Head of Secondary School
Flexing
Yr 12 have been flexing in the ‘young adult’ space for a while now. The past week has been a formative one; leading across various school events such as Gala Arts, the Yr 10-12 Assembly (below) and a range of HSC and IB Showcases. They impress us with their compassion, diligence and flexibility.
As they commenced their Trial Examinations on Monday, there were some nerves and a sense of trepidation, but there was also quiet confidence and a shared pursuit for success. HSC commenced with English and IB with Economics. Everyone was on time, prepared, positive and keen to demonstrate skills and knowledge. HSC students Josie, Charlotte, Harry and Elke compare palm card notes on the Human Experience before the first English exam.
After School – Student Safety and Supervision
Once the school day concludes at 3.30pm, students have the opportunity to:
- Attend Study Centre from 3.30-5.30pm in the Learning Hub
- Attend an After School Club or Cocurricular Activity such as a Music lesson
- Attend a scheduled Sport Training
If students are not engaged in the above activities, then they should make their way directly home.
For their own safety and wellbeing, students need to be supervised when on campus. This supervision takes place in the Learning Hub or in the designated spaces for Sport or Cocurricular activities.
Students are not permitted to leave School at 3.30pm to buy food and then return.
You are Invited!
We strongly encourage your attendance at the Visual Arts Exhibition to be held in Redlands Hall. Many parents, students and siblings of Yr 12 students were fortunate to be able to share in the skills, talents and innovative designs of Technology, Music, Dance and Drama students in recent weeks and months. Please do make the time to come along and celebrate the successes of our Visual Arts students!
Weathering the Storm
Our Secondary School counsellors shared their experiences and advice for supporting teenagers to weather the storm of anxiety and depression in our termly Wellbeing Parent Support Session. William Chen and Alessandro Digiacomo led this term’s session and one aspect that really resonated with Emotion Coaching. Like in many facets of social and emotional development, children learn a lot from their parents in terms of what’s appropriate in terms of their emotional responses. Even at this later stage of development in adolescence, learning from parents is still important (even though most teens would hate to admit this!). Emotion coaching is a structured approach developed by psychologists for parents to respond to big emotions – developed by John Gottman and Gottman institute. Below are a few examples of potential parental responses.
Emotion Coaching – Parent Responses
|
STEP |
RESPONSE |
|
|
1 |
Notice the Situation |
‘I see that something is up.’ |
|
2 |
Name the Emotion |
‘You seem a bit stressed at the moment.’ |
|
3 |
Validate the Emotion |
‘I can understand why you might feel stressed and worried right now, it can be overwhelming thinking about all the assessments due this term.’ |
|
4 |
Meet the Need |
‘Let’s go for a walk and clear our minds. When we come back, we can have a chat about it.’ |
|
5 |
Problem Solve |
‘Let’s sort out a study plan and break things down into a few steps. I’m sure you can come up with a structure for the essay by tonight.’ |
Australian Mathematics Competition
On Wednesday 2 August, 163 Redlands students participated in the 2023 Australian Mathematics Competition held online in Redlands Hall and on the Winter School Campus under the capable leadership of Mathematics Teachers, Mr Christian Baker. It was affirming to hear the buzz of excitement after completion, as students discussed their strategies for problem solving with each other.
First run in 1978, the Australian Mathematics Competition is Australia’s longest running, largest and most well-known maths competition for school students. The Australian Mathematics Competition contains unique problems designed each year by leading educators and academics to challenge and extend students’ problem-solving skills. It was great to see so many of our students involved!
Jeans for Genes Day
Tomorrow Friday 4 August
This year’s Jeans for Genes Day will be taking place tomorrow Friday 4 August! This event is all about supporting medical research and raising funds for children and families living with genetic disorders.
Did you know 1 in 20 children faces a birth defect or genetic disease? That’s around 1 per class!
Tomorrow, students can come to school in their favourite pair of jeans or denim clothing, as well as the colour blue. For the privilege of dressing down, a gold coin donation will be collected during Tutor. Students may also wish to purchase a blue ribbon before school for $2, or buy a sausage sizzle and can of soft drink in the Liggins Quad at lunch.
We are also asking for nut-free baked goods donations that will be sold at the Junior School on the day. The treats can be dropped off in the Liggins Staffroom before school tomorrow. Please include a visible list of ingredients.
There is also a donations page where you can make a direct contribution to our fundraising efforts found at the link or QR Code below.
Ms Gemma Van de Peer
Head of Secondary School
gvandepeer@redlands.nsw.edu.au
9968 9811