes enough work for students to complete over the next two and a half weeks. It is suggested that students spend a similar length of time on each subject as they would at school. They are designed to allow students to continue to work independently from home. Parents/carers are not required to “home school” however some supervision will be needed.
Should your child require teacher assistance with their work please call the school during school hours. We will organise staff to contact you within 48 hours if they are not immediately available.
Students should continue working on other tasks from the pack in the interim. Our school office will remain open from 8.00am to 4.00pm Monday to Friday until the last day of term on 9 April. To contact us please phone us on 02 6571 1199.
Completed work can be returned to the school during the last couple of days of term. Please submit work in a plastic sleeve clearly labelled with the Student’s name, year and the subject. Collection containers will be situated on the front porch of the school.
LINKS TO EDUCATION SITES AND ACTIVITIES
Here are hundreds of resources, activities and links, almost all are free, due to the virus situation. They are sorted by faculty area and for advanced, toddlers, primary and pre university ... see which ones suit your children.
- LINKS: https://tinyurl.com/vyq28qw
- OFFLINE: https://tinyurl.com/syppkj8
- CREATIVE: https://tinyurl.com/vzlxye9
- STORYBOARD: https://tinyurl.com/uw6h96q