Leaders of Student Wellbeing
Year 7
It’s been a busy start to the term for our Year 7 students. Traditionally Term 2 brings about assessments and assignment due dates, not to mention the recent NAPLAN testing. This is a great time to speak to your children about planning homework and study routines.
Pre planning and discussing upcoming tasks is one of the best steps to reducing anxiety surrounding school work. Reachout has some fantastic articles to support families and a great place to start your planning discussions would be via How to prioritise and get stuff done.
The College Social (dance) makes a return to the calendar next Tuesday night and Year 7 is encouraged to check out the details and instructions about times, tickets etc. It’s always a fun filled night to ‘hang’ with friends and show some moves on the dance floor.
On Wednesday, I spoke with the group about Graciousness and Kindness at our Pastoral Gathering. In Year 7 we endeavour to “...live Gospel Spirituality by being kind, showing respect and treating others with the love Christ shows me” and these two attributes underpin how we can achieve this.
It was a simple message of Graciousness being ‘patient towards someone or striving to speak in a way that will not cause offence or hurt to others’.
The students were asked to think about themselves and how they can:
- Overlooking small hurts and lack of consideration
- Making others feel noticed and valued
- Learning not to make a big deal of our own (small) problems
We finished with another important message, Kindness. ‘That we think of strength and bravery when we hear the word courage. However, one of the most courageous things we can do is be kind to others, regardless of how they treat us’.
It’s vital that our students remember that when we choose kindness, we automatically wind up caring for others in our lives. If we truly are to be a community following Jesus and living his spirituality, then we need to be taking care of each other each and every day as He showed us.
Year 9
The Year 9 Pastoral camp is set up with a range of activities that will allow students to work together as a team and offer challenges in a safe and supportive environment.Parents can call the numbers listed on the permission note should you wish to or need to contact your child. If your son/daugher is unable to attend camp we ask that you contact the school as soon as possible.
For students who take medication; please put your child's medication in a plastic ziplock bag clearly marked with their Name, HR and dosage. Students will give their medication to the teacher as they enter the bus.
Due to travel times and the programming of the camp, we have amended the departure time on Wednesday 25 May to 8:00 am.
In preparation for camp, please see the Equipment list attached. If you have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to contact us.
Year 11
Relationships. They are one of the most important things we can invest in in life. With the pastoral focus for Term 2 being relationships, Year 11 have spent the last two pastoral assemblies engaging in activities that promote friendship and collaboration.
During Week 2, Year 11 spent time participating in teams completing many abstract relays with a focus on fun, laughter and of course, competition.
Egg and spoon relays, balloon relays, old-school tunnel ball and partner-based relays are just an example of a few types of activities the students engaged in.
It was humbling to see a large group of students whose time spent at school is now so task-oriented, spending time laughing, running around with eggs on spoons and genuinely enjoying each other’s company.
Further to this opportunity, this week we continued to develop and strengthen the relationships we have with one another with a morning spent in the sun playing games, drinking hot chocolate, chai lattes, eating cupcakes and just being in each other’s company.
A few key points the students took away from the morning were the following:
- No one ever regrets kindness (never).
- Have high standards when it comes to friends, but don’t be unrealistic. People will mess up, so will you. Grace is essential.
- Be yourself. Let other people be themselves right back.
- You can’t have friends if you don’t know how to be a friend. Focus on being the best friend you possibly can.
- Listen.
- You can’t be best friends with everyone. But you can notice everyone. You can smile at everyone. You can say hello to everyone. You can be good to everyone and make sure people feel seen.
- Your worth will never come from others. You have to learn to accept yourself if you want others to accept you.
I continue to be blessed by this year group as they navigate their way through Year 11. They are focussed, well-mannered, respectful and very humble.
Thank you for trusting us with your most prized possessions.
