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St Michael’s School
Bassendean
4 James St
Bassendean WA 6054
PO Box 428
Bassendean WA 6934
08 6278 9888
Absentee Line – 6278 9802
admin@stmichaelsbass.wa.edu.au
St Michael’s School
Bassendean
School News
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Year 6 Media Ministry
This week we have all been very busy because a lot has been on. The Year 6’s have been building the garden beds, we have had a new green screen, cross country training and we had a small Sacred Saints.
The vegetable garden is currently been rebuilt and the Environment Ministry, along with Mr Powles, have been building the beds in which the soil will go in to. The Environment Ministry has been looking for seeds to plant so we can hopefully have freshly grown vegetables.
Cross country is on Friday 26th June, 2020. Always remember to try your best at running. It is not about winning or losing, it’s about having a good time and running with your friends. Remember to wear your red t-shirt with your green shorts and wear your sneakers.
Just a friendly reminder that we should keep the habit of wearing the right uniform, and if you wear the wrong uniform you must bring in a note otherwise you might get a consequence. But if you send an email to your teacher you won’t get a consequence.
This week Mrs. Saunders had a brilliant idea about using the green screen. The green screen can be hung up behind the people that are talking or so that we don’t have to do it in one spot all the time. We can take photos and take videos in front of the green screen. It works way better than standing in front of something else. We use an app that is called green screen to insert a different background.
Regards,
Media Ministry
School Social Worker Message
School Social Worker Section How do you talk about racism with your children? In an optimistic and perhaps naïve way, I remember teaching my children to ‘treat others as they would like to be treated’ and that if they showed kindness to others, others would be kind to them. It wasn’t long before that theory fell flat on its head. As children grow and gain more exposure to people and experiences in their community, they come to realise that sadly, not everyone is kind and people are not in fact always treated equally. What a difficult and confusing message for your children to try to understand! As people mourn and speak out against George Floyd’s tragic death in the US and Australia, we can be reminded that we all have a personal responsibility to challenge racist ideologies in our community. The most significant place to start is within our own hearts, but also with educating our own children and families. Here are some ideas:
- Keep protecting your children from the media. There are scenes being shown repeatedly that our children should never have to see.
- Discuss what racism is in child-friendly terms. For young children, this might be, ‘Some people don’t understand that even though we may look different on the outside, our hearts and feelings are just the same on the inside’ or ‘ It’s never okay to treat other people differently or be mean to others just because they don’t look the same as us’. For older children, you might explain that ‘Some people lack the understanding that cultural and racial differences make our society richer and that quality relationships aren’t dependent on how we look, or where we are from.’ Explain that “There is no excuse for racism. All people should be treated equally regardless of where they are born, their culture, or their ethnicity.’’
- Model to your child the value of diversity when you see it in your family, your friendships, and your work relationships. Call out situations of racism when you see them and discuss these with your child.
- Make an effort to not describe or refer to other people by their physical features, appearance or their race.
- Be very honest with yourself and challenge any of your own judgements that you may hold that could be racist. Sometimes we have preconceived ideas from our own upbringing or experiences….challenge these.
- Teach your child to get to know and value the people that they meet based on their character, and not to judge or measure them by any other means.
Our Kagan cooperative learning model supports children to work together towards common goals through team building, group cheers, active listening and providing equal opportunities to share ideas. The group seating arrangements assist children to develop tolerance and acceptance for all their classmates – even those who might frustrate them at times. These processes of collaborative learning help nurture students who value and appreciate the diversity and uniqueness of every individual. Let’s continue together as parents and school staff to build a community of compassionate and kind young people who will take a stand when they see inequality or injustice! Lisa Mueller School Social Worker Available Mondays and Wednesdays