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2021 Enrolments at Punchbowl Public School

Punchbowl Public School

Plumtree Learning

What will 2021 bring your child?

What can you do to prepare for a successful early intervention experience?

This page was co-designed with Punchbowl Public School educators to guide parents. This program draws from 2020 Student Voice project. It shows how we collaborated to design together inspiring goals for your child.

"You can take this learning forward to your next school and work together with the school to support your child achieve his or her goals" [Dace Elletson, Principal].

A Personal Welcome message

Hi! I am Nathalie Thibaux and I will be meeting with you soon to talk about a topic of importance to both of us: your child's progress.

As a school we are learning to listen more and are enjoying a more strengths based, coordinated and parent led approach to education of students. It is not always easy as we are used to being in control, but the benefits so far outweigh our need to lead education as a sole entity. We are noticing that the approach we are taking with students who have additional needs is also transferring across to the decision making we apply to all students.

As a school we need to dig deeper into the data and determine how we can re-engage the parents who have dropped out of the pilot. I can see benefit in the pilot being scaled across the school for all students who require an individualised learning and support plan.

Plan inspiring goals for your child and family

Now that you understand the importance of using your child's signature strengths, it is time to create some goals!

Our 2020 Student Voice project used an innovative game-like, award winning goal setting tool. Pictability is internationally recognised way to help you reconnect with what is important to your child and family. Join over 1,000 families who have used Pictability to create an achievable map for a great life. To see how we plan differently watch the clip below or visit www.pictability.org.

See how other parents have worked with these ideas: https://sites.google.com/view/studentvoice2020/pictability

Empower yourself with new knowledge - you know your child best!

In working together with educators, parents can accelerate their child progress.

You can initiate conversations and collaborate with your new teacher in order to work together on your child's goals. The progress children make at home can greatly help them at school, and advances at school will reflect on your child's family life as well!

Here are some of the actions you can take:

What the below clips about learning to recognise and amplify your child's voice and strengths
At the meeting with your child's teacher, you will use the exciting innovative tool [Pictability] to set an inspiring vision for your child and your family
Share your child's strengths with their teachers and plan goals that are based on these strengths
Agree with your teachers how you will collaborate and communicate about goal progress. If you work on the same goals at home, your child will achieve their goals faster and... new goals can be put in place!

Last year's Punchbowl Student Voice project

At Punchbowl Public School we trialled last year a novel, collaborative approach to the development of each child’s Personalised Learning and Support Plan (PLaSP). Our aim was to partner with parents for all our students with a disability to be enabled to reach positive learning and life outcomes.

“Since the inception of the pilot there has been a notable shift in educational decision making. The individual student learning goals being negotiated are rich and meaningful for all families.

Parents, the people who know their child the best, are taking the lead and are collaborating with the school about their child’s strengths and the areas of learning they would like prioritised. During all Early Intervention review meetings there was an extremely positive response to the pilot. One parent voiced that she had changed her entire parenting style and is now providing her child choices and opportunities for agency. She noted that this has altered the entire family dynamic and how they interact with one another. This is not an isolated story and many parents are enthused and positive about the impact of the pilot on their family.

The pilot has empowered parents of students in the Early Intervention classes such that when their children transfer to Kindergarten, regardless of the setting, they will have more confidence to voice an opinion, the language to negotiate learning for their child, and the skills to assume the role of advocate - viewing their child from a strengths based platform.

Dace Elletson, Principal, 2020

How we implemented this knowledge in our 2020 Student Voice project - Parent and educator stories: Read the newsletter below!

Preparing for your teacher meeting - and improving your child's preschool experience!

Collaborate with your child's teacher to help your child thrive! Including your knowledge about your child's strengths in planning for their preschool will help will bring out the best in your child and get the best results.

Dr. Lea Waters, author of the Strength Switch book asks: "What if you could make a small shift in your parenting style that would yield enormous results for your child… and for you?" Lea is a Board Member and the 2017-2019 President of the International Positive Psychology Association (IPPA). Her break-through strength-based parenting approach helps parents see what is right about their children, then nurture and cultivate their innate strengths and talents. Start with observation! Read more about it here and watch the video clips above!

What can you start right now - even before your first meeting with the new school?

Watch the clips below to guide you identify your child's strengths and help your child grow their strengths... then talk about these strengths with your child's teacher!

Strengths research

The strengths we all have! A research team led by Dr. Martin Seligman at the University of Pennsylvania, studied the religious and cultural traditions of the world over thousands of years. n their book, Character Strengths and Virtues, they concluded there are 24 strengths that are universal. We all have them and bring them out at different times in our lives... but we are not necessarily aware of our strengths and how to grow them.

By noticing your child's strengths and building on them, you can help your child thrive. Have a look at these strengths described below:

What are your child's strengths?

What are our Signature Strengths?

Help your child grow his or her strengths

Four ways you can impact your child be at their best.

Collaboration between families and educator is key to student success

We are innovative and collaborative! We will work together to:

1: Understand your child's strengths so that your child's voice could be included in their educational planning

2: Journey together - families and teachers - and pool our knowledge about your child's wellbeing to support them in achieving their goals

3: Develop a shared understanding on how we want to communicate all year long about progress on goals so that these goals could be achieved collaboratively between students, teachers and families.

Principal Elletson also participated in some of the Student Voice sessions and the PLSP meetings where parents brought their Student Voice knowledge and resources to the meeting. He said:

“I can see the difference in the families when they come to the meeting, for some it is life changing to learn from their Early Intervention meetings how to set goals. These goals are rich and meaningful to the families. I told some parents that we can help them develop and achieve these goals, that the meeting is just the start of our collaboration and that this knowledge will serve them in the years to come. I would like the Student Voice project to run through the whole school - for all children”.

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