The use, and misuse, of the internet is an ongoing concern for all schools and parents. The need for our children to understand what it means to be cyber-safe and put that understanding into practice is essential. With this in mind, Barbreck hosted Ms Susan McLean, from CyberSafety Solutions last week to speak to our Year 6 girls.

Susan is Australia’s foremost expert in cyber safety for young people. She was a member of Victoria Police for 27 years and as such has extensive experience and knowledge to impart to our girls as they approach the legal age for access to social media.  

Susan spoke to the girls about how at home and at school there are established rules to follow to keep them and those around them safe, and in the community, there are laws that do the same. In regards to the cyber-community Susan provided the girls with several strategies to help keep them safe when online, including the T.H.I.N.K. First acronym: 

As well as the 3Rs. 

• Is what I am about to do showing RESPECT for myself and others? 
• Is what I am about to do a RESPONSIBLE use of technology? 
• How is what I am about to do going to do affect my REPUTATION? 

Susan also explored the many forms of cyberbully which are illegal: 

• Repeatedly sending a nasty message 
• Pretending to be someone else in order to bully and harass 
• Forwarding or reposting something that is hurtful to someone else 
• Posting negative comments about skin colour, race, gender or religion 
• Posting a threat online 
• Sending rude pictures/content 

Our Year 6 girls were then provided advice on what to do if they were being cyberbullied: 

1. Tell a trusted adult 
2. Keep a screenshot of the content 
3. Report the abuse to the site 
4. Block and delete the bully from all contact lists and phone. Do not respond or retaliate with nasty comments 
5. Hang up 
6. Visit www.esafety.gov.au. For support and advice 

I encourage all parents to speak to their daughters about what access they have to social media and to put in place boundaries to ensure their continued safety. It is important to note that all people on social media sites such as Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat must be 13 years or older. It is illegal below this age.  

We are looking to engage Susan early next year for a parent evening so that we are all knowledgeable about how to keep our girls safe when viewing and engaging with technology and social media. 

For further information on managing screen time and other parenting resources I encourage our Barbreck families to visit St Catherine’s weThrive Parent Wellbeing Resource Platform here. 

◊

Out of School Hours Care – Term 2 Week 6 Activities

Upcoming activities for Term 2 Week 6 are detailed here.

St Catherine’s School offers an Out of School Hours Care program to all ELC and Junior School families. The program is implemented by our provider ‘After the Bell’ and operates within the ELC building. Parents are reminded that if you need to use the Before School Care or After School Care service, registrations need to be made in advance with ‘After the Bell’. Please allow up to five business days for your registration to be processed before your child can begin attending the program. Registration is free. All families are encouraged to register so that they can use this service in the event that you are unable to pick up your child.

Before School Care – 7.00am to 8.45am

After School Care – 3.00pm to 6.00pm

Registrations can be completed via the ‘After the Bell’ website.

Please phone 9758 6744 for all inquiries.