Wellbeing Hub

Harmony Week:  Monday 16 - Sunday 22 March

Harmony Week is the annual celebration that recognises our diversity and brings together Australians from different backgrounds.  It’s about inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging.  The message of Harmony Week is everyone belongs.

Here are some facts about diversity in Australia….

• More than half (51.5 per cent) of Australian residents were born overseas or have at least one parent who was. 

• Since 1945, more than 7.6 million people have migrated to Australia. 

• Nearly every single country from around the world was represented in Australia's population in 2020. 

• More than 150 Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander languages are spoken in Australia.

• Apart from English, the most common languages spoken in Australia are Mandarin, Arabic, Vietnamese, Cantonese and Punjabi. 

• We identify with over 300 ancestries. (source: ABS 2021 Census Data)

Harmony Week will be celebrated next week at Monivae through activities in POD. Students may ask you about your family origins and history as they will be completing an activity about their own family background on handprints.  These will then be displayed in the Chevalier Centre as a representation of our backgrounds and diversity within our school community.  Students will also have the opportunity this term to hear from students about their cultural background and how life is different in other countries and cultures. 

Harmony Week - Student Profile:  Elena Fattori

Elena is currently on student exchange from Italy.  She is in Year 12 and started at Monivae in August, 2025.  As part of Harmony Week, Elena agreed to share some information about herself and some of the differences between life in Australia and Italy. 

1.  Your name, who is in your family, and where you are from. 

My name is Elena Fattori I come from the north of Italy, precisely Lake Garda, from a small town.  My family is composed by my older sister, aged 21, my mum and my dad.

2.  How long are you at Monivae for as an exchange student?

My stay at Monivae as an exchange student is of 11 months, I arrived mid August of last year and I'm leaving mid July of this year.

3.  What are some differences between Hamilton and your home town/city?

My town is a highly touristic town especially during the summertime.  It has a smaller population than Hamilton, around 3000 people, and unlike Hamilton there is no countryside in sight.  We don't have a supermarket but rather smaller shops scattered around, and even the weather is different, our summers reach a maximum of 38° or so and during winter it rarely goes below 0°.

4.  How is school similar or different in Italy? 

School in Australia is very different from school in Italy.  We have 3 distinct school levels, primary school, middle school and high school for a total of 13 years.  In Italy, we don't get to choose which subjects we're going to do each year, but we choose the type of school which has fixed mandatory subjects.  Unlike school in Australia, we start the school year in mid September once summer is finished and finish the first week of June.

Ms Kate Couchman

Director Student Wellbeing