Dorter House - St Bede's School

parentsSome guidelines for parentsA boarding school may be new to some parents and you may encounterdifferent protocols and expectations than those you are used to in a smallschool. These guidelines might be helpful to bear in mind.Have high expectations of your children; encourage them to followSchool and House rules, work hard and be resilient and independentin the face of challenge.Support School and House policies which are laid out. Bear in mindthat some rules will be stricter here than you enforce at home andthere are good reasons for this.Bear in mind that what you hear from your children on their mobilesis only one version of a story. Be alert to possible manipulation, tryto step back from your own emotions. Absent children always growmore angelic!Encourage your children to take responsibility for, and solve, theirown problems. That said, of course guidance and help is alwaysavailable from the House Staff.Allow your children to stand on their own two feet, to facechallenges and to learn from mistakes with your support, butwithout intervening on their behalf, excusing them or preventingthem from facing up to the realities of a situation.Don’t panic about homesickness. It is normal and will pass quickly inmost cases. Be supportive, listen carefully to your children and passconcerns onto staff. Try to strike a healthy balance betweenencouraging resilience and being there for them.I do hope you soon feel very much part of St Bede’s and in particular DorterHouse and support the House in all its endeavours. You are always verywelcome to support both House and School events.