Wellbeing & Engagement
Today is a great day to be you!
Gratitude Spotting!
As you would know, gratitude is our big focus during Term 2.
If you have spotted anyone in our Rangeview community displaying gratitude or appreciation towards another community member, please let us know! You can email me at liam.sommers@education.vic.gov.au - I would love to hear some stories of gratitude from our students and families.
We will aim to acknowledge and share some of these moments at future school assemblies!
Some benefits of practising gratitude are:
- After 21 days, you start to scan the world for positives.
- After 42 days you become:
- More optimistic, energised & focused.
- Less likely to get sick.
- You will sleep better.
- Anxiety and depression decreases.
A few quick and simple ways to practise being grateful are:
- Journaling; each night write down 3 things that went well for you that day or purchase a gratitude journal with gratitude prompts.
- Write a gratitude letter to someone special, telling them why you are grateful they are in your life.
- Have a family discussion on the way home from school or around the dinner table about the things that went well that day or made you smile.
Further Reading:
This paper includes (at the conclusion) five practical ways you can be more grateful!
Wellbeing - Meaningful May
Please see below for a wellbeing challenge throughout the month of May - many of the ideas provide a really explicit yet easy way to show gratitude!
Student Attitudes to School Survey
Every year, all Year 4-6 students at Victorian schools participate in the Student Attitudes to School Survey. This is a unique opportunity for students to give formal feedback to our school about a range of topics. We are very proud
The survey window for Rangeview will run from May 15th through to June 4th. If you have any questions or would like to see a copy of the survey prior to it beginning, please visit the office or contact me directly.
The Resilience Project
Over the past few weeks, our entire staff group has participated in professional learning sessions conducted by the great folk at The Resilience Project (TRP). These sessions focused on 'teacher wellbeing' and 'looking after each other'.
The life of a teacher is a very busy one and teachers, in general, put others first. At the end of the day, the willingness to put the needs of others first is a key driver for why teachers got into the profession in the first place! But this does create personal challenges - not giving yourself time to eat, or go to the bathroom, or get enough sleep because you are worrying about the little ones you support all day... many aspects of the job impact on personal wellbeing.
These TRP sessions aimed to provide some practical strategies for our teachers and ES to look after themselves and others as best they can. Modelling vulnerability can form a big part of this - the adage "It's okay to not be okay" rings true here - and we are openly encouraging our staff to seek out someone they trust to have these conversations if they aren't feeling okay. We encourage you to follow this philosophy at home and in our community - if you notice someone is 'not okay', have a conversation - and listen. They might not want you to solve their problem - but listening and just being there can make a world of difference.
We are very eager to keep building momentum around TRP, especially into the school community. We would love to hear how you are using this at home!
Liam Sommers
Assistant Principal
Wellbeing and Engagement
