We’ve had a run of wet weather over the last couple of days, which has brought with it the dreaded inside lunchtimes. While some children enjoy staying indoors, many miss the chance to run freely and burn off energy. Term Three can be a bit more challenging overall as there tends to be more illness around, more wet breaks, and sometimes a bit less patience to go around. We noticed this pattern a few years ago and now make a conscious effort to prepare for it.

At this time of year, we take the opportunity to revisit our school and classroom expectations around behaviour, both through our school Hui and in everyday teaching. These reminders help keep everyone safe, happy, and ready to learn. A key focus alongside this is developing our students’ emotional intelligence.

One important concept we teach is understanding the “size of the problem.” This social-emotional skill helps students pause, reflect, and choose how to respond. Children can sometimes have big, emotional reactions to small issues. For instance, being spoken to in a rude tone might trigger thoughts like “they don’t like me” or “they’re always mean,” when in fact, the other person might have just been frustrated in the moment.

We help our tamariki understand that all emotions are valid but we also have tools to manage our thoughts and responses. One simple strategy we use is pause, breathe, and smile. This short reset helps children assess the real size of the problem and respond in a way that reduces unnecessary stress.

Here’s how we guide students to think about the scale of everyday problems:

Small problems are brief and minor, such as losing a pencil or not being chosen in a game. These can usually be solved independently.

Medium problems might involve stronger emotions or more people and often need some adult support, like ongoing friendship issues or feeling unwell.

Big problems are emergencies or serious situations that require immediate adult help, such as someone getting hurt or a family crisis.

Over the past two Monday morning Hui, we’ve been exploring the idea of conflict and teaching students some practical strategies to manage it. A key message is that when conflict arises, we must first calm ourselves so we can respond reasonably. We encourage students to take a break before trying to solve the problem. One strategy we modelled, complete with some impromptu acting, was how to talk it out in a respectful and constructive way.

We have also touched on other strategies to deal with conflict, so it doesn’t escalate into a larger problem. 

Teaching social skills is a proven and effective behaviour management strategy. Research shows that explicitly teaching cooperation, emotional regulation, and problem-solving leads to improved behaviour, stronger peer relationships, and greater engagement in learning. When children learn how to interact positively with others, they’re better equipped to manage themselves and thrive both in the classroom and beyond.

Thank you all for your high level of engagement with our Student-Led Conferences and the 1:1 Report Follow-Ups for those who opted in. It looks like we were able to meet face-to-face with close to 85% of our families to celebrate and discuss learning.

Have a lovely rest of your week!
Ngaa mihi,
Nyree Olliver