For many students playing with others, and making and keeping friends seems to be quite effortless, but for a number it can be a challenge. Certain children find the unstructured nature of the schoolyard overwhelming, while others do not tolerate their peers for a variety of reasons. Unfortunately, about one in ten school-age children have […]
As the first day of school approaches many teachers will be planning how to maximise student engagement in the classroom. One of the best strategies is to build strong student-teacher relationships. Teacher-student relationships play an essential role in a child’s motivation and engagement.[1] Maulana R., Opdenakker M. C., Stroet K., Bosker R. ‘Changes in teachers’ […]
How are you feeling today? Exhausted? Sad? Relieved? Stressed? Excited? With only a few days (for those lucky ones) or a week or so until the end of the school year, you may feel like you’re limping along to the summer holiday finish line. Me too. Here’s what has been helping me get through the […]
Did you know that up to 20 per cent of students in any year are described as disengaged? [1]Angus, M., McDonald, T., Ormond, C., Rybarcyk, R., Taylor, A., & Winterton, A. (2009). Trajectories of classroom behaviour and academic …continue This impacts significantly of the student’s learning outcomes. Many do not catch up academically in later years. [2] Angus, […]
Emergency response drills require regular practice Schools have an obligation to provide a safe environment for children, staff, volunteers and visitors. Careful preparation, planning and regular practice drills are designed to equip staff to react quickly and calmly, to act in a coordinated and thoughtful manner and to minimize the risk of harm to all […]
It’s National child protection week. If you work in a school this is a good time to share information with your students about being safe, how to seek help, and who to seek help from if needed. Discussing protective behaviours is one way to do this. Protective Behaviours are based on two main concepts: Everyone has […]
In every class there are students who struggle to learn. Over time, some will begin to believe that even if they try, they will be unable to achieve. As a result, they may give up easily, be less willing to have a go, avoid trying new things, or asking for help, further reinforcing their perception […]
Children’s literacy skills begin developing long before they begin school. Some might argue that they begin in the womb, where we now know the foetus begins learning the difference between language patterns such as sounds, syllables and vowel lengths. [1]Partanen E, Kujala T, Huotilainen M, et al. Learning-induced neural plasticity of speech processing before birth. PNAS. […]
Recently a number of members have been asking for help in getting a hard to contact parent to attend a meeting at their school. To generate some fresh ideas we thought we’d publish some of the best suggestions posted on our old forum in response to the following question… ‘Hi, I was wondering if anyone has […]
Q: ‘I have been referred a child who bites and hits others when she cannot have her own way. The child is in Prep (Foundation year), and did the same at preschool and at home. This year’s classroom teacher has had some success, however the behaviour has returned. From my reading, this behaviour may relate […]
There are about 200 serious or chronic health conditions affecting Australian children and adolescents. A health condition that lasts three or more months, affects a child’s daily living, requires frequent hospitalisation, extra home care, and/or extensive medical care and treatment nationwide.[1] Mokkink, L. B., van der Lee, J. H., Grootenhuis, M. A., Offringa, M., Heymans, H. […]
By Dr. Julie White, Psych4Schools Guest Blogger An estimated 12% or half a million Australian school-aged children and young people live with chronic health conditions. There are about 200 different conditions, ranging from Cystic Fibrosis to survivors of childhood stroke to those dealing with Crohn’s Disease. Medical successes enable many, who in the past would […]
When students engage in a task involving high concentration for an extended period of time, the brain’s messenger chemicals or neurotransmitters, like dopamine and serotonin, are depleted and they can experience ‘burnout’. As a result, new memories are unlikely to be stored effectively. Observe your students whilst they are engaged in an activity for a […]
Be clear about the purpose of the meeting. Is it fact finding, information giving, or a mixture of these? Don’t walk into a meeting ‘cold’. Have some thoughts regarding the way forward, but be flexible and willing to listen. Make sure siblings are catered for by providing paper, pens, an iPad or toy box. It […]
Face-to-face meetings with parents enable you to put names to faces, and are often the first step to developing great working relationships. Building rapport by identifying and discussing student strengths, interests, concerns and possible solutions early in the year can be reassuring to both you and parents. Most meetings early in the year focus on […]
Many schools experience issues around liaison with some ‘hard to reach’ parents. Sending notes home, leaving phone messages, waiting outside the room at student departure time, trying to chat at sports day, school approved home visits, arranging meetings via family workers or sending meeting reminders via Class Dojo are all techniques that can have some […]