Hello, and welcome to the third of my monthly Principal's blogs. I will be sharing a new blog post on the first Friday of each month and in this post I will provide an update of the school’s development, recruitment, uniform and an interesting academic study.
Update
We have received some encouraging publicity this month about the school in general and about our Parent Info night held on May 15 online. Follow the links below to read
Article, Cut Common: An Entire School Is Being Built To Share Richard Gill’s Educational Philosophy.
On our YouTube channel I have been sharing recent radio interviews that I’ve done on 2NM with Jess Rouse and on ABC Upper Hunter with Mike Pritchard. If you’d like to listen to these, please visit our YouTube Channel.
Richard Gill School has recently moved into the second phase of the NESA (NSW Education Standards Authority) registration process and is now working closely with the organisation to put the finishing touches on this formal process to officially be recognised as a school in NSW.
School Development
As of Wednesday June 3, we have officially lodged our DA with the State Planning Authorities (we are a State Significant Development), which we expect to be on public exhibition very soon. Once this is confirmed we will notify the local community via social media so that feedback on our proposal can be provided. This has been another excellent achievement by the team behind the scenes, for which I’d like thank all involved.
We now also have physical signage on the main road in front of the school site, which I hope those of you in Muswellbrook have noticed. We think it looks excellent and must thank Nicola our designer for her work on this.
Since my last blog we have also released our parent information video, please check it out if you haven’t already. It’s a great watch.
Recruitment
We are currently advertising for the role of inaugural Classroom Infant Teacher at Richard Gill School. Please follow this link to see and share the advert with anyone you know who is suitable. We are of course seeking someone outstanding! The job closes on Monday June 15 at 4pm.
Job Link: Classroom Infant Teacher at Richard Gill School.
Enrolment
Enrolments for 2021 are now being accepted. Our prospectus, enrolment form, parent info (NESA) and fee information can be found on our Publications page here.
School Uniforms
At our recent Live Online Parent Info Session, many parents were showing strong interest in our uniform, so I’ve decided to share a sneak peak of our designs so far. My main criteria for the uniform design is that it is affordable, comfortable, unisex and vibrant. I want children to feel comfortable when engaging in daily music and physical activity, whilst still feeling proud of their school and wearing a more formal uniform at the appropriate occasions.
Sleep, Physical Activity and Screen Time
An academic study caught my eye this week, titled “Associations between meeting sleep, physical activity or screen time behaviour guidelines and academic performance in Australian school children”, published earlier this year.
Data was collected around the sleep, physical activity and screen time habits of 934 students in Year 5-12 at an Australian school, and the statistics are quite alarming.
Firstly, the recommended guidelines are as follows:
Sleep - 9 to 11 hours for children 5–13 years and 8 to 10 hours for 14–17-year old’s
Physical activity – 1 hour of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity every day, and
Screen time - no more than 2 hours recreational screen time per day
In terms of physical activity and screen time, I certainly see my role as Principal as one that will support parents in meeting these recommended guidelines, through regular physical activity and limiting the use of screens at school. If you would like to read the study please see the link below.
Article, BMC Public Health: Associations between meeting sleep, physical activity or screen time behaviour guidelines and academic performance in Australian school children
I hope everyone is safe and healthy and has a wonderful long weekend. I look forward to organising face to face meetings with our families in the not too distant future.
Yours in Music,
Chris English – Principal, Richard Gill School