Last week we shared an online presentation - 'It Takes A Village' - which unpacked the school's approach to managing behaviour.

We talked about Positive Behaviour for Learning, bullying, our behaviour plan and how we can work in partnership with parents to ensure Stanley Bay continues to have a pro-social culture that instils kindness and empathy and embodies the school values of respect, responsibility and integrity. If you could not see the presentation 'live', you can view the presentation above.

As part of our strategy to create the optimal learning environment, we regularly take the temperature of the school culture and one way we do this is using the Well-being at School Survey (W@S). The survey was developed by New Zealand Centre for Educational Research (NZCER) and has been developed from robust research and is consistent with the New Zealand Curriculum, ERO's School Evaluation Indicators, and the draft Standards for the Teaching Profession.

The W@S tool explores different aspects of school life and shows how different layers of school life contribute to creating a safe and caring climate. As part of the school's review cycle, year 5 and 6 students complete the survey independently and online; this data, along with evidence from our younger students, is used school-wide to identify the next steps and best practices.

In the survey, year 5 and 6 students reported that:

• 90% are never or hardly ever bullied
• 99% are never or are hardly ever bullied on social media
• 97% never or hardly ever experience students being mean because of the way they learn
• 97% never or hardly ever have mean things said to them or about their family
• 98% never or hardly ever experience their property being broken in a mean way
• 97% threaten in a mean way or are asked to do things they don't want to

As a school, this gives us confidence that we have a safe student culture; however, as with any survey, there are 'next steps. One of our next steps is to continue to develop a 'speak up culture; this was also reflected in the outcomes of the school-wide well-being review carried out by the Board in 2021.

If a child has a problem or worries, they are encouraged to tell someone they trust. This is where the home school partnership is vital.

As a school, we encourage children to tell an adult at school at the time of the incident so it can be followed up promptly and quickly resolved. For some children, speaking up; is challenging; at school, we have StanMail; this is a post box in the office where children can post a note with their name so we can follow up discreetly. However, we also know that some children may feel more comfortable talking to their parents. Therefore, if your child tells you of an unwanted social interaction, get in touch with your child's teacher as soon as possible so we can take action. As you can imagine, a time delay can increase anxiety and worry for the child instead of an immediate response so the child can see that the situation is sorted out.

The Ministry of Education identifies a whole school approach, such as at Stanley Bay, as the best practice to manage behaviour and prevent bullying. We also know that children are likelier to model positive behaviour if their school and parents work in partnership. It really does take a village to raise a child. 

Note: FAQ from the evening can be found on the last slide of the presentation 

Parent Help 

In the past few weeks many of you have been asking about parent help. Yes....we want you to come into school and help, we have missed it! If you have time to offer in the class or at lunch times please contact your child's class teacher. 

Thank you to the many parents already involved it is so good to see you all back on site and helping our class and lunch time programs crank along! 

Please note: if you come in to help you are required to sign in and wear a mask

...and finally, the Mud Run is mere days away, the team has really stepped up the intensity and there are lots of jobs still to be done. Please look out for the emails from your child's teacher in the coming days. 

Nāu te rourou, nāku te rourou, ka ora ai te iwi
With your food basket and my food basket the people will thrive. 

Noho ora mai 

Lucy Naylor
Tumuaki 

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