18 October 2024

Welcome back to a new term. Here we were reminding you about sunhats and sunscreen when merino and layers would have been the better suggestion! As usual, it's all go up here on the hill, that's for sure! 

Being World Teachers' Day as I type, I want to thank them for all of the work they put into writing reports over the break. We are spending a lot of this term getting our heads around the new curriculum expectations. At this stage, I'm unsure if our reporting will change too much but this could indeed be the final report you receive in this exact format - we will see!

In the break, I finally got around to reading a book I had been lugging around between home and school for a few months - "The Anxious Generation" by Jonathan Haidt. It really had some pearls of wisdom backed up by solid research - in an American context, so I kept this in mind as our curriculum and physical environments tend to be quite different. Professor Haidt explored a range of topics ranging from the impact of social media and the increase of curated lives online which children compare themselves to, restrictions from parents and schools on children's independence that leads to a lack of resilience and the inability to cope with challenges, over emphasis on safety, not equipping children with skills to handle adversity and too much focus on emotional wellbeing. Yes, quite big themes.

Much of it wasn't exactly new but it got me thinking. We have talked a lot about the need for play at home and school - I'm talking about free unsupervised play where the real learning takes place. For example, you learn far more by having to handle a friendship issue in a game or how far to push yourself physically by actually doing it - than being talked to about it. (Although our playtimes are supervised, we still encourage more of a supporting children through a challenge and facilitating a discussion when we can, rather than a 'solving for' approach.) 

In brief, here are some of his messages specifically for parents which you may be interested in:

• Foster Independence - encourage children to take risks and face challenges on their own.

• Limit Screen Time - encourage face to face interactions and outdoor activities.

• Promote open communication - children need to be able to express their feelings and concerns.

• Model healthy coping strategies - children learn by example.

• Encourage Critical thinking.

• Value community and connection.

The cartoon from the New Yorker in the book resonated with me - I haven't quite decided how much ..... yet. Picture me showing you around the school on your initial visit, "We've created a safe, non-judgmental environment that will leave your child ill prepared for real life."

Now, while part of me finds that a little cynical ....... are we, as a staff, too quick to wrap in cotton wool? I'm just thinking.........

Anyway - the book also has some scary statistics which I won't go into - but, if you are interested, you are welcome to borrow it.