Dear Parents

It’s is quite hard to believe that we are at the halfway mark through the term. Wow! The days are certainly flying by. I suppose it is a sign that life is pretty hectic, with very little time to just take a breather every now and again. With the business of school life being somewhat taken for granted, we need to be mindful of the stresses which young children can experience at this time of year. Kids need to be active, but they also need time to rest. Sleep and nutrition are vital, especially during periods of vigorous routine and or illness. This is the time where children will start to feel the wear and tear of school, homework, extra-curricular activities and the cold and flu season. Naturally, they will become more emotional over issues that a few weeks ago would be handled with ease. One such issue would be maintaining positive relationships with their school mates.

Conflict with peers is unavoidable and is all part of growing up. From my experience, most disagreements occur at the back end of each school term. Petty, niggling things that others may say or do suddenly become major reasons for arguments and strained friendships. At times like these, teachers and parents play an important role in guiding children through these rough patches. It is also important not to catastrophize issues into something they are not. An example of this is to avoid labelling minor school or playground incidents as bullying. Bullying should not be confused with teasing, rejection, random or one-off verbal or physical conflict. While teachers will engage various strategies to reduce such incidents and spend time and effort to maintain peace and harmony, children will tease and fight at some stage; however, this bickering should not be confused with bullying.

Bullying is a word that is wrapped in emotion. For many people bullying is associated with bad childhood memories. Bullying is an insidious behaviour and can take on many forms and guises such as physical and emotional abuse, intimidation, harassment and exclusion. It is not the domain of just one gender. Girls bully just as much as boys, but they do it in less physical ways. Whilst boys use physical intimidation or verbal abuse to wield power, girls are more likely to use exclusion or sarcasm to assert themselves.

Bullying is about lack of power, as one person is powerless to stop the teasing or physical abuse. Bullying is the selective, uninvited, repetitive oppression of one person by another person or group. Sometimes, we don’t find out that someone has been bullied until after a long period of time and this proves very difficult to resolve, as recollections of incidents can become unclear if they occurred some months beforehand. This is why it is important to identify and act on any possible signs of potential bullying at the earliest opportunity. For this to occur, teachers, parents and children need to communicate and co-operate as soon as any signs may appear.

 If you suspect your child is being bullied, here are some helpful hints on what to do:

1. Listen to their story. Children experiencing stress in their lives need someone to believe their story. Take them seriously yet take some time to help them differentiate between bullying and teasing. Kids can be nasty to one another at times, yet this does not constitute bullying.
2. Get the facts. Ensure you get a clear picture of what happened, including who was involved, the frequency and what occurs prior to any bullying. Get your child to be as specific as possible. A quiet chat with your child’s teacher the following day will help enormously. The teacher may be unaware of such behaviour occurring and now can start planning a course of action, or he or she can provide further information of what occurred.
3. Deal with their feelings. A child who is being bullied probably feels scared, angry and sad. Reassure them that it is ok to feel this way and by working together things will get better.
4. Help build your child’s support networks. Kids need friends to support them when they experience bullying, so look for practical ways to broaden friendship groups. Avoid withdrawing or utilizing social media to solve the issue at all costs.
5. Build their self-confidence. Provide plenty of encouragement. Let them know through your words and treatment of them that they will get through this tough period.

It’s worth remembering that children who experience some form of bullying and have dealt with it effectively, often become stronger and more resourceful because they have experienced difficulties, developed resilience and a skill set they know will help them overcome tough situations. It is this skill set we aim to develop and strengthen throughout their primary years of schooling. These strategies will be invaluable as they continue their journey into secondary schooling. 

Praise & Commendations

It is always rewarding to receive both verbal and written feedback on how things are going here at Lourdes. It is amazing how just a few words of praise can lift a person’s spirits and reinforce the feeling that what they are doing is making a real difference. I have been most appreciative to receive such comments, whether it is regard to school events, family wellbeing or highlighting the little things teachers and support staff do on a daily basis for the students. I am a great believer in the fact that attitudes are contagious. Positive energy and positive attitudes do not just happen though. It requires constant attention and recognition of great things that people do. Acknowledging a student’s, parents or teacher’s effort is a great thing to do. Supporting each other is a great thing to do. Avoid spending energy on negative thoughts is a great thing to do. Expressing appreciation and feeling appreciated is a great thing to do. So, thank you to all who express their gratitude. You have provided a real shot in the arm for the staff and parents who give 100% to provide the best possible opportunities for all students.

Communication

If you are reading this, I’m probably just preaching to the converted but maybe you can assist in raising awareness of the importance of keeping up to date with what is happening at school by spreading the word about the school newsletter. The newsletter is still our number one form of communicating up to date information about school and class events. Other modes of communication include – class information notes, School calendar, P&F run Facebook site (OLOLMemos), class dojos and regular reminders at assembly, class teachers and via the Schoolzine App.

Now, if you don’t read the newsletter, information notes don’t make it out of the school bag, you don’t check and update your school calendar and you don’t make use of the various social media apps, then at some stage something will be missed or forgotten. There is not too much more a school can do to provide information and one thing for certain is that the school, department, or classes will never organise an event without informing families. You can tell me you did not know but you cannot tell me you were not informed.

To ensure the best possible communication levels are achieved, I urge all families to read the newsletters which are emailed fortnightly. Hard copies of the newsletter are available at the front office or upon request. The Schoolzine App is also a great way to receive updates or emergency notices especially during these uncertain times. The Schoolzine App will be our priority mode of communication to families in case of any sudden change in school routine. I urge all families to download this App as a matter of urgency.

Parent Help

OLOL offers students a variety of wonderful opportunities and experiences throughout the year. The school also conducts fundraising events to assist in the provision of resources for the students. These opportunities such as sports days, classroom reading and maths groups, excursions, tuckshop etc., would not be a possibility without the help of parents. Your ongoing support and assistance is always greatly appreciated and valued by the staff and students of the school.

Summer Uniform

The official changeover date to the summer uniform is Monday 7th September. However, due to swimming lessons, students are permitted to wear their sport uniform each day of that week. Parents, please ensure you have all the necessary items required for the summer uniform and that includes a check to see if it still fits. The students are still permitted to wear jumpers, long formal pants (boys) and stockings (girls) if the cold weather continues.

Athletics Carnival

The carnival for Grades 3-6 will be held on Monday 24^th August (Day 1) at the O’Quinn St Oval. Programmed events for this day include all track events, long jump, and high jump. On Tuesday 25August (Day 2) shot put and discus events will be conducted for all students born 2008-2011. These events will also be held at O’Quinn St. Due to complexities surrounding COVID-19 restrictions when utilizing TSC public grounds, unfortunately, no spectators will be able to attend either of these days.

Our Preppies to Year 2 students will also get their chance to have a go at a mini-athletics carnival (Day 3) which will be conducted here at the school on Friday 28^th August. Any parents or extended family members that would like to spectate are asked to remain within the designated area. This will ensure the students are able to concentrate on their events and it also assists us to meet our COVID-19 obligations.

For further information, please continue to refer to the PE section of the newsletter as due to ongoing changes of COVID-19 regulations, information parents need to know may change from week to week.

Swimming Lessons

A reminder that swimming lessons for all classes will commence Monday 7^th September and continue through to Friday 11^th September. All lessons are conducted by qualified instructors and all children will be transported to and from the Glennie Pool by bus. All COVID-19 precautions have been checked and will be strictly adhered to. Students are permitted to wear their sports uniform each day this week. Please note that swimming is part of the Phys. Ed. Curriculum and therefore all children are expected to attend these lessons.

School Renewal and Improvement Process - SRIP

Every four years, Catholic schools in the Toowoomba Diocese undertake a renewal process. This process enables parents, staff, and students to have a voice on the future direction of the school. Feedback from two simple questions – “What does the school do well?” and  “What could the school do better?” provides the Principal and school leadership with valuable information to create a fully informed strategic plan for the next four years. OLOL will undertake its SRIP on 1^st – 3^rd September. Five external panel members will interview a cross section of our community over the first two days and from the feedback receive compile a report and deliver their findings to the staff at the end of the third day. As a result of the SRIP there will be no school improvement survey for parents to complete this year. If you wish to have input into the review, please do not hesitate to contact me.

School Fees

Just a reminder that this month’s school fee invoices have been sent via email to families. As always, your prompt payment of these invoices greatly assists the school in meeting its ongoing financial commitments. Thank you for your continued support.

Thank You

I would just like to take this opportunity to express my sincere appreciation for all the support and messages of condolences following the recent passing of my Mum who was in palliative care in Canberra. During difficult times like this it is always reassuring to know you have the support of those around you.

Thanks for reading……Chris