Term 4 - Week 3 1st November 2022

Principals Report

 I hope everyone had a restful and well-deserved break, and each of you is looking forward to finishing of the year strongly. 

Some of the events that we engaged in and are taking part in over the last three weeks:

• Class 2 are taking part in their Swim Safety Program
• Our students finished second in the Reclink Cricket Challenge, we lost by a run!
• Students in Prep to Grade 10 are taking part in their PAT Testing this week, these tests help us to plan for future learning and measure our students’ growth in Reading and Maths from year to year.
• Our Gr 9 and 10 students celebrated their time at our school at their Leavers’ Celebration.
• Surf Life Saving Tasmania completed a Bush to Beach session
• Teachers took part in Professional Learning on Trauma Informed Practices and learning about our new Curriculum Maps
• Students from our Kinder/Prep, Class 1 and Class 2 classes went to Kingston Beach, the new Kingston Park and the Kingborough Sports Centre for a gymnastics session

Term 4 traditionally flies by.  We are hoping to share information about how our school will be structured shortly, as you can understand it is a big job which is impacted by staffing, budgets and student numbers.  Our aim is to provide the best possible environment for all of our children to learn and for our teachers to be able to have the best impact that they can on student growth, academic outcomes and wellbeing for learning.

We are getting closer to our new Ag Science Classrooms being built, plans have been signed off and the building contract was advertised last week.

You may be aware that there is industrial action planned for November 9, we will keep you up to date with information as it comes to hand.

We’re in a really tricky phase of the year as students are growing socially, emotionally, acedemically and phyisically!

As our students are physically growing it impacts their uniform as it becomes difficult to know the next size to buy them with only eight weeks of the school term left.  Our school does have a uniform policy and we are expecting students to make a genuine effort to wear our uniform consistently and correctly for the remainder of the year.   We understand that students may have outgrown their current uniform and that there may be days when it is not possible for them to wear their an item of their uniform.  If you are unsure of our Uniform Policy it is available from our school office, our office also carries stock if you wish to purchase school uniform items.  We are expecting our students to wear hats at recess and lunch time this term and are asking students not to wear heavy duty work boots to school.  Footwear needs to be practical, functional and safe for students learning and also their peers.   

COVID has made its presence felt throughout the school again, thankyou to everyone who is being vigilant and keeping our community safe by following the guidelines that are issued by the Department of Health.

As a parent of 12 year old, I’ve been doing lots of reading how I can best support my daughter through her teenage years … it’s becoming a challenge!!!   I found this article about the way her brain will start to develop when I was searching through the internet for answers, explainations, tips and best ways to support her.   It explains neuroscientific processes in very simple terms (phew!)

Teenage brain development: the basics

Children’s brains have a massive growth spurt when they’re very young. By the time they’re six, their brains are already about 90-95% of adult size. The early years are a critical time for brain development, but the brain still needs a lot of remodelling before it can function as an adult brain.

This brain remodelling happens intensively during adolescence, continuing until your child is in their mid-20s. Brain change depends on age, experience and hormonal changes in puberty.

Inside the teenage brain

Adolescence is a time of significant growth and development inside the teenage brain.

The main change is that unused connections in the thinking and processing part of your child’s brain (called the grey matter) are ‘pruned’ away. At the same time, other connections are strengthened. This is the brain’s way of becoming more efficient, based on the ‘use it or lose it’ principle.

This pruning process begins in the back of the brain. The front part of the brain, the prefrontal cortex, is remodelled last. The prefrontal cortex is the decision-making part of the brain, responsible for your child’s ability to plan and think about the consequences of actions, solve problems and control impulses. Changes in this part of the brain continue into early adulthood.

Because the prefrontal cortex is still developing, teenagers might rely on a part of the brain called the amygdala to make decisions and solve problems more than adults do. The amygdala is associated with emotions, impulses, aggression and instinctive behaviour.

Have you noticed that sometimes your child’s thinking and behaviour seems quite mature, but at other times your child seems to behave or think in illogical, impulsive or emotional ways? The back-to-front development of the brain explains these shifts and changes – teenagers are working with brains that are still under construction.

Building a healthy teenage brain

The combination of your child’s unique brain and environment influences the way your child acts, thinks and feels. For example, your child’s preferred activities and skills might become ‘hard-wired’ in the brain.

How teenagers spend their time is crucial to brain development. So it’s worth thinking about the range of activities and experiences your child is into – music, sports, study, languages, video games. How are these shaping the sort of brain your child will take into adulthood?

You're an important part of your child’s environment. You mean a lot to your child. How you guide and influence your child will be important in helping your child to build a healthy brain too.

You can do this by:

• encouraging positive behaviour
• promoting good thinking skills
• helping your child get plenty of sleep.

Behaviour strategies for teenage brain development

While your child’s brain is developing, your child might:

• choose high-risk activities or risky behaviour
• express more and stronger emotions
• make impulsive decisions.

Here are some tips for encouraging good behaviour and strengthening positive brain connections:

• Let your child take some healthy risks. New and different experiences help your child develop an independent identity, explore grown-up behaviour, and move towards independence.
• Help your child find new creative and expressive outlets for feelings. Your child might be expressing and trying to control new emotions. Many teenagers find that doing or watching sport or music, writing and other art forms are good outlets.
• Talk through decisions step by step with your child. Ask about possible courses of action your child might choose, and talk through potential consequences. Encourage your child to weigh up positive consequences or rewards against negative ones.
• Use family routines to give your child’s life some structure. These might be based around school and family timetables.
• Provide boundaries and opportunities for negotiating those boundaries. Young people need guidance and limit-setting from their parents and other adults.
• Offer frequent praise and positive rewards for desired behaviour. This reinforces pathways in your child’s brain.
• Be a positive role model. Your behaviour will show your child the behaviour you expect.
• Stay connected with your child. You’ll probably want to keep an eye on your child’s activities and friends. Being open and approachable can help you with this.
• Talk with your child about their developing brain. Understanding this important period of growth might help your child process their feelings. It might also make taking care of the brain more interesting for your child.

Teenagers are often passionate about their interests, especially ones that give them opportunities to socialise. You can help your child develop skills and confidence by supporting your child’s interests, activities and hobbies.

Thinking strategies for teenage brain development

Brain growth and development during these years means that your child will start to:

• think more logically
• think about things more abstractly and understand that issues aren’t always simple
• pick up more on other people’s emotional cues
• solve complex problems in a logical way, and see problems from different perspectives
• get a better perspective on the future.

You can support the development of your child’s thinking with the following strategies:

• Encourage empathy. Talk about feelings – yours, your child’s and other people’s. Highlight the fact that other people have different perspectives and circumstances. Reinforce that many people can be affected by one action.
• Emphasise the immediate and long-term consequences of actions. The part of the brain responsible for future thinking (the prefrontal cortex) is still developing. If you talk about how your child’s actions influence both the present and the future, you can help the healthy development of your child’s prefrontal cortex.
• Try to match your language level to the level of your child’s understanding. For important information, you can check your child has understood by asking your child to tell you in their own words what they’ve just heard.
• Help your child develop decision-making and problem-solving skills. You and your child could work through a process that involves defining problems, listing options, and considering outcomes that everyone is happy with. Role-modelling these skills is important too.

Sleep and teenage brain development

During adolescence, sleep patterns change because of hormonal changes in the brain. But children still need plenty of sleep for their overall health and development, including their brain development.

These tips can help your child get they sleep they need:

• Ensure your child has a comfortable, quiet sleep environment.
• Encourage ‘winding down’ before bed, away from screens including phones.
• Encourage your child to go to bed and wake up at regular times each day.
• Encourage your child to get 8-10 hours of sleep each night.

The article can be found here: https://raisingchildren.net.au/teens/development/understanding-your-teenager/brain-development-teens

A big thankyou to those students who are living our values of COURAGE, RESPECT, GROWTH and ASPIRATION.  Our focus this Term is ASPIRATION

• Mason P demonstrated GROWTH and RESPECT when he cleaned up our classroom
• Joel T demonstrated GROWTH and ASPIRATION using his speech sounds and words
• Nellie demonstrated GROWTH in Maths
• Evie H demonstrated ASPIRATION in her English work, striving to achieve more
• Bonnie H demonstrated GROWTH applying herself to her learning in data handling
• Makayla W demonstrated GROWTH and RESPECT when she cleaned up our classroom
• Nellie demonstrated GROWTH and ASPIRATION when she stretched her thinking in her weekend writing
• Max J demonstrated RESPECT by being inclusive and helpful in cooking
• Leo demonstrated GROWTH and RESPECT cleaning up our classroom
• Laura W demonstrated GROWTH and RESPECT when she cleaned up our classroom
• George, Max, Henry demonstrated GROWTH in the way they responsibly collected and returned sports equipment
• Makayla W demonstrated GROWTH and RESPECT when she took time to help others be their best

Please keep an eye out on our calendar there are lots of celebrations and wonderful learning experiences coming up this term.  We're looking forward to hosting our Special Persons Day shortly!

See you soon

Ryan

Bothwell School Values Focus Term 3 - Aspiration

End of Year - Reports

End of year reports

A reminder to families that end of year reports will be distributed in Week 9

The report will show your child’s learning achievement on a 9-point visual scale which replaces A-E ratings for students in Prep to Year 10.

The 9-point scale shows more specifically where your child’s learning achievement is against the expected standard for their year level.

There will be no teacher comments on the report.

For more information about the changes to reports:

• School Reports FAQs
• Understanding the 9-point scale
• Reporting - The Department for Education, Children and Young People Tasmania (decyp.tas.gov.au)

Survey For Families: Out of Area Enrolments

Survey for Families: Out-of-Area Enrolments – The Department for Education, Children and Young People is reviewing the procedure for out-of-area enrolments at Tasmanian Government schools. We are interested to learn more about your perspectives on the benefits of attending your local government school, and the reasons families seek enrolment at a school outside their local intake area. You are invited to have your say using an online survey at: 

https://forms.office.com/r/CX6hgsUvcX.

School Association

The School Association is exploring the possibility of an After School Care for students. 

To progress discussions with service providers the level of need within the community needs to be determined.

Parents can register their interest by contacting Susan Webb on webbsusan199@gmail.com or 0428 591 136. 

We are keen to gather the following information:

• Number of students requiring after school care
• Parents wiliness to pay for the service
• Parents eligibility for Child Care Support which reduces the gap fee to the provider

Interests should be submitted by the 18^th November 2022.

Kinder/Prep Science Experiment

In Kinder/Prep, we are exploring how things move in Science.  We did an experiment where we rolled items, that were different weights and sizes, down the slide to see what rolled fastest and furthest.  Lots of interesting discussions occured and predictions were challenged or affirmed.

School Health Nurse

Hello, my name is Hilary Semmens, and I am the new School Health Nurse for Bothwell DHS while Meegan Richards is on maternity leave. I have moved into school nursing this year after working as a nurse in a doctor’s clinic for many years. I am delighted to be the School Health Nurse for Bothwell.

School Health Nurses can contribute to the health and wellbeing of a school through health assessments for kindergarten and year seven students, hearing and vision screening for students when required, health promotion and education with classes and small groups and working alongside teachers and support staff to meet the health needs of all students.

This term I will be at the school on Tuesdays. Please feel free to let the office know if you would like to catch up with me, either in person or via phone, to discuss any health or wellbeing concerns you have regarding your child.

Cooking with Brigette

More Cooking with Brigette

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Science with Mrs Wise - Class 3

Students in Class 3 are studying energy transfer in Science.  These students are recording some data on the height of bounces from three different size balls.  There were trialling basketballs, tennis balls and small rubber balls to see what happens to the return bounce once the ball has been released.

Primary Stem Rotation with Mrs Wise

A Primary stem rotation cooking group on Friday made coconut biscuits.  These biscuits where then shared with the primary students before they went home.  Classes 3 and 4 where also treated.

Visit from Surf Rescue

On Thursday 3 November Class 1 including Prep had a visit from Surf Rescue.  The students learnt about being safe at the beach.  They discussed seeking help, what to do when caught in a rip, flags and equipment that can be used including body boards and an esky, being sun safe and the importance of wearing a life jacket and when.  Boat safety was also discussed.  Grace and Joel did a great job in role-playing a rescue, where Grace saved Joel who was caught in a big choppy waves (made by the other children).

Class 2 Stem

Class 2 recently undertook a stem lesson with Mrs Wise.  They were given a plastic bag and 50cm of masking tape.  They had to recycle the bag into another use.  The class had a lot of fun and there were quite a few giggles to be heard.

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Making every school day count

Making every school day count

Welcome back to the last term of the school year! We’re excited for what’s in store, including Celebrating our Grade 10s, Excursions, Swimming and Water Safety Program, Swimming Carnival and many others.

This final stretch of the school year can sometimes be challenging to get your kids to school. But being at school is the best place for our kids, and it’s important we make every school day count.

If you’re struggling to get your child to school, help is available. Please talk to us at school about your situation. We’ll support you, in whatever way we can.

Here are some tips to help:

• Create a routine.
• Give yourself enough time in the morning.
• Be on time, every day. Monday to Friday.
• Schedule appointments and trips outside of school hours.
• Get a good night’s sleep.
• Set some technology boundaries.

If your child is well enough to attend school, they should be at school. Every day, Monday to Friday.

Data tells us that the better a child’s attendance rate, the better off they’ll be. Their future will be filled with more opportunities…. which is what every parent and carer wants for their child.

School is where they learn and grow alongside their friends, and where they benefit the most. Going to school not only promotes academic success, but also helps build important social skills, relationships and confidence.

Again, please talk to us about your situation if you’re having trouble getting your child to school every day.

Levies and Charges for 2023

Dear Families,

School Levies and Charges for 2023

Levies are one of the many ways that families contribute to our school community. Levies support student learning by contributing towards the cost of essential items and services.

When setting school levies and charges the school:

• considers inclusive education, community expectations and family financial constraints
• sets levies at the lowest amount possible
• consults with the School Association of the school.

Levies are paid in Term One each year, or can be paid in instalments using a payment plan. Payment plans are available for all families, and may continue through to the end of the school year.

Families who are supported through the Student Assistance Scheme (STAS) do not need to pay levies. Parents holding a Health Care Card, Low Income Health Care Card, or Pensioner Concession Card are eligible for STAS for their children.

LEVIES FOR 2023

WHAT CAN BE INCLUDED IN LEVIES

How do I pay levies and charges?

Levies can be paid:

• At the school (by cash or cheque)
• At Service Tasmania (by EFTPOS, cash or cheque)
• Through BPAY (using the Biller Code and Reference on your invoice)
• By mail, forward your cheque, money order or credit card details to the school, with the payment slip from your invoice attached (payable to the Department of Education)
• Using Centrepay, a service provided by Centrelink.

You can choose to pay your levies by instalment by contacting the school to set up a payment plan of regular instalments. Payment plans can continue through to the end of the school year.

Can I get help with school levies?

There are a range of options available to support families with the costs of schooling.

• You are eligible for the Student Assistance Scheme (STAS) if you hold a Health Care Card, Low Income Health Care Card, or Pensioner Concession Card. Once you have applied for STAS, you will not need to pay any levies. You may apply online (https://www.education.tas.gov.au/parents-carers/parent-fact-sheets/fees-levies/), or collect a paper application form from your school office.
• Families receiving STAS can access the Spectacles Assistance Scheme to support children who require spectacles.

If you are experiencing financial difficulty or financial hardship, and none of the support options above will work for your family, you can contact Chris  Turner  or the Department of Education’s Financial Services Unit at Fin.Serv@education.tas.gov.au or on 1800 827 055.

Where can I access the Levies and Charges Policy for our school?

The Levies and Charges Policy for our school can be accessed by our Web Page or from the school office.

What will happen if I forget to pay?

Students will not be prevented from participating in any learning activities that are part of the curriculum if their levies have not been paid.

If your family has not paid their levies by the due date, and has not organised to pay in instalments, the school will be in contact to remind you that payment is due, and will check to see if your family requires support. If your levies remain unpaid after the school has sent two follow-up letters, the matter will be forwarded to Finance and Budget Services within the Department of Education to be followed up.

Under no circumstances will the status of payment of levies or charges be discussed directly with students.

Who can I talk to about levies?

You are a valued member of our school community and we welcome your feedback on levies and charges at our school.

You can contact Chris Turner  and Ryan Kinder 62595518 if you have any questions or would like to talk about levies at our school. Personal information relating to levies will always be treated with total confidentiality.

The levies and charges we receive from families supports our school to deliver learning opportunities for all students. Thank you for your contribution.

Yours sincerely,

Ryan Kinder

Principal

River Clyde Flood Mapping Study

Oatlands Aquatic Centre Activities

Central Highlands Council