Wellbeing

New staff in the Wellbeing Team

Hello from Margo our new Mental Health Practitioner 

Hi everyone. My name is Margo Michaelson and I am the Mental Health Practitioner working with the College's Wellbeing Team. Before arriving at Bairnsdale Secondary College I worked in the regional education office, assisting to manage critical incidents and working with students with complex needs, including learning difficulties, intellectual or physical disabilities, school refusal, and chronic health concerns.  Prior to that I was the Wellbeing Coordinator in Catholic Education, assisting students to develop a school-wide program addressing mental health, looking at their thinking, identifying what stress, anxiety and depression looks like and what can be done to address them, goal setting, organisation and study skills.    

During these times, when we are dealing with such rapid change, it’s important to stay in contact with family and friends (hello Webex!), try and gets some laughs in, keep exercising and get to bed on time.  If you’re struggling with school work, reach out to your teachers, ask for help (I know that can be hard, but they are there to help), focus on what you can do, rather than what you can’t do at the moment.  Maybe keep a list of what you want to do when this is all over.  The Wellbeing team is still available and we would love to hear from you.     

The College welcomes Dr. Jessica Zimmerman, our new doctor working in the Doctors in Secondary Schools program (DISS). Dr Jess has continued to run appointments over the remote learning period via telehealth and has met some of our students already. She will now be taking appointments every Wednesday in the DISS rooms at the College.

Students can organise an appointment by contacting their Hub, calling the Wellbeing Mobile on 0437 014 431 or by emailing wellbeing@bairnsdalesc.vic.edu.au 

Please see below information for parents and students regarding the DISS service.  If you have any further questions please contact the College.

Breakfast Club 

Breakfast Club will resume starting 8:30am Monday 12th October. Please feel free to come and join us at the Wellbeing Activity Space. Breakfast will be ready for you to help yourself, with Kathy there to welcome you!  Come in and grab a piece of toast, cereal and a cup of Milo. Bring your friends, we would love to see you.  

Online Weekly Wellbeing Challenges

During the remote learning period, the Wellbeing Team set a series of weekly challenges for students and staff to keep busy during social isolation. The winner of each week's challenge received a voucher from Schoolworks.  

Our most popular challenges were the Baking Challenge, Pets Behaving Badly and Put your walking shoes on. Below are some of the fantastic entries we received.  Thank you to everyone who participated.

Online Safety Resources 

Sophie our School Nurse has provided the following resources to assist with online safety.

News from Girls at the Centre

Girls at the Centre (G@TC) started a Logo Design Workshop during Term 3, however due to remote learning it was postponed. G@TC are working in partnership with Alan Solomon from the TAFE Gippsland Koori Unit.  Students from Year 9 to 12  will reflect on their values to create a Logo for G@TC, which will be culturally appropriate and inclusive for students who participate in the program.  

This program has been an invaluable support for so many BSC students. Staff members at the College look forward to working closely with Simone and Celeste to improve student attendance, engagement and academic outcomes throughout the remainder of the year.

LGBTIQA+  Lounge Zoom Invitation 

Welcome to the LGBTIQA+ Lounge Zoom - a private, safe web hangout for LGBTIQA+ young people aged 12 to 18 across Gippsland. The group is facilitated by two Headspace clinicians - one queer-identified and one ally. The group meets every week to share the best queer Netflix recommendations, get to know LGBTIQA+ music and artists, share self-care tips or simply to get to know other members of our rainbow Gippsland community! 

Our goal is for young LGBTIQA+ people to feel connected to their queer peers and broader queer culture, so that even when you’re alone, you can carry a sense of community around with you. We understand how isolating and tough this year has been, so come along and chill for a bit with your people!

Bit unsure about attending? Want to attend anonymously at first? Have any other questions? We’ve got you covered. To get the low-down, and to sign up and get all the details, email info@headspacebairnsdale.org.au or call us on (03) 5141 6200.

We meet at 4:30 pm every Thursday via Zoom.