Assistant Principal - School & Student Operations

The benefits of showing kindness

For some people, the world can sometimes be a difficult or overwhelming place to navigate. Everyone has their own challenges, however there is one thing which can universally brighten people’s day: kindness. It might seem small, but a simple act of kindness can be so powerful and make a huge difference in someone’s life. In fact, research shows being kind/showing empathy not only benefits the receiver, but it also positively impacts the mental and physical health of the one giving it.

When we are being empathetic and showing kindness, we release a hormone called oxytocin. Oxytocin can improve your mood, reduce stress levels, boost your self-esteem and confidence, and in turn help you create positive relationships with others. Our favourite thing about kindness is it’s contagious; when you do nice things for others, you create a ripple effect which can spread and inspire others to be kind as well. A kinder, more compassionate community sounds great to us.

Kindness is not solely about big gestures. It is being considerate and making other people feel good, and can be as small as smiling at someone, giving a compliment, or holding the door open. Any act of kindness can have a big impact, and sometimes, it’s the difference between a bad day and a good one for someone who is struggling.

At Yarrabing, we are encouraging our students to do one kind thing each day. It can be a simple as complimenting a friend, offering to help someone with their homework or sending a thank you note to a teacher.

Our Student Voice team have started a Yarrabing tradition by creating the G.E.M box where students fill out a form to ‘Shout Out’ someone at school to acknowledge them showing Gratitude, Empathy or Mindfulness.

The following awards were presented at Assembly at the end of Term, nominated by Yarrabing Staff.

Certificate of Achievement for displaying gratitude at school:

• Krrish Menon
• Ariana Cantaro
• Rose Multani
• Stella Zearwie
• Zavier Long
• Jarnail Singh
• Navkirat Singh
• Abby Endress
• Noah Psaila
• Tyler West
• Watchen Jerue
• Haniya Fawad
• Adriel Reyes
• Angad Singh
• Anureet Kaur 
• Paolo Corrales
• Vyshu Alwaala

Certificate of Achievement for showing empathy and kindness at school:

• Samraat Tangri
• Natiyah Butler
• Kabir Khepar
• Sahibdeep Singh
• Sage Allen-Layton
• Aarya Bhatia
• Tejas Singh
• Jaden Dela Cruz
• Jacob Nguyen
• Tyeson Gleeson
• Elsie Martin
• Arielle Faafuata-Apulu
• Alex-Carter Afamasaga
• Japji Bhullar
• TJ Bista
• Jesslyn Nguyen
• Karter Toailoa
• Maiah Papani
• Davian Viera
• Cristvie Chubaka

Certificate of Achievement for being mindful and in the moment at school:

• Aarnav Shergill
• Melisa Abdula
• Jay Sandhu
• Amna Jamil
• Jarnail Singh
• Jaden Dela Cruz
• Abby Endress
• Harleen Dhillon
• Adrian Koulouris
• Daniel Bobe
• Savreet Sekhon
• Askari Ali
• Guntaj Hanjrah
• Lydia Nguma
• Jaskirat Saini
• Arnav Pawar
• Rudhransh Shukla
• Nmachi Mathew

Dina Becvinovski

Assistant Principal