Issuu

Middle/Senior School Bulletin Issue 6 / 6 May 2016

From the Principal J Block Fire Update It has been a challenging past couple of weeks for the College as we come to terms with the destruction that the fire on ANZAC Day has caused to J Block. Whilst it has been hard on everyone in our community, particularly our Senior School students and staff, the very best of what makes St Andrews such a special place has been evident. We have witnessed the very best of the human spirit in these trying times - people coming together to care for and support one another. Teaching staff have been very intentional in endeavouring to make sure that the learning program of our students has experienced minimal disruption. Our students have taken the events in their stride, remained focused, and just got on with things. Thanks to the efforts of senior staff, interim plans were quickly developed and the Senior School students experienced the loss of just one teaching day of school – it could have been so much more if not for the work of the Senior Leadership team. As much as humanly possible it has been business as usual.

I know that senior students are keen to be able to access lockers to see what personal possessions may have survived. Unfortunately this cannot occur until the ‘make safe’ phase of the recovery process is complete. This phase is underway and should be completed in the immediate future. Plans for the medium term, including the ordering of portable/relocatable buildings are now underway. These portable buildings will be of good quality to ensure that our students continue to have access to quality learning environments. The College has also commenced planning work on the rebuilding of the spaces destroyed. The process of rebuilding will take time, and people’s patience and understanding in this process is asked for. The College is confident that the facilities once completed will actually be enhanced and add to our community.

The response from both our internal community and the wider external community has been overwhelming, and for that the College is deeply appreciative and humbled. It is understandable that people feel helpless at this time, yet at the same time want to provide help in any way they can. Many people have asked about helping with practical things like the clean up. As always, the safety of people comes first, and so modern Workplace Health and Safety legislation prevents us from asking for assistance for things like this. At this stage the efforts of the College needs to be on keeping the learning of students focused, and working methodically through the initial steps of the recovery process. The College is conscious of involving the St Andrews community in the recovery process, and as we navigate our way through the initial phases we will look for ways to do this. One initial way of engaging in this process might be to attend the P & F Meeting on Wednesday 8 June 7.00pm in the CRC. Part of the focus of the meeting will be how as a Parent Body the P & F might be able to assist the College going forward. Thank you for your ongoing prayers as we move forward together. In closing, congratulations to our Combined Troupe and Percussion Ensemble that were awarded 1st place at the Starbound Dance Eisteddfod – all with borrowed costumes and equipment. It was an amazing moment for all concerned, especially after dealing with the loss and devastation of the past week, but one that typified St Andrews Lutheran College. Tim Kotzur Principal

Middle & Senior School News ‘We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.’ - Romans 5:3 NLT St Andrews is a truly blessed community and the response to the recent damage done by fire is testament to the incredible strength and deep bonds. The community spirit, grit, resilience and optimism of this special place is truly something to treasure. Last Friday at assembly senior music students; Jonathon Aiello, Isobel Thomas and Elliott Baylis performed the Beatles classic Let it be and Mr Kotzur addressed students to reaffirm our commitment to their wellbeing and to minimising the impacts of the loss of these facilities. Thank you to students, staff, parents and our wider St Andrews community for the heartfelt and much appreciated support. Our students and staff continue to embody the spirit of St Andrews and have been focused on learning and planning for how we rebuild with hopeful dispositions.

Starbound Eisteddfod Last weekend, our Years 7-12 Combined Dance Troupe and Middle School Contemporary Troupe Percussion Ensemble placed first at the Starbound Eisteddfod. They performed their ‘Tribal’ routine (first shared on Presentation Night last year) and it was an amazing moment; there were many tears of happiness and hugs all-round particularly given the challenges of the week leading up to the event. We had to borrow costumes and instruments to compete. Our Middle School Contemporary Troupe also received Highly Commended and performed wonderfully! Thank you to the many parents and friends who came to support and to Ms Guild and Mr OG. We are so proud of all the students!

On a practical note, until our toilet block and changeroom facilities under J block are reopened, students in Middle and Senior School who have HPE lessons are asked to come to school in their PE uniforms. At this stage we are unsure when the J block facilities will be operable for classes. To that end, demountable buildings have been ordered to cater for Music, Drama, Dance and Home Economics classes. Our Senior Business and Legal Studies classes have been relocated to the Cecile Ryan Centre (CRC) and E block computer room; and Mr Edward’s Senior Maths classes have been relocated to G5. Staff who were located in J block offices have been relocated. The CRC will continue to open early from 7.30am.

NAPLAN Testing Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 students will sit the National Literacy and Numeracy Tests next week (Tuesday 10 May - Thursday 12 May). Preparation for these tests has been ongoing and we are confident that each student will achieve their personal best results. The work done to prepare our students for the testing has been embedded in our regular teaching programs; focusing on literacy and numeracy skills as key elements, vital to academic success. As a College, our focus remains on assisting our students to achieve their full potential and developing the students under our care as confident learners, critical thinkers and good citizens. The Spirit of St Andrews shown with our Captains organising homemade cupcakes for the Year 12’s!

The word test conjures up many definitions and emotions and it is important that we encourage our students to keep these benchmark tests in context, they are simply a means by

which students and schools across Australia can be compared in order to identify areas of excellence and need. Tests of this nature can be stressful and tiring. St Andrews holds to the view that while we are keen to see students reflect their true ability through such testing programs, we are not keen to see students exposed to undue stress and fear of ‘failure’.

Chaplains Chat

Parents play an important role in supporting their children through this week and ensuring optimal performance levels for testing. Parents are encouraged to: • • • •

Keep a positive, stress free approach to the week and a ‘do your best effort’ approach to their children’s performance Ensure their child(ren) attend College on these testing days and arrive on time and ready for an 8:30am start Ensure their child(ren) are well rested Having a substantial, nutritious breakfast prior to coming to College which includes protein or low GI carbohydrates will also help.

I would like to wish all of the students involved every success. National Excellence in Teaching Awards For the past 22 years the National Excellence in Teaching Awards (NEiTA) Foundation has supported the teaching profession by acknowledging the valuable role inspirational teachers play in the development of our young people. These awards are an opportunity to formally recognise, honour and thank exemplary outstanding teachers and leaders throughout Australia and New Zealand. Nominations for the 2016 ASG National Excellence in Teaching Awards are now open and can be made via the link asg.com.au/nominate until 31 July. Year 8 Camp – Camp Kindness Our Year 8 students head to Tyalgum Ridge for Camp Kindness next week (Monday – Wednesday). There is no understating the benefits of these outdoor education experiences and the many learning outcomes that come from spending time learning, problem solving and living in community in a natural environment. This camp is about building social and emotional skills and is a stepping stone experience that helps our students prepare for The Edge program and extended wilderness experience in Year 9. Best wishes to the Year 8 staff and students for the time spent on camp. Last week I was sharing our story, The St Andrews Journey, at an international educational leadership conference in Canada. Even from the other side of the world, the care and thoughtfulness extended was both reassuring and deeply appreciated. Most impressive has been the resilient, growth mindset for what lies ahead exhibited by students and staff. We are so incredibly blessed to belong to such a wonderful College community! Please do not hesitate to contact me should I be able to offer assistance or if you have feedback on any aspect of College life virginiaw@salc.qld.edu.au Virginia Warner Deputy Principal Head of Secondary School

Over the week gone by I have shared my version of how the morning of Tuesday 26 April played out for me. Mine involved my eldest son coming out from his bedroom at 5.58am to share that school is off today – “I’ve just been messaged that school is cancelled”. “What are you talking about?” I replied “They’re pulling your leg, why would school be cancelled?” and then it began “A fire” was part of the message and in the next 5 minutes it all became so horribly real – on the television news – a phone call from a Brisbane relative at 6.03am… I found myself in the kitchen dumbfounded. How could this happen to our school? Our school that is such a good place to be – a place of learning and growth – a place where people look after each other – a place where we even endeavour to look out for others outside of our community… Why would this happen? As I run this question through my mind I have been unable to come up with a response that is adequate. We have just finished a unit on evil and suffering in Year 9 CS and ultimately, it is very difficult to make sense of disasters that afflict us in this life, particularly ones that we have no role in creating. People have expressed to me that they cannot understand what would possess someone to do what they have done. What can we say? It makes no sense. We are left wondering. We are left needing to move forward as best we can, devastated by an event that is so pointless, so needless. And yet, in amongst all the despair and pain, goodness abounds. The messages of support from Junior School students to the Senior School classes, the offers of support to our students from students of competing schools at sport on Thursday afternoon, and Lutheran school student bodies across Australia planning ways to be of assistance. Our immediate community rallying with offers of equipment and expertise to see us through this huge challenge. There has been all manner of interruption, upheaval and change in our community over the past days. But in amongst all this, one thing has remained - God’s love for us through Christ. The fire within our College reminds us that nothing is permanent and this is the same for each of us. Our time is but fleeting but thankfully, God has us in His hand and no matter what comes our way, His love is unfailing. God’s love is in action all around us. We have the privilege of going forward hopefully and peacefully because of this unchanging fact. Graeme Schache Chaplain

Student Development Others Centred Our Year 11 students will prepare a Service Learning project this term. Some will take action for local environmental concerns, some will engage with Aged Care, some with Homeless ministries. For these students their learning will be enriched and their character will develop. These opportunities will help them create and experience what we feel is a vital element of quality education, ie. That they become less self-centred and more ‘others centred’. The building of a Service Learning philosophy which will help young people find a sense of purpose as they make sense of their world also promotes a sense of wellbeing amongst St Andrews students. What these Year 11 students could not have expected last week was that our Year 3s and 4s wrote care cards for the Senior School as it experiences and works through the implications of the fire. In this instance, they have been served and cared for by the Junior School students. The fact that it came authentically out of their concern is something we as a community should be conscious of and value corporately.

Middle School News New Areas and NAPLAN Anyone who has walked around E Block lately cannot have avoided the construction site beyond our main arterial pathway. In addition to the class movements necessitated by the recent fire in J Block this has resulted in some disruption to the usual smooth machinations of our Middle School. At this juncture in an adolescent’s development there is a desire for stability in those things which bring comfort and routine to a day. At the College we are very conscious of maintaining routines and ‘geographic certainty’ for our students in the Middle School while there is some disruption around them. Their continued learning and well-being within a safe and caring community remains our highest priority when planning any changes brought about by these external factors. Accordingly, we will (as usual) be holding the upcoming NAPLAN tests in students’ regular classrooms (Year 7) and in the remaining classrooms within E Block (Year 9). Building work will cease during the testing period. Homework The provision of homework remains one of the most vexing questions of current educational practice. With regard to the ‘matter’ of homework ‘flipped learning’ has thrown on its head the belief that homework should never introduce new material to students but should be a review of daily learning. Additionally, an increasing expectation in activities beyond the classroom for many students means that the pull on their time outside of school hours is significantly greater than only a decade ago. Should you be concerned about your child’s homework (too much – too little) then I advise you make contact with their LAG teacher. They can best inform you about how your son or daughter is using their time in the classroom and what should be the focus of attention for any work done at home. My view is that homework establishes routines and reinforces effort – two factors which become increasingly important as school years progress; however, it should never become all-consuming at a time of development when family time, sleep, extra-curricular pursuit and hobbies are still of vital importance. A quality education is reliant upon the balance of many variables – of which homework is only one. As always, please feel free to contact me should you wish to discuss anything further. Tom Casey Head of Middle School

James Nelson Director of Student Development

Senior School News

Congratulations to: • Will Atkinson who came 9th in Australia at the National Triathlon Championships and Kieran Croker who came 12th. Great work boys. • The Senior and Middle School Dancers and Percussion Ensemble for their amazing win last weekend. • All of our Senior School students and staff who showed such resilience and growth mindsets last week after the terrible fire that affected our Senior School. Upcoming Event Every two years we run a deportment course through the Elizabeth Wilson School of Deportment and Grooming. The course for 2016 begins on Thursday 26 May and runs for 4 weeks finishing Thursday 16 June. Topics covered include: grooming, make-up, skin, nail and hair care, deportment and etiquette. The cost is $150 and if you are interested in your daughter participating please complete the form at the back of the bulletin. A minimum number of 15 is required and at present 3 young ladies have expressed an interest. If you have any queries or concerns please do not hesitate to contact me on tanias@salc.qld.edu.au

Safe and Caring Community Every cloud has a silver lining. After the events of last week this really resonated with me as our staff and students rallied to support each other, were flexible and resilient in the face of rapid change and disturbance and were busy searching for positives in the face of adversity. Witnessing such strength, care, hope and love helped many of us get through the initial shock and despair. Personally, the silver lining was seeing our safe and caring community in action. Whether this was through the leadership of Mr Kotzur, the can-do attitude of the staff, the thinking of you messages from our littlest students or the care, chocolate, cake and messages of hope from our Junior School and wider St Andrews community. While I was not surprised by this outpouring of positivity and support it certainly made the challenges we had to face that much easier. So to all of you who sent us good wishes, offered help, showed care and concern, on behalf of the Senior School, thank you very much. It is an honour and a privilege to work at St Andrews and we will come back bigger, better and brighter. While we are facing a long process of rebuilding it was heartening to see, come Wednesday, our staff and students back to the business of academic learning and business as usual – albeit in some different venues. Our hope for a better J Block will be achieved as our team have a goal in sight, multiple pathways to achieve that goal and the motivation to persist over a long period of time.

Tania Stewart Head of Senior School

Visual Art News Unfortunately we had to cancel our Year 10 ceramic artist in residence, but we are hoping to reschedule very soon... And our Year 12s have their first Body of Work due at the end of Week 5. They have been working on these pieces of work since the start of the year, so we look forward to seeing their creations and pondering the concepts they have explored. They spent last Wednesday working with our artist in residence Kerry Spence on display and presentation ideas and last minute additions.

done it without you! The Middle School Dance Troupe performed ‘Pirates’ with excellent choreography by Miss Reynolds and were awarded Highly Commended. All the dancers and musicians were outstanding. We are incredibly blessed and fortunate to be working with such talented and passionate students. Congratulations to everyone involved! Paula Guild Dance Teacher

SCOPE Photography Prize 2016 - IS STILL ON! Open to all students from ELC to Year 12 from St Andrews. Theme: In the Garden - interpreted any way you like, our garden here at school, yours at home, the Botanic Gardens, the surrounding landscape. Let your imagination run wild! Please see the flyer at the back of the bulletin for more information. After School Art Classes After School Art Classes are starting soon… We just need a few more people to take advantage of this opportunity. Tuesday afternoons 3.30pm-4.45pm in H4 Senior Art room. With Kerry Spence, our artist in residence. Drawing, painting, mixed media…….. For more information please contact Kerry Ph: 5599 3987 Email: info@kerryspenceart.com If you require any more information about the exciting things going on in the Visual Arts world, please see Oliver Waddingham (Cultural Captain, Year 12), or Mrs Harman ngaireh@salc.qld.edu.au Ngaire Harman Visual Art Coordinator

Performing Arts News Starbound Dance Eisteddfod After a devastating and difficult week for our Performing Arts staff and students, the Combined Dance Troupe, Percussion Ensemble and Middle School Contemporary Troupe all showed absolute resilience by competing at the Starbound Dance Eisteddfod on Friday evening. I am incredibly proud of my Combined Dance Troupe and Percussion Ensemble who performed ‘Tribal’ and were awarded 1st place, winning the competition. A big thank you to our amazing music teachers Mr Oakley-Grant and Mr Pearson for their dedication and talent with the musicians. We could not have

Business News Business Students Dreamworld Excursion The Years 11 and 12 Business Students visited Dreamworld on Wednesday 27 April. Dreamworld has an education room where they present lectures on marketing strategies, HR, Work Place Health and Safety, Events Management and Accounting. After the lectures, the students enjoyed the facilities. The students will use information gathered to complete their assessment. Terri Myles Head of Business

Sport News A recent Courier Mail article discussed how success on the sports field can overflow into other aspects of a person’s life. It detailed how the characteristics of grit, determination, problem solving as well as mental and physical toughness easily translate into the world of business. I would like to think that the sports program we offer here at the College also has that same knock on affect. As the students turn up to train and compete each week they are developing attributes of loyalty, commitment, team work, determination and persistence in a fun, caring and friendly environment. Despite the set-back of the fire all sport and sports training is pressing ahead. Please see the table below regarding all cocurricular training. Hopefully the gym will open up soon but until then we will meet at the locations listed in the table below. MORNINGS 7am-8am - Meet at the following locations Sport

Mon

Kokoda

Please check specific training times and sessions with your individual coach

Running Club Gym

Tues

Oval

Worship Centre

Netball QISSN

COLA

Netball Development

COLA

Touch - Girls

Fields

Futsal Zoo Training

Weds

Thurs

Fri

COLA

Will take a short break from training COLA

Thursday AFTERNOONS 3.30pm – 4.30pm: Basketball is on at the COLA AGCC Sport We are now in week 7 of the competition. Whilst we have had a few wet weeks it has been great to see the students out representing the College in a variety of sports. Some outstanding results from last week include: • • • •

100% success in the 5 Years 8 and 9 netball teams Year 11/12 Girls Futsal still undefeated Year 8 soccer 8-1 win over St Michael’s A close victory to our Year 10 Boys touch team winning by just one try 9-8 versus Marymount

With 8 rounds in the competition we will have several teams competing in the finals to try and win a premiership for the College. I wish all the teams well in the next 2 weeks. Futsal A huge thanks and congratulations must go to the staff who have put in a tremendous effort in coaching our students

for important inter school tournaments. This week 13 teams represented the College at the Northern Rivers Futsal Titles. These students and staff have been training every week this year and will take a short break to rest and recover before commencing their training later in the year for the Champion of Champions Titles held in late July. Specific thanks must go to Mr Mark Hibbs, Mr Paul McGilveray, Mr Christophe Tanguy, Mr Graeme Schache as well as Jamie Stanton and Matthew Fedden who have given up countless hours to coach the students and improve their performance at each competition. I look forward to reporting on all the teams performances at the Northern Rivers Titles in the next school bulletin.

In conjunction to the QISSN team, girls in Years 7 and 8 have been invited by Mrs Roper to join a Netball Development squad. We have employed the services of Jamie Stanton an ex St Andrew student and Australian indoor netball representative to coach the girls. I have attended many of these sessions and already can see improvement in their court movement, ball control and general game understanding. Touch On Sunday 15 May we have 4 girls teams representing the College at the All Hallowâ€™s Touch Tournament in Brisbane. The girls commitment to training has been outstanding, pressing ahead despite wet weather. Thanks must go to their coaches Mr Mark Hibbs, Mrs Leanne Pett, Ms Casey West and Mr Jordan McAllister (an ex-student of the College) who meet the girls every Tuesday morning at 7am. This tournament is a real opportunity for the girls to develop their understanding of the game and become enthused as we move closer to the Queensland All Schools Competition held in October. Here the College will be represented in all age groups providing a wonderful experience and challenge for our students.

QISSN Netball and Netball Development Under the guidance of Ms Megan Yeo and Mrs Lisa Roper the QISSN netball team has been training twice a week since the start of the year. As a young team looking to establish themselves the focus has not only been on skill development but also teamwork, communication and fitness. The girls will be representing the College in Rockhampton in the upcoming school holidays. It is a tough competition run over 5 days, with multiple matches each day. I would like to wish them well as they continue to build confidence and develop their skills as they head towards this fantastic opportunity to represent themselves and the College. Boys trials and training for the 11,12 and 13 years will commence on Friday 20 May at 7am. For those boys keen to play in the older age groups a notice will be provided soon. Please see Mr Hibbs to register your interest to play. Libby Wood Secondary School Sports Coordinator libbyw@salc.qld.edu.au

P & F News P & F General Meeting The next general meeting is on Wednesday 8 June 7.00pm in the Cecile Ryan Centre, all parents and guardians are more than welcome to attend. Please note that the date of the meeting may be brought forward in light of the recent fire. You will be advised in due course. A focus of this meeting will be how we as a P & F community might be able to assist the College going forward. P & F meetings are a great way to meet other parents from all age groups throughout the College and to find out more about what is happening at the College. There is a Principal’s Report which gives you an overall summary of the College’s performance in all activities from education, the arts and sport. At the meeting parents are able to voice ideas on what might enhance St Andrews Lutheran College. We look forward to seeing you all at the next meeting with an update on all the events and projects the P & F are involved with around the College. P & F Commitee

QCS 2016 Employment Opportunity The Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) invites applications from community members for the positions of Chief Community Representative (CCR) in order to maintain the integrity, security and conduct of the 2016 QCS Test. A test centre is a secondary school or another place approved by the QCAA where students sit the QCS Test. All test centres are located within Queensland and have a chief supervisor to administer the test.

Dates to Remember Sunday 8 Mother’s Day Monday 9 Year 8 Camp - Tyalgum Ridge Retreat Tuesday 10 NAPLAN Testing for students in Years 7 & 9 Year 8 Camp - Tyalgum Ridge Retreat Wednesday 11 NAPLAN Testing for students in Years 7 & 9 Year 8 Camp - Tyalgum Ridge Retreat Year 10 Geography Excursion Year 10 Hospitality Cafe Excursion Thursday 12 NAPLAN Testing for students in Years 7 & 9 Friday 13 Year 12 QCS Prep Workshop Lending a Helping Hand at ROSIES Sunday 15 Years 7-12 All Hallows Touch Carnival Monday 16 Years 11 & 12 Students Visual Arts Excursion Tuesday 17 Mufti Day, East Timor Flag colours - Yellow, Black, White, Red ICAS Competition - Digital Technologies (Years 4-10) Wednesday 18 Hinterland Cross Country Carnival Year 8 Debating Team at PBC Wednesday 8 JUNE P & F General Meeting - CRC 7.00pm

QCAA appoints CCRs to observe and report on the administration of the test. This year’s QCS Test will be held on Tuesday, 30 August and Wednesday, 31 August. Applications for CCR positions close on Friday, 20 May 2016. Anyone who would like to apply for the positions of community representative should visit the QCAA website: https://www.qcaa.qld.edu.au/memos/16/035-16.pdf Complete the application form to be found at the end of this link and return it to MRS WRIGLEY christina@salc.qld. edu.au at SENIOR SCHOOL ADMINISTRATION by Friday, May 20. Please visit, email or phone Mrs Wrigley if more information is required. (Note: these are paid positions) Christina Wrigley Director of Learning and Teaching

Entertainment Books have ARRIVED!! Please support our fundraising efforts. Purchase a book or digital membership from us today!

get clicking!

Prizes to be won, and selected entries will be entered into the QiEU art awards in Brisbane in July.

See Oliver Waddingham (Cultural Captain year 12), or mrs harman for further information.

Entries due: Friday 20th may at 12pm Send your entries to: ngaireh@salc.qld.edu.au Digital Exhibition: Friday 27th May - Venue to be confirmed

theme: â€œIn the Gardenâ€? interpreted any way you like, our garden here at school, yours at home, the Botanic gardens, the surrounding landscape. Let your imagination run wild!

Open to all St andrews students from ELC to year 12

SCOPE PhOtOgraPhy COmPEtitiOn

SCOPE

From Little Kids To Big Kids RAFFLE! Raising funds for students affected by the fire in the College

TiCkeTs: $5 eaCh Drawn: Monday 16th May 2016 PRiZes: *$600 Premium Scratch Removal for Car *$600 Chanel Sunglasses - Luxottica *$300 Billabong Suitcase *Billabong Backpack, Towel & Headphones *$250 Pilates Voucher - Pilates & Co *$110 Carpet Cleaning & Pest Control Service PHJ Cleaning Services *$100 Event Cinemas Voucher *3 x $100 Myer Giftcards *$50 Manicure & Spa Pedicure *$15 Bakery Voucher - Fosterâ€™s Bakery *Hamper of Goodies

INSIGHTS Building parent-school partnerships WORDS Michael Grose

Don’t threaten, bribe or deal – breathe & act Five great discipline habits to add to your parenting repertoire. Getting kids to cooperate is tricky. One

battle with kids for their cooperation.

in radar for knowing if a threat is real or

method doesn’t necessarily fit all children

This type of bribe can work wonders to

not. “If you continue to argue with your

so as a parent or teacher it helps to have

get some peace and quiet and is infinitely

sister I’ll cancel your birthday” is the sort

a broad repertoire of responses to draw

better than engaging in a slanging match

of threat that many of us have made in

on when kids are less then perfect or you

while you’re driving. Well, it may seem

desperation just to get some peace and

want more cooperative behaviour.

that way!

harmony at home. Again, threatening

Disciplining a child can also make many

However, it’s easy for both parents and

all types of dastardly consequences can

parents feel decidedly uncomfortable,

kids to become hooked on bribes. As a

become a habit, particularly when we

as it doesn’t generally fit an idealised

parent you can easily fall for the trap of

don’t have many other options at our

picture of parenting that many of us

offering a bribe to induce good behaviour

disposal to get better cooperation.

may have. Discipline is about helping

because it often works. A child learns to

Most of us will default to our lowest

kids stay safe, become social and also be

cooperate on his terms and soon learns

level of skill when we are tired, stressed

savvy and astute when they interact with

to think, “What’s in this for me?” Soon

or under pressure. When a child yells,

others, which makes discipline a positive

kids learn to wheel and deal to get better

“I hate you! You never listen to a thing I

and very necessary part of the parenting

terms so today’s ‘quick 10 minutes on

say” just when you’re trying to get her to

process.

an iPad’ becomes tomorrow’s shiny new

bed you’re likely to return fire in spades.

Bad discipline habits

piece of technology bought in return for

“What do you mean I never listen to

Unfortunately, it’s easy as a parent to

cooperation. Bribery and dealing almost

you! I always listen to you. You never...”

develop bad habits to get cooperation

always escalates in scale. The stakes rarely

and away you go chastising a child in

from kids. For instance, it can be easier to

get smaller.

a way that only exacerbates her lack of

offer a simple bribe such as “I let you use

Similarly, idle threats of withdrawing

my iPad for 10 minutes if you can be quiet

co-operation if a child won’t behave well

in the back seat of the car”, rather than

soon fall on deaf ears as kids have a built-

cooperation.