On Wednesday night this week I was privileged to, once again, sit in the presence of Tonya Gilchrist.

Tonya has been visiting our college this week and is working online with our team across the remainder of this year. An international learning strategist and a wonderful teacher she has been taking lessons and demonstrating best practice to our team when it comes to the face to face stuff of our work.

The kids have loved it, that staff are being stretched and grown, the outcomes will be better for our learners.

One of the amazing quotes Tonya shared on Wednesday night at our parent session that she hosted in our Beveridge Road auditorium serves as the title for this reflection.

If your kids can do it, let them, if they can almost do it … let them.

What a powerful idea when it comes to growing our children and young adults. So often we let them do what they can, but rescue them too often when they are close. Sure, help them when they are miles off, but if they are close, let ‘em go. Let them spill the milk a bit when they pour their cereal, that’s how they know what a full jug of milk feels like when it tips. Let them miss a few bits when they iron their own uniform, the comments about the crinkles from their mates might make them focus a bit more next time. It’s okay to not quite get it right. But boy you learn in the doing.

So, practice makes perfect? ‘No!’, Tonya reminds us, ‘Reflective practice makes perfect.’ Think about what is not working and shift and alter things bit by bit to get it right. Just doing the same thing over and over is not enough, we have to think about our thinking, we have to get reflective.

Such simple ideas, so well put.

So thank you Tonya Gilchrist, thank you for your excellent service to this community of learners. We are all creating something special here.

Together.

Shane Altmann

Principal