Wellbeing Newsletter
Term 3 Week 10
During the final week of Term 3, in Level 3 Lockdown, we would like to acknowledge the tough time and struggles our families have faced being in lockdown. It has again been quite an adjustment for everyone and we do appreciate the amazing job our parents have done supporting the home learning of our tamariki.
Thank you for the effort you have made to enable our children to regularly attend zoom classes. This has been such a great tool for students and teachers to connect with each other, and will make the transition back to school so much easier. We recognise that home learning looks very different from school and takes many forms, including tasks provided by school and activities and learning that happens in other ways at home.
We look forward to hopefully being back in the classroom at the start of Term 4. In the meantime, we have a few tips and suggestions for this last week of the term and the school holidays.
Sleep
Now, more than ever, it is so important to ensure that students and adults are receiving adequate levels of sleep each night. Online learning, working, zoom calls and sitting in front of a screen for a lot of the day is so exhausting, as it constantly stimulates the brain.
It is becoming increasingly common for our older students to have phones. This is a great way for them to stay connected to their friends during lockdown, but can also become addictive. It is not unusual for students, even as young as primary school, to be interrupted by phone messages during the night when they should be asleep.
- Ensure regular bedtime routines
- Turn off all devices an hour before bed
- Set up the ‘do not disturb’ function on phones
- Have a single place in the house where all devices (iPads, phones, laptops) are charged at night so they are not left in bedrooms
Get out in Nature
It sounds simple and it is! Sitting at home and working remotely can be so draining. We are so fortunate to have so many local parks, small bush areas and close beaches on the North Shore. Feeling a connection with nature is good for the mind and body.
- Take a walk along the beach, with your shoes off
- Walk along the edge of the water with bare feet, a little chilly, but very invigorating
- Walk on the grass with bare feet
- Put your raincoats on and go for a walk in the rain
A Final Thought for the School Holidays
As we continue to be in lockdown, we realise many parents will still be working throughout the school holidays, so make any time you have off count. The pull towards a device each day is very real, even just to check emails, but do take some time to have a holiday from it. Do what works for you, maybe allocate an hour at the start of the day, have a device-free day, every second day or whatever works for you.
Listen to music and if all else fails….dance! It is a great stress relief and perhaps a good laugh for everyone in your household!
Kind regards,
The Sunnybrae Wellbeing Team
Mary Waters, Wendy Frazer and Melanie Hanson
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