It has been a very busy start to Term 2 with many learning opportunities being given to our girls either in class or extra curricular. It is lovely walking through the playgrounds and into classrooms witnessing the learning and collaboration occurring, however, teenage years can be difficult with many changes taking place.

Parenting Ideas 

There has been considerable research indicating that anxiety in our students has increased since the Covid-19 pandemic. Please find below a summary of an article by Dr Jodi Richardson from Parenting Ideas with some tips on anxiety in secondary school students.

Anxiety in Secondary School Kids

• Anxiety is common and treatable, but it’s also something that can be scary and confusing and occurs to many of us.
• In Australia, 1 in 3 women and 1 in 5 men will experience anxiety in their lifetime. That’s an average of 25 per cent of the population.
• Nervousness, stress and anxiety are normal reactions to logical circumstances. What to look out for in your daughter is if she is reacting anxiously to situations where there’s no danger present, her reaction is out of proportion to the circumstances or she can’t participate in normal daily activities.
• Possible symptoms of anxiety in teenagers include: • Difficulty concentrating • Poor memory • Mind racing • Difficulty sleeping • Always tired • Feeling edgy • Avoidance behaviour • Stomach pains • Chest pain • Shakiness • Nausea • Diarrhoea • Sweating

Tips for Positive Parenting

1. Maintain open lines of communication with your teen by regularly spending one-on-one time together, having fun together and making yourself available at a regular time each day for an uninterrupted chat.
2. If you think your daughter is experiencing anxiety, talk to her about it and seek advice from a medical practitioner.
3. Help your teenager understand what’s going on in their body and brain when they are experiencing anxiety.
4. An effective way to slow anxiety is to take deliberate, slower breaths (in for 3, hold for 1, out for 3).
5. Mindfulness is a superpower for the anxious brain and there are lots of great ways to help teenagers learn.
6. If your daughter is worrying excessively over something, acknowledge this and reassure her.
7. Help your daughter to discover her values so she can take action in the direction of what really matters to her despite feeling anxious.

Compass Student Attendance

To ensure that the College has correct attendance records for your daughter and that you are aware of your daughter’s absence, a text message (SMS) with a link is sent to parents/carers in the primary household. Please click on the link to explain your daughter’s absence. Only one household parent needs to reply.

Using the link will alleviate the need to send a written note explaining the absence. Please respond the same day the text (SMS) has been sent as the link will automatically disappear resulting in the need for you to provide a hand written note for the absence.

Please contact Grace Labbozzetta, by email grace.labbozzetta@syd.catholic.edu.au or phone 9725 4322, if you require any assistance in the use of Compass. In addition to attendance information, Compass allows you to access your daughter’s School Reports and view what she is learning.

Lost Property

Please ensure student names are labelled on all articles of clothes. There have been some lost items that have not been labelled and are in Lost Property.

Thank you for your continued support of the College.

Mrs Christine Harding