Assistant Principal - Mission - Staff and Student Wellbeing
Dear parents
At SJPC we aim to create a safe and supportive school community for everyone.
You are an important part of our work to prevent bullying and to respond effectively if it happens. Stopping bullying involves everyone.
This is a pocket card from Bullying. No Way! with tips on what to do if your child talks to you about bullying. Parents know their children best and know the best way to tailor communication to their needs. Adapt these tips to what works for you and your child.
If your child talks to you about bullying:
- Listen calmly and get the full story. Your calm response is important to allow your child to tell you all about the situation. After they’ve told you their story, ask questions to get more details if you need: who, what, where and when. Although you may feel some strong emotions about your child’s experience, try to keep calm to avoid more distress to your child.
- Reassure your child they are not to blame. Many children blame themselves and this may make them feel even worse. You could say things like, ‘That sounds really hard to deal with. No one should have to put up with that.’ or ‘I’m so glad you told me. You should be able to feel safe at school; that’s not fair at all’.
- Ask your child what they want to do and what they want you to do. A critical part of your response is to avoid jumping in to solve the problem. While it is natural to want to protect your child, helping them to find their own solution is a better option. It helps them feel they have some power in the situation.
- Visit bullyingnoway.gov.au to find some strategies. The website has tips and ideas for different bullying situations. One idea is to practise strategies at home to help your child feel more confident.
- Contact the school. Your child may be reluctant for you to do this, so discuss the idea and reassure them that the school would want to know and is able to help. Make an appointment to meet with your child’s homeroom teacher / year coordinator and, if you need to, ask to talk with the principal. Contact the school immediately if you have a concern about your child’s safety.
- Check in regularly with your child. Keep the conversation going. It can take time to resolve issues, so check in regularly with your child about their experiences and their feelings. Your ongoing support is important.
SJPC outlines how it will deal with bullying on page 6 of the College diary.
If you are looking for support for yourself to deal with a bullying situation, you will find ideas on the Bullying. No Way! website for parents. As well, please feel free to contact the school if you would like to discuss any aspect of our approach to preventing bullying.
Last week saw the first parent webinar for the year. The title ‘Future Proofing your Child‘ explored how parents and the school can best prepare students for life in the 2020s and beyond. Nikki Bush (Parenting expert, speaker and author) reflected on her new book entitled the same name as the webinar. Nikki believes that in the not too distant future “the Gig Economy” will be the biggest employer in the world with many people not having a regular fulltime employer and that we must ready our children for this type of situation. Nikki’s talk was based around the triangle (below) with family support still being essential in the development of the child. Ms Bush highlighted the aspects of curiosity, personal X-Factors, and talent that exist in our children should be very much encouraged by families and schools.
Once the webinar is downloaded as a video the College will share the link to all families.
Students and parents are reminded that although the current approach to schooling may be in a different format, similar resources are still available. The College Counsellors, Homeroom teachers, Year Coordinators, the Head of Pastoral Care and the Assistant Principals, are only an email or phone call away. While teachers will still be in contact with students, if you feel the need, please stay in touch with the College and we will continue to do all we can to continue the development of the students at SJPC.
Until next time:
‘It’s going to be hard but hard does not mean impossible’ Success.com
Assistant Principal - Mission
Staff and Student Wellbeing