Mary Immaculate Primary Newsletter

Dear Parents/Carers,

I hope you are all managing the challenges of these times.

We are inviting families to have a wellbeing no device day this coming Friday. Instead of doing 'school work', we want our families to do the important work of that day - taking care of their wellbeing. Many families have felt the pressure of lockdown and remote learning and we are listening to your feedback.

RUOK? Day was very prominent this year. Even more so, I feel, because of the widely agreed need to take care of our wellbeing. The focus of the initiative is to bring about conversations including those around our mental health. The current circumstances are unprecedented in the lives of most generations in Australia. We are all experiencing things for which we don't have a 'roadmap'. Much of what is affecting us is around what we are missing, our friends and our freedoms. We are certainly not used to this and it has been a huge adjustment. We feel a sense of loss and separation. Because of the extended period of lockdown these feelings have crept up and we can be at a loss as to know whether we are actually going ok or whether we are more affected than we realise. We are not all used to assessing our own mental health.

But how do we assess our own wellbeing and mental health? Perhaps those around us can provide us with some insight. We have recently asked for some online feedback from our school community around remote learning. Asking those closest to you for some feedback on your wellbeing might start a very beneficial conversation. "How do you think I am managing at the moment?" might be a good starter question. Perhaps this Friday or before, start up one of these conversations. Create an atmosphere that is calm and open. Ask your kids even. They often can cut through and provide us with amazing insights!

Enjoy Friday and the school holidays. For all you parents, you are probably looking forward to a holiday from school work yourselves! Thank you so much for your cooperation and appreciation as we work together for your children. News on what will happen as far as children in this LGA returning to school will be on the forefront of everyone's mind - ours as well. We all look forward to when they can safely return.

Stephen Dowd

Principal

School holiday activities and ideas to do at home:

• Make rice paper wraps(PDF, 79KB) at home with the kids
• Share some big and small things you've done that has helped you in positive ways during the COVID pandemic and during lockdown and go in the draw to win 1 of 3 Wish vouchers worth $50. We How you have overcome challenges can be a source of inspiration for others!
• Download the Sydney West Child Protection Interagency activity packs for children(PDF, 9MB) or adults(PDF, 11MB). This was created and released as part of Child Protection Week which ran from 5 - 11 September.
• Check out some fun activities that the kids can do at home, put together by Blacktown Key Venues. These are updated every week with new ideas! 
• Play Mancala at home. Instructions can be found here.
• Take the Sydney Science Trail to uncover cutting-edge science at home.
• View over 150+ ideas for family fun by Newy with Kids.

From our last School Holiday guide - more activities and ideas to do at home!

• Download our free crossword(PDF, 38KB) , designed by our Environment team, to teach kids about our waterways and the importance of keeping them clean!

• Learn to draw Mickey Mouse.
• Download the free 'Wild Home Play' e-book. (Please note - payment details are not required to download this e-book).
• Download free Disney movie activity packs.
• Do environmental learning activities (in line with the school curriculum).
• Plant a vegetable garden.
• Recording a frog call with The Australian Museum's FrogID app to you can discover which frogs live around you and help them count Australia's frogs!
• Encourage the kids to grab their favourite book, pick a character they want to play, dress up like them, and put on a play!
• Do the combination man drawing activity.
• Go on a virtual field trip.
• Do a virtual tour of over 2,500 museums and galleries.
• Watch live webcams of animals at the San Diego Zoo and Melbourne Zoo!
• Virtual keeper talks with Zookeeper Chad every weekday at 11 am on Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park's Facebook and Instagram pages.
• Watch a children's book being read by celebrities.
• Pick a theme for a day (e.g. Harry Potter, Disney character, favourite movie, LEGO), dress up in that theme and do any activities related to the theme.
• Play a board game.
• Do a puzzle.
• Do some arts and crafts.
• Make jewellery at home.
• Do a drawing lesson with Mo Willems, the author of 'Don't let the Pigeon Stay up Late'.
• Bake something new with the kids. Get them involved!
• Learn how to do something new. Have the kids think of something they want to learn about.
• Learn about the history of anywhere in the world.
• Learn about the weather, climate, atmosphere, water, energy, plants and animals with the NASA initiative.
• Learn a language.
• Paint.
• Draw with chalk on the driveway.
• Play a sport (soccer, handball, touch football etc.) in the backyard.
• Do some kid friendly workouts at home with the kids.
• Take the dog for a walk.
• Teach the dog a new trick.
• Dance parties!
• Camp in the lounge room or backyard.
• Go through old photo albums/videos and tell stories.
• Yoga and mindfulness activities for kids.
• Play an instrument online!
• Listen to astronauts reading stories from space.
• Do an online history class for all ages.
• For those close to 16, study and practice for your Learner's drivers licence test.

If you would like to receive future editions of our School Holiday Guide, subscribe here.