It’s term one. You are just over halfway. Your students know you and you know them. You are excited to see where the year will take you, learning together, laughing and having fun. Classrooms can have a sense of lightness about them, and it’s about this time of the year you find that magical balance…
It probably stands to reason that, after a couple of decades of outcomes-based education, that we’ve become a little fixated on outcomes? But what if we weren’t? What if we completely detached from the outcome of every single key action that Teachers and School Leaders deploy? What would happen if we cut the ties that…
Hello Teachers, Welcome to teaching. You have chosen one of the most rewarding, fun and exciting careers to embark on. Yes, it is also tiring, overwhelming and there are moments of stress that will arise too. Teaching though, can be a little bit, if not a whole lot easier than most will have you believe,…
I’ve been speaking to a few teachers lately about how to tackle that moment when a student gets you to the point of “Let’s have a little chat.” In my early days of teaching, I’d deliver a speech. A good one too. I do good lecture you see. And the student would sit there clearly…
Remember your first day on the job? Your first classroom to decorate or lessons to prepare? Exciting, scary, overwhelming? All of the above. Will the kids like me? What about the parents? Will I even be able to teach? And now as an experienced teacher or school leader, you find yourself supporting graduates as they…
By now you are probably having those ‘Is this really what teaching is like?’ thoughts.Days are long, intense, challenging. You have learnt to eat on the run, hold your bladder until the next break and unjam the photocopier – none of which they taught you at university. Welcome to teaching. Teaching: a job where calling…
Two stories this week have had a profound impact on me and I thought I’d take a moment to explain why. Those stories are: the 4 Corners report on the St.Kevin’s College saga, specifically the conviction of an athletics coach and former teacher on child grooming charges and the comments by Andrew Bolt and…
As a graduate teacher, you are finally free! No more lectures or assignments, essays or school placements. The classroom and students are finally all yours, to teach as you like and put everything you have you have learnt over the past four years into practice. I remember my university days… Science classes filled with experiments,…
Across 2020, we’re expanding the opportunity for Teachers and School Leaders to access three of our acclaimed Real Schools Professional Learning Events. For Teachers, we’re bringing Restorative Classrooms, Strong Classrooms your way. It’s a one-day crash course in the highest impact components of the restorative framework. These are the key shifts in practice and language that have…
Most schools will have already set their goals for the 2020 school year or if not, you would be getting pretty close. I reflect back to my time as a Principal and quite often I would set BIG and ambitious goals. Working closely with my Leadership Team, we would then follow up by making BIG…
The world is a competitive place … right? Well, to a point, yes it is. But perhaps paradoxically, more than ever in human history, your students will need to collaborate with one another effectively in order to do that competing in the big, bad world out there. It begs the question, “Should a classroom be…
In 2020, we’re taking three of our acclaimed Real Schools workshops on the road! They are: Restorative Classrooms, Strong Classrooms – a transformational 1-day experience designed to unlock any participant’s potential to make their teaching more effective and less strussful. Leading School Culture – a full-day masterclass in School Culture, pulling your work into sharp…
Teachers are now busily planning for a productive 2020. The kids are coming! This focus on lessons, curriculum, pedagogy and assessment is commendable, but is unseen by the hoardes of parents who think that you’re still on holidays. Parents eh. For all of the planning and professional expertise they remain as one of the…
We’re so excited to introduce you to Amy Green who is commencing just next week with us in a newly created role – Associate Director (Teacher Education). We could spend an inordinate amount of time writing in this newsletter our carefully crafted vision for supporting teachers as they commence their careers in an equally rewarding…
In schools, we often measure our success by numbers, data and results. This alone, isn’t enough and the recent bushfire devastation has reminded me of this. It doesn’t matter what part of our wonderful country you live in, there is no doubt you would be touched in some way by the horrific tragedy of the…
Support and connection. These are the hallmarks of The Inner Circle. Support, in that you’ll be walking the next 12-months of implementing Restorative Practices … with me. Having done this as a School Leader and Principal myself and with dozens of Australian schools since, I get the obstacles and the know the pathways around those…
Like many educators I speak to, we have a little go at getting fitter at this time of year. That said, I’ve come to learn something about my relationship with physical exertion. It requires DISTRACTION. This summer, I’ve been distracting myself with podcasts and have found that I can endure a treadmill session more effectively…
At time of writing to you, there are only FOUR places left in the very first intake of The Inner Circle, commencing on February 1st 2020. So, essentially, this Newsletter is a rather not-so-subtle hint to submit an immediate Expression Of Interest at this link – https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/rstheinnercircle The Inner Circle is a 12-month Mentoring Program designed…
Today, I’d like to introduce you to The Inner Circle. In a nutshell, The Inner Circle is a 12-month Mentoring Program designed to meaningfully support school leaders who: are looking to establish Restorative Practices as the foundation of their School Culture. are existing Real Schools Partners looking for greater implementation support. are former Real Schools…
Jayden is one of my favourite success stories from a career of practicing restoratively – but that success didn’t come easily or instantly. Battling Tourette’s Syndrome and a healthy appettite for general playing up, Jayden always ensured that I, as AP in charge of Behaviour & Wellbeing, had something to chat with him about. Mostly…
The below is a photo of me working in a rather unusual classroom position with a Prep student at Dorset PS, one of our valued Partner Schools. Well, that’s what most people see anyway. I don’t. I see at least twelve students, half of those participating in this particular whole class activity, fully engaged in…
If you are reading this article, it’s probably because you are the working in a school or have an interest in education so I don’t need to waste your time telling you how busy the school environment can be. If you’re in education, you get it. It’s crazy and fast paced. What I am on…
If you’ve not watched Brene Brown’s “The Call to Courage” amidst a recent Netflix binge, then I recommend giving it an hour of your time. Brown is under my skin in a way that isn’t comfortable. She makes me think about who I purport to be and how I live that every day … and also when…
For all of our efforts, for all of our policy re-writes and for all the PD we’ve booked – why are we still struggling with student behaviour challenges? For all of the programs we’ve implemented, for all of the matrices we’ve built and for all of the values we’ve defined – why are our teachers still struggling…
I know the time of School Leaders is ridiculously scarce – I’ve had enough of that. I know much of it is spent following up student behavioural infractions or launching pointless investigations – I’ve had enough of that too. I know you spend oodles of time and money on behaviour programs that leave you looking…
