Health and Wellbeing

Our Health and Wellbeing Journey

It’s been a wonderful year of learning, reflection and growth for our students. Throughout the year we have focused on developing important life skills to help us navigate our daily lives with confidence and kindness. Together, we have explored what it means to look after our mental health and wellbeing and have taken time to reflect on who we are as individuals. 

Our classrooms have been filled with open discussions about feelings and emotions, as well as the importance of respect, resilience, responsibility and learning success.  There have been lots of discussions about acceptance, equality and celebrating our differences and individuality. Being inclusive has also been a strong discussion point.  We have also focussed on what we are grateful for, our strengths and what makes us unique and special. 

Our students have grown in their ability to communicate, show empathy and support one another as we continue working towards creating a positive and caring school environment. We’ve learned that taking care of our minds and bodies helps us feel happier, stronger, and ready to learn. We’re so proud of everything our students have achieved this year and excited to continue this journey of self discovery, positivity and personal growth in the year ahead!

Discussions that we have had about improving our Health and Wellbeing

• Our emotions – understanding that it’s okay to feel different emotions and learning ways to manage them
• Resilience – not giving up when things get hard and finding ways to bounce back
• Kindness and Respect – always being kind to others and to ourselves
• Positive self talk – reminding ourselves that we can do hard things and believing in our strengths
• Mindfulness – taking time to slow down, breathe and focus on what’s happening right now. No use worrying about something that doesn’t happen
• Overthinking – not to overthink things. It can be detrimental to our mental health, as it may increase anxiety, reduce focus, and hinder problem-solving
• Getting support – knowing it’s always okay to talk to someone we trust when we need help

These discussions have helped us learn more about who we are and how we can take care of ourselves and each other. We are discovering that when we feel good inside, we can do our best, have fun, and make a positive difference in every way, every day!

Victorian Institute of Sport Guest Speakers

Recently, we were lucky to have a couple special guest speakers visit our school.

Mikeala Selaidinakos (runner) and Freddy Waters (hockey) from the Victorian Institute of Sport shared inspiring stories and important messages in a way that really connected with our students. Through their honesty and storytelling, they helped everyone understand more about resilience, mental health, and the importance of self care.

During their talk they spoke about:

• Resilience – bouncing back when things get tough
• Kindness – being kind to others and to ourselves
• Anxiety and stress – learning ways to manage our worries
• Making mistakes – understanding that mistakes help us learn and grow
• Negative self talk – noticing unkind thoughts and replacing them with positive ones
• The power of words – realising that what we say matters
• Worrying less about what others think – staying true to who we are
• Coping with change – learning to adapt and stay positive
• Treating others fairly – showing respect and kindness to everyone
• Owning our uniqueness – having the confidence to speak up and be ourselves

It was a valuable experience for everyone. We all left feeling more positive, grateful, and reminded of how important it is to look after ourselves, support one another and strive to be the best version of ourselves.

Looking forward …

Next year, we will keep learning about how to look after our minds and emotions so we can try to feel our best every day.

• Emotional Health: We will keep practising how to recognise our feelings and find positive ways to manage them, so we can stay calm and in control when things get tricky.
• Emotional Regulation: Understanding our emotions helps us make good choices when things don’t go as planned. We’ll continue using the Zones of Regulation to think about how we’re feeling, what might help us, and how we can get back to our “Green Zone.”
• Stress Management: Sometimes life can feel stressful … and that’s okay. We’ll learn how stress can affect our bodies and minds and explore different strategies to help us relax and handle challenges more easily.
• Social Connections: We know how important our friends and families are! We’ll keep building strong friendships, supporting each other and creating a sense of belonging in our classrooms.
• Healthy Relationships: We will keep working on being kind, respectful and empathetic towards others while listening carefully, showing understanding and respecting each other’s boundaries.
• Sharing Feelings: It’s always okay to talk about how we’re feeling. We’ll keep practising how to speak up when we need help and remind each other that it’s brave to ask for support.
• Mindfulness and Meditation: We’ll keep talking about mindfulness and meditation … ways to help us slow down, notice what’s happening right now and keep working on feeling more peaceful and focused.

Together, we’re always learning that caring for our mental health helps us feel happier, stronger, and ready for anything that comes our way.

Thank you to all our kids who have worked on their Mental Health and Wellbeing.  Our journey together will continue. Wishing you all a safe and happy break!

The Wellbeing Team