Dear Parents and Carers of Good Samaritan,

This week all our classes will begin the BOUNCE BACK! sessions. The sessions unpack the acronym BOUNCE  BACK! The first three sessions this week will cover:

CORE VALUES:

Our values are statements about how we think we should behave and what we believe is important. Our values are our moral map, which guide our behaviour and actions. The following values are taught in the BOUNCE BACK! program. Acting on these values can increase your child’s sense of being a decent, worthwhile person and help them to be more resilient.

Key messages to communicate to your child about values 

These values are reflected in our GSFM school rules & expectations

Our values are statements about how we think we should behave and what we believe is important. Our values are our moral map, which guide our behaviour and actions. The following values are taught in the BOUNCE BACK! program. Acting on these values can increase your child’s sense of being a decent, worthwhile person and help them to be more resilient.

Key messages to communicate to your child about values 

These values are reflected in our GSFM school rules & expectations

Your values are easy to talk about but harder to act on 

The real test is whether you still follow your personal values when it is inconvenient for you or when there might be possible unpleasant or uncomfortable outcomes for you. Nobody is perfect, but it’s important to try and live by your values even though you may not always succeed as well as you would like. Keep trying to improve. 

Being honest 

Being honest means telling the truth and not stealing; it means giving things back when they belong to someone else and ‘owning up’ when you have done the wrong thing. 

Being fair 

Being fair means following the rules and not cheating; it means returning favours and kindnesses, and helping others to get justice and a fair deal. 

Being responsible 

Being responsible means not letting people down. It means doing the things that you have to do without being reminded. It also means choosing sensible behaviour instead of silly or unsafe behaviour. 

Being kind 

Being kind means caring about other people and their wellbeing, and showing support and thoughtfulness to others. 

Being cooperative 

Cooperating means working together with someone to achieve something that you both want. It requires sharing ideas and resources, listening, encouraging each other, making sure that both of you have a say, doing your share of the work, and making decisions together that are fair to both of you. 

Accepting differences in other people 

Everyone is different from you in some way and that’s OK. If you accept that other people are different (e.g. in where they come from, what they look like, what they like to eat or do, and in their opinions) then you get to know more people (and not just those who are similar to you), you include people who are different from you in games and conversation, and you don’t tease or exclude them. 

Being friendly 

Being friendly means being kind and welcoming to others and trying to include people (even if they are not your close friends or they are people who are sometimes hard to like). This means looking in their eyes and smiling, saying hello, being kind and inviting them to join in games and conversations. Being friendly towards strangers is not a good thing to do until you are very sure they are safe people.

Being respectful 

Being respectful means treating others as you would like them to treat you. It means thinking about other people’s feelings and rights, being polite and using good manners, and not insulting or hurting others or their property. If you want people to respect your rights, then you have to respect their rights. 

Showing self-respect 

Self-respect means looking after yourself and standing up for yourself because you think you matter and should be treated well by others. 

What can you do to help your child develop and live by good values?

• Give your child positive feedback when they act honestly (e.g. when they tell the truth, own up to what they have done, avoid the temptation to keep something that belongs to someone else, and when they try to identify who owns something they have found that doesn’t belong to them).

• Play age-appropriate board and card games with your children. This provides an opportunity for you to reinforce playing fairly by following the rules of a game and not cheating. Playing games with your children also provides an opportunity for them to practise social skills such as being a good winner and loser.

• Help them to develop kindness and a sense of fairness towards others who are less fortunate than themselves. Model for them some ways to support others who are in need.

• Encourage your child to appreciate and return the kindnesses and favours they receive from others.

• Present different people’s points of view when talking problems through with your child. This helps them gain a sense of what’s fair for everyone involved.

• Give your child regular chores and give them positive feedback when they do these without being reminded. 

• Stress that people will trust and respect you more when you behave responsibly.

• Model cooperative behaviours for your child by working with them on a project (e.g. building a model) or task (e.g. tidying up the garage). Comment on how and why things went well (e.g. you both did a good share of the work, each did the part they were good at and each respected what the other person did).

• Provide opportunities for your child to socialise with their extended family, neighbours and friends, and participate in community groups such as clubs and sporting teams. Emphasise the importance of being friendly and accepting differences in people and discuss with your child how they might do this in each situation. Show them by example too.

• Never give up! Sometimes there is a ‘sleeper effect’ and values that your child didn’t seem to ‘take up’ at an earlier age pop up in their behaviour when they are older.

Ask your child what the letter ‘B’ ‘O’ or ‘U’ means in BOUNCE BACK! Ask them to name some of the emotions that they spoke about with their class. What story did they read/listen to that helped them understand that:

Bad feelings go away 

Other people can help if you let them 

Unhelpful thinking makes you more upset

Until next week, as we journey together with Jesus,

Toni Sillis

Principal