From The Principal

From The Principal

I appreciated the opportunity to attend the ISA & AHISA National Education Forum in Canberra last week, along with the Chair of Redlands Board, Glenda McLoughlin. Among a range of quality presentations, Professor Donna Cross highlighted the importance of a strategic focus on wellbeing for school communities, which is one of our key Strategic Drivers. We are currently focused on refining and documenting the scope and sequence of our P-12 Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) program. Dean of Students (7-12), Marita Jansons, and Dean of Students (P-6), Katie-Louise Clinton, have been awarded the inaugural Innovative Teaching Fellowship and will be travelling to the US in April to attend a National CASEL conference and to visit numerous schools with high quality programs. 

Professor Cross highlighted that 700 research studies have demonstrated that the implementation of an average SEL initiative has the benefit of an additional four months academic attainment, which was a powerful reminder of the importance of focusing on supporting student and staff wellbeing.  

You may also be interested that the following five factors were presented as the best predictors of wellbeing:

  1. Positive relationships (social isolation increases the risk of death by 30%)
  2. Physical activity which gets rid of cortisol
  3. Healthy weight
  4. Low consumption of alcohol
  5. Healthy diet

I am very much looking forward to attending the opening night of Redlands production of Shrek The Musical this evening, the School’s first live musical since 2019. It has been wonderful to witness the buzz around campus from all of the students involved and my sincere thanks to all staff involved in making the production possible during this logistically challenging period.

It has also been pleasing to see our camp program back in operation this term with Year 7 students attending the High Country Campus in Jindabyne and Year 5 students away in the Southern Highlands this week. These Outdoor Education experiences would not be possible without the dedicated support of staff who ensure that students get the opportunity to thrive through this important experiential learning program.

We have received a few queries regarding the requirements for household contacts, in the situation where more than one family member may become COVID-positive over time. The following clarification may assist. 

A household contact of a COVID-positive person must isolate for 7 days. Following that time period, they are not obligated to self-isolate for the next 14 days, even if another household contact becomes COVID- positive. This means a household contact does not need to self-isolate as a contact more than once in a 21-day period unless the person is diagnosed with COVID-19. In this case they will need to self-isolate again for 7 days as a confirmed case. 

If a household contact is notified of a new case within their household after 14 days since they completed their self-isolation, they will need to isolate again for 7 days unless they have previously tested positive, and it has been no more than 8 weeks since they ceased self-isolating as a positive case. 

Mr Stephen Webber

Photo Caption: Our Prep and Junior School students celebrated Harmony Day by participating in a range of activities such as Japanese Origami making, group weaving and dancing.