College Assembly

This week during our Academic Care period we held a college assembly. With the focus on Wellbeing, Ms Boller and the Year 12 Student Leadership Team coordinated a wonderful presentation celebrating the many opportunities and successes our students have had in the first 6 weeks of Term 2. All students were encouraged to get involved with school life and to look after themselves through steps like reaching out and supporting each other and reducing stress levels by ensuring we get enough sleep.

Raising the topic of sleep is a great segway into presenting information about sleep so parents can initiate a conversation with their child.

The Importance of Sleep 

It’s a well-known fact that sleep is incredibly important for everyone. Sleep is the body’s chance to rest and reset for the next day. For young people, sleep is especially important because their bodies are going through their formative years and need recovery in order to change and develop. Despite sleep being so important for young people, good sleep patterns are often resisted due to a variety of reasons, such as screens and social media, worrying/racing minds, and other distractions. So how can parents and carers support their children to have better sleep patterns? 

Maintain Routine 

It can be difficult to go to sleep at the same time every night, however maintaining some routine is important so that the brain knows when to relax and prepare for rest. It can be a good idea to have a limit to how late your child can stay up for, and they can choose to go to bed before or on that time. A pre-bed routine is also helpful for a good sleep, and can include brushing teeth, reading a chapter of a book or listening to a relaxing podcast. Every person is different, but young people should be aiming for at least 8 hours of sleep per night. A good sleep routine also includes waking up at a reasonable time each morning. Remind your child that while it may be difficult at first, their body clock will adjust, and it will get easier.  

Avoid Stimuli 

Avoiding screens is extremely important and we should not be looking at phone, television or computer screens for at least one hour before bed. This is because screens stimulate us, not relax us. Screentime reduces the quality of our sleep and does not allow us to wind-down properly.  

Other common stimuli can include caffeine and energy drinks. These should be limited and not consumed during the afternoon or night.  

Create a Good Environment 

Young people will sleep easier if they are in a comfortable, tidy environment. It is also a good idea to encourage your children not to do homework on their bed. Their bed is supposed to be a place of rest and relaxation, and it can be harder to switch off if they have spent all afternoon working on it.   

Check-in Before Bed 

Sometimes young people can struggle to sleep due to stress. There are many worries that can keep young people up at night – from social issues such as friendships and bullying, to school issues such as assignment stress. It can be helpful to check-in before bed and offer comfort or advice if they need it.  

If you are worried about your child’s sleep, check in with their GP to discuss this further. For more information, read this with your child: https://headspace.org.au/explore-topics/for-young-people/get-enough-sleep/.  

Headspace

Headspace is a valuable resource in our local community.  Through headspace our families can access a range of services to support the mental health of young people. Recently we received a flyer alerting us to the activities on offer in the coming weeks along with the services they offer.

Teddy Bear’s Picnic

The Student Representative Council which is made up of students from Years 7 -12 assisted with the running of the 2024 Teddy Bear’s Picnic for St Bernard’s and St Mary’s students. Our students were engaged all day running fun activities for the students. Thank you very much to Mrs Ciufettelli for all her organisation.

Uniform

All students should now be wearing the Winter uniform. To ensure that students are wearing their uniform correctly, families are asked to read over the uniform expectations found in the Uniform Policy. Areas of concern regarding the wearing of the college uniform continue to be excessive jewellery, makeup - including false eyelashes and false nails, short skirts and sports shorts, wrong socks and facial hair.

Students are reminded that hoodies and long sleeve skivvies under shirts and dresses are not part of the College uniform. If an extra layer of warmth is needed, then students can wear the college jersey or jumper. For more warmth the black college jacket is available, as well as the more formal college blazer. Uniform items are available from the College uniform shop, Lowes, and Stitches at Batemans Bay.

All parents are asked to continue to support the college staff to ensure that students are well presented each day.

Year 10 Pastoral Day

In a college that has vertical Homerooms, Pastoral Days offer an opportunity for the students in a particular Year group to spend time together focused on issues relevant to their age group and needs. Last Friday, our Year 10 students enjoyed their Pastoral Day. Mrs Lyttle and Mr McAteer developed a pastoral program that focused on the topic of Mental Health and Wellbeing. The first session began with icebreakers allowing students to connect and open the conversation around what mental health is and their own self assessment. The second session allowed the students to break into two groups so they could focus on gender relevant topics. Our third session, after a delicious lunch organised by Mrs Whiteman, gave students the opportunity to choose from a range of activities that allowed them to relax and focus on their well-being eg. Yoga, journaling, painting and meditations. Thank you to Mrs Lyttle, Mr McAteer, Mrs Dwyer, Mr Fogarty, Mr Harding, Mrs Whiteman, Mr Harker, Miss Blackmore, Mrs Mahony, Mrs Shilling, Mr Bissell and Mr Glenn Cotter. the R U OK Ambassador.

Mrs Louise Ibbett
Assistant Principal Pastoral Care