Newsletter Term 4, Week 1 9 Oct 2020

We were all delighted to see our Senior School campus populated with Year 12 girls for the GAT this week. Schools are lonely, loveless places without the presence of students, teachers and the wonderful dynamic connection that is at the heart of schools. We await Monday with excitement as the majority of our students return. However, I think we share with you the frustration that we cannot bring back all our students. Our hearts go out to Years 8 and 9 and those students in Year 10 who do not study a VCE Unit 1/2 subject. I believe students need to be at School as so much of the year has passed without their presence. However, we are obligated to abide the government edict that is the most current. Hopefully, with improved numbers this is revised sooner rather than later.

While the logistics of return to School have been done and the teachers have been busy preparing for lessons, we are considering how our students might be emotionally and socially on their return. Obviously, learning is important, but we believe that wellbeing is of more importance just now. It always is, of course, but the present circumstances are without parallel. Our students have spent the longest time in remote schooling mode of almost anywhere in the world and we need to prioritise belonging, connection and re-engagement. Despite the Hurculean efforts of teachers to provide high quality remote learning experiences and the best efforts of parents, students through this time have experienced disconnection and isolation from their peers, teachers and School community.

We know that a student’s sense of belonging at School is strongly influenced by relationships. This sense of belonging drives academic motivation, which is a critical precursor for effective learning. When a student feels they belong, they feel safe, respected, included and accepted. That is why here at Strathcona the driving philosophy is the focus on the whole person. There may be some anxiety around academics this year, but to start the term, the strong focus will be on the re-engagement and transition back to real-time School. The VCE teachers will do their best to keep up a strong momentum of learning while being very cognisant of the balancing act they are undertaking as they care for the students. Overall, getting the students back to a safe routine and re-establishing the teaching/learning rhythm in a shared physical setting, will only assist the students by providing the comfort of the old routines while being adaptable to what needs we see in our students after this unprecedented experience. Professional development has occurred around this challenge and we will do our best to support all our girls, varied as their needs may be.

Our two School Psychologists were approached over the break to provide input in various media for parents in how best to support their children's transition back to School. 

Below are some of the guidelines the teachers have in mind as they ready themselves for next Monday. Finally, I have included a post a friend, who is a writer, posted recently on social media. I think it beautifully captures our experience.

• Allow time to re-establish and build relationships; give yourself space to know your students again in a physical context; build rapport.
• Start slow: students may find themselves quite fatigued on returning to School. This break from School has been different from a typical school holiday. The increase in real time physical contact may be tiring for some students or even overwhelming.
• Let students know that the staff are there for their personal and emotional support – and with the younger ones, in particular - assisting them to understand the social dynamic, which may be confusing and anxiety-provoking for some.
• Wellbeing interventions and approaches are of critical importance at the moment.
• Try to be preventative as much as possible. While seeking to enable and empower students as much as possible, keep your eye out for signs that students are not coping and may need additional support; refer on as needed.
  

It is possible to imagine the physical constraints of a 5k life. But the emotional, social, and mental barriers are realer than the geographic ones after this long. When I see an unmasked face outside Victoria on my socials, or read about people going out to dinner or having house parties in other states, I get a little shock. It seems so alien after eight months trapped in Melbourne in my 5k zone. I flinch when I see a police car, and if I have my mask down to catch my breath or sip coffee, I worry someone will call me out on it. I had never imagined I’d be living such a small life that I don’t control. It is an interesting life lesson, but I’m inexplicably exhausted.

Warm regards
Mrs Marise McConaghy, Principal

Longmuir, Fiona. Begin with Belonging 5 October, 2020 Monash University

In this week's edition, you will find the following information on:

•    Dates to Diarise in Term 4
•    Australia's 20 most-needed Jobs
•    VTAC 2021 Upcoming Key Dates
•    Emerging Occupations
•    Torrens University - no longer considering the ATAR
•    Studying Osteopathy at Victoria University
•    Diploma of Teacher Education Preparation
•    Associate Degree in Engineering Technology at RMIT

Please click here for this week's Career News. To visit the the Careers page or view previous versions of Careers News click here.

Whilst it is understandably difficult to watch some of the other year levels head back onto their Campuses, at Year 9 we are planning our next two weeks with a sense of optimism and knowledge that when we do get to meet again in person - it will be a cause for celebration!

To break up this time for Year 9s, myself and the Tay Creggan team have planned two 'special' days - next week, on Thursday 15 October we will be running 'Frame Your Future' (details are in a letter sent to parents) and in the following week our 'Footy Pop Up Day' will contain a blend of Melbourne activities - a virtual excursion, Mrs Cameron running Masterchef and Envision electives. 

We know that returning to Campus will come with trepidation for some, great delight for others - please rest assured that all girls will be supported and let me know if you feel your daughter will need further assistance in managing her return. 

This week we are also closing down our successful Envision businesses. Final orders are still being filled, we are calculating taxes, tallying profits and losses and business teams are making the decision of whether to continue running their company outside of the school platform. Further details, including our final sales summary will be included in a later Newsletter. Importantly, students are being asked to reflect on what skills they have acquired and what lessons they have learned. What would they have done differently? 

I cannot wait to see everyone returning to Tay Creggan and the happy buzz of chatter in the corridors once again. The countdown begins!

Best wishes,

Mrs Karyn Murray, Head of Tay Creggan

Versatility and adaptability are important skills in anyone’s toolkit – and this week in Science, teacher Sally Cash set them a challenge which would test their thinking and their understanding of Diseases. It was to channel their inner pathologist and identify their favourite microbial pathogen. It might be a bacteria, a virus, a protist or even a fungi. Students then needed to  find out what it looks like and use anything they could find at home to make a 3D model – here are the terrific results!

It exists on a continuum from mild expression to severe and functionally disabling, where a person may overthink and misinterpret normal physical cues as a threat. In his foresightful book The Psychology of Pandemics (2019), published before the world was aware of COVID-19, Steven Taylor highlighted the relevance of health anxiety to individual’s reactions to a potential pandemic. While some people have very low levels of health anxiety, this may impact on their attention to health measures, such as hand washing and basic hygiene. While a measure of anxiety is functional and keeps us safe, at the other end of the spectrum, some people will have episodes of significant health anxiety. For these people, avoidance of potential sources of contagion, along with behaviour that repeatedly seeks to gain reassurance about medical facts or their own health status, can become a fixation and interfere with their participation in normal life.

A program to deal with health anxiety in young people has been set up during COVID-19 at Swinburne University Psychology Clinic to assist young people aged 13-18 years with mild to moderate health anxiety. This is a low cost clinic.

Referrals can be made by parents, teachers, and other professionals working with youths to request an assessment for a young person. Referrals need to be made by completing the Swinburne University Referral Form.

Ms Kerri Rhodes, Senior Psychologist and Mrs Sharon Turner, Junior School Psychologist are also available for consultation about health anxiety concerns.

Ms Kerri Rhodes, Senior Psychologist

The format allows all couples to meet together, for Bill and Julia to say hello and introduce the topic. Then participants are muted, with cameras off while they discuss topics and view video components. My husband and I did this marriage course with the Baptist Pastors around Victoria at the beginning of the year and were immensely blessed by it. There were couples of all ages and stages and the videos and discussion topics were fabulous! 

I would like to take this opportunity for you to invest in your marriage in this way. If you are interested, please fill out the registration form and email this to Bill Brown Bill.brown@buv.com.au or if you have any questions please email him.

Every blessing and encouragement to you and your families. 

Mrs Kathleen Vergers, School Chaplain

The annual CSEF amount per student is:
• $125 for primary school students
• $225 for secondary school students

HOW TO APPLY - New applicants should contact the school office to obtain a form or visit the Department of Education and Training and download the CSEF application form. 

If you applied for the CSEF at your child's school in 2019, you do not need to complete an application form in 2020 unless there has been a change in your family circumstances. 

You only need to complete an application form if any of the following changes have occurred:
· new student enrolments; your child has started or changed schools in 2020 or you did not apply in 2019.
· changed family circumstances; such as a change of custody, change of name, concession card number, or new siblings commencing at the school in 2020.

Check with the business office if you are unsure.

For more information please visit the Department of Education and Training website. 

The Department of Education & Training has extended the eligibility date and therefore if you wish to apply, please complete the application form.

When you have completed the form, email this to businessoffice@strathcona.vic.edu.au before Friday 22 October 2020.

Business Office

Send your details to cro@strathcona.vic.edu.au.

To support a local business and shop local, you can find Strathcona Community businesses in our latest Business Directory.

The Community Relations Office continues to work with the Strathcona Family Association and the Old Strathconians in supporting our community during these uncertain times. If you have any questions please email Mrs Jo Wilson via email jwilson@strathcona.vic.edu.au.

Mrs Jo Wilson, Director of School and Community Relations

Please join us for this exciting seminar being held next Monday commencing at 7pm.

Strathcona's Centre for Learning Futures is excited to announce that Nicole Eckels, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Sapphire Group (including Glasshouse Fragrances and Circa Home Brands) will be our next guest speaker to talk about about Turning your Dream into a Living. She has experience with setting up her own business and she will talk about what is required and the challenges she faced while doing this. We hope you can join us to hear Nicole speak.

Thank you to everyone who has registered, here is the link you will need to join on Microsoft Teams:

https://teams.microsoft.com/l/meetup-join/19%3ameeting_MjMwM2YwY2QtYTQ3Ny00OTQ4LTgzM2YtZDYzYTA3OGYwY2Jl%40thread.v2/0?context=%7b%22Tid%22%3a%22f32a0f6a-f56b-4103-9206-c7a2193463d0%22%2c%22Oid%22%3a%22ebc8efc0-6cb4-4319-abb6-75f3a1b22085%22%2c%22IsBroadcastMeeting%22%3atrue%7d

If you haven't registered but would still be interested in joining, please use the link above to join.

We will be commencing right on 7pm so please try the above link 5-10 minutes before the start in case there are any problems.