I loved walking around the Mother’s Day stall last Thursday watching the students carefully choose what gift they would like to give their mum. Some kids just saw something and knew it was the right thing. Others would pick some thing up and look at it, put it down and move to something else, doing this from table to table.

It reminded me how different we all are, and how we approach things differently and use different ways of making choices. It also showed me that no matter how different we are, to love and be loved, to belong to something or some people, to be able to share moments with those who are important to us, is vital for all of us, regardless of our ways of thinking or doing.

I am hoping there were lots of special moments in your family on the weekend, and that your children were right at the centre of them.

This week we have our NAPLAN program for our Year 3s and 5s. I would like to emphasise again that we do not teach to NAPLAN at Prescott Primary Northern. We teach the Australian Curriculum and that forms the basis of the assessments of NAPLAN.

We just ask our children to do their very best, and ask parents to remember that this is a snapshot of the children’s understanding on a given day, on a given topic. Rather than over emphasise NAPLAN and its results, I found an article that gives us some evidence-based approaches we can use to help our children achieve their best at school. I hope you enjoy it and draw on the wisdom contained.

“Helping Children Thrive at School

The following factors generally matter most when it comes to your child doing well at school:

1. Reading. If there is only one thing that you do with your children for their education, read to them. This should start as young as possible and continue through toddler years, preschool years, and into big school. Read to them – and have them read to you – as they go through their early primary years. And keep books around right through high school. Reading is one of the best predictors of children’s academic success, and it is associated with increased resilience, particularly for kids from challenged or traumatic backgrounds.
2. Be involved. Research shows that parents who ask about school, check in on what students are learning, talk with the school teacher from time to time, and continue to monitor and stay up to date on what is happening at school have children who do better academically when compared with students whose parents are uninvolved. Getting involved shows you care.
3. Relationships with peers. Children who enjoy a sense of school belonging, according to Dr Kelly Allen at Monash University, do better at school. They also have higher levels of life satisfaction.
4. A sense of progress and purpose. These are two separate things, but I’m including them together because they often follow one another. When our children make progress, they feel competent and capable. This increases their motivation, and makes school feel purposeful. If parents can work to help children see the progress they’re making, it will boost desire for more progress, and the work becomes easier and more enjoyable.
5. People who love them. There is no way of getting around this fact: kids do well for those they love. When a student loves his science teacher, science becomes the best subject ever and he tries hard as a result. The same goes with PE, English, or any other subject. Helping children feel like they are known, numbered, and missed combined with teachers who are enthusiastic about their topics, helps kids do better at school.

Often people will say, “But what about my child?” So many parents are dealing with ADHD, autism, ODD, sensory issues, depression, or other additional health or developmental needs. My response is always the same: those points above become even more vital. Read, be involved, help them make friends, challenge them to progress and find purpose, and make sure someone loves them.” (Coulson, 2022)

Have a great week with your kids,

Mark B