Seeing Things Differently

In a Year 1 learning space this week I was fortunate to see a circle time in action. Circle times provide an opportunity to teach, discuss and express emotions regarding events or incidents that occur. This particular circle used a famous fable to emphasise an important message for our young people to understand.

The fable involved six men who were born blind. They had each heard various stories about what an elephant was. At first, they theorised and spoke about what it could be. Are they powerful? Are they graceful? Or even something dangerous?

Finally, the day arrived when they encountered an elephant. A small boy walked around and placed the hand of each man in a different place on the elephant. The man whose hand was placed on the side of the elephant said, “An elephant is smooth and strong like a wall! Surely we can agree on that”. The man whose hand was placed on the trunk said, “An elephant is like a snake! Surely we can agree on that”. The man that had his hand placed on the sharp point of the tusk exclaimed, “This must be a deadly and dangerous creature. Surely we can agree on that”.

One by one, each man offered his opinion as to what they thought an elephant was. Each argued strongly that they were right and eventually they woke the wise man of the village. He approached them and said, “An elephant is a very large animal. Each of you touched only one part. If you put the parts together, who will finally see the truth”.

As he left, the men agreed, “To learn the truth, we must put all parts together”.

Teaching students how to recognise difference and perspective is central to who we are as community. Tolerance and acceptance of each other as well as validating experiences are at the core of our pastoral care. In the fable, it took someone separate to the group to bring clarity and form the bigger picture. Often issues can seem as big as an elephant! As part of restorative justice model at the College, circle times and restorative discussions aim to bring individual viewpoints to the surface so that we can put all the parts together and see the whole picture. By listening and acknowledging individual perspectives, we are heard by others and also have the opportunity to build our understanding of our peers.

Conferences and Connections

Thank you to all parents who took advantage of the opportunity to connect with your child’s teacher last week. The conferences provide continuity between home and school and we encourage you to maintain communication with your child’s teacher on an ongoing basis. Under the current guidelines, unfortunately we are unable to meet face-to-face with parents and carers on campus. Please keep this in mind when communicating with your child’s teacher. Phone calls and video conferencing are absolutely acceptable in lieu of traditional meetings.

Food From Home

Under current guidelines, we are unable to distribute food items for student birthday celebrations. We are unable to hand out cakes, lollies or toys within the school environment. If they are brought to school, they will be returned to you unopened. We appreciate your support in keeping our environment as safe as possible.

Take care and God bless.

Mr Damian Davis, Head of Staff and Students P-5