Community Wellbeing
The Resilience Project
We are excited to announce that we will be continuing to bring The Resilience Project to our community in 2024.
The Resilience Project (TRP) is committed to teaching positive mental health strategies to prevent mental ill-health and build young people’s capacity to deal with adversity.
We will be implementing the evidence-based Teaching and Learning Program throughout our College, staffroom, and school community. Teachers and students will frequently engage lessons and explicit activities around the key principles of Gratitude, Empathy, Mindfulness (GEM) and Emotional Literacy to develop skills and tools to enhance connections, understanding, resilience, overall wellbeing.
The Resilience Project aligns with the Victorian Curriculum Social and Emotional Capabilities, Ethical Capabilities, and the health curriculum. The Resilience Project learning materials also compliments the Resilience Rights and Respectful Relationships (RRRR) curriculum we also provide at the college.
When supporting children and young people’s mental health, we know the best outcomes happen when we work together, model and practise. Parents are encouraged to access the ‘Parent Hub’ and TRP@Home where you can obtain evidence-based information and practical strategies to support not only your child’s mental health and wellbeing but your own! On the hub you will also find a series of parent and carer presentations (5-10-minute-long videos) that are designed to inform parents/carers about the GEM+EL principles and equip you with some practical strategies/activities to use at home.
There will also be an opportunity in July, where parents can join a ‘Connected Parenting’ webinar which will give tools and strategies for parents to build connections with children and young people to enhance confidence in supporting them to navigate the challenges and successes that life can bring.
As a college, we are really excited about the opportunity to continue The Resilience Project journey in 2024.
For any questions you may have check out the link to Frequently Asked Questions.
WHAT CAN BE DONE AT HOME?
To learn more about The Resilience Project and get involved from home, you can start exploring the ideas, activities and resources which bring Gratitude, Empathy and Mindfulness (GEM) to life on TRP@HOME
Gratitude
Working on gratitude helps us to be thankful and appreciate what we have in our lives, rather than focusing on what we don’t have or what we want. When we practise being grateful, we start to scan the world to look for positives–this only takes 21 days! Practising gratitude every day increases ourlevels of energy, helps us to feel happier and more focused, determined and optimistic. It even helps us have a better sleep, lowers levels of anxiety and depression and we are less likely to get sick. So many benefits–let’s all try to be grateful for the things and people in our lives every day!
Whole Family Activity: Gratitude Scavenger Hunt
● As a family create a scavenger hunt list of things that make you happy or you are grateful for, you can make your own list or use the examples below:
● Something that makes you happy
● Something you love to smell
● Something you enjoy looking at
● Something that is your favourite colour
● Something you like in nature
● Something that is useful for you
• Each member of the family uses the list and has to find as many things as they can.
• You can hunt for things inside or outside, or both. You can hunt for real things, or you can also do this using magazines or pictures from the internet.
• After a set amount of time hunting, come back together, have a look at what each personcollected and let them explain why they are grateful for each item.
Family Habit Builder: Every night at dinner, have each person talk about their favourite thing about that day.
https://www.ruok.org.au/how-to-ask
Cyber safety resources
If you require support to have discussions with your child about the use of their personal devices, the following resources may be useful:
https://www.cybersafetysolutions.com.au/
https://www.happyfamilies.com.au/
https://www.esafety.gov.au/key-issues/esafety-guide
https://staysafeonline.org/get-involved/at-home/cyberbullying/
https://www.familyzone.com/anz/families
https://www.stevebiddulph.com/Site_1/Home.html
https://www.beyondblue.org.au/who-does-it-affect/young-people/helpful-contacts-and-websites
Meet the College Wellbeing Team
Student wellbeing is an integral part of learning; a person’s emotional, social, mental and physical wellbeing is fundamental. When we are happy, healthy and well-adjusted we are able to learn more effectively and deal with life’s ups and downs. St Anne’s College believes that student wellbeing is a collaborative partnership between staff, parents/carers, our school and parish community.
At St Anne’s College we aim to provide a positive, safe and supportive school environment so that each student can reach their full potential. As a whole school, St Anne’s College facilitates and supports a range of proactive, preventative and early intervention programs across the school along with our SWPBS and school wide expectations. Our wellbeing approach is both proactive, through programs that are embedded in our curriculum, and when required reactive, as we support students in specific times of need.
Wellbeing support provided to students is confidential and optional. The Wellbeing team provides individual counselling and support to students for concerns such as mental health, stress management, friendship problems, grief and loss, social concerns, and general wellbeing. Wellbeing support also includes proactively building students’ resilience skills, communication skills and coping strategies.
Students can self-refer to the student wellbeing team via a student referral form on SIMON or request to speak to a Wellbeing Officer. Parents are encouraged to speak to their child’s Pastoral Group Leader if they have wellbeing concerns for their child or they can contact the school to speak to a Wellbeing Officer.
In some instances, a student may be referred to an external support service. We also respect the fact that some students and parents may prefer to seek professional support independent from the school setting. In such cases, the student wellbeing team values working collaboratively with external services. In all cases, we encourage parents to communicate with the school if there is a significant issue affecting their child’s health or wellbeing.
Wellbeing Team
Kate McGrath
Deputy Principal of Community Wellbeing
Kate has been at St Anne’s College since it opened in 2019. Kate studied a Bachelor of Education Health and Psychology. Kate has been working within the education sector for over a decade and has worked with students across all schools at St Anne’s College as well as other schools in both the Sandhurst and Melbourne Diocese. Kate stepped into the role of Deputy Principal of Community Wellbeing at the commencement of 2022 and works alongside the wellbeing team to support in the holistic implementation of wellbeing approaches and supports across the college. Kate is also a child safety officer at the college. Kate is passionate about wellbeing and the correlation between wellbeing and overall achievement and flourishing.
Mel Formica
Student Wellbeing Officer/School Counsellor
Available: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday.
Mel has been at St Anne’s College as a Wellbeing Officer/School Counsellor since 2020. Mel is a qualified counsellor and is a member of the Australian Counselling Association. Mel has a Bachelor of Human Services. Mel is also one of the Child Safety Officers at St Anne’s College. Mel has been working with young people for almost 15 years and has extensive experience supporting vulnerable/at risk young people and families in a wide range of settings and roles. Mel is passionate about supporting students to navigate their way through the various challenges they may face. Mel works across all year levels and is available Monday -Thursday.
Fee Down
Student Wellbeing Officer
Available: Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday
Fee joined the St Anne College community in 2022, taking on a part-time role in the Wellbeing team. Fee has a Bachelor of Social Work degree, along with over a decade of experience in working with vulnerable young people and families in the community. Fee’s passionate about supporting young people to overcome challenges and in helping them find ways so they can have a more positive experience in their environments. Fee is available Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday.
Eliza Linehan
Student Wellbeing Officer Available: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday
Eliza joined the St Anne’s College community at the beginning of the 2023 year and is working Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Fridays. Eliza studied in Shepparton and has a Bachelor of Human Services and Master in Social Work. Eliza has been in the NT for the past 12 months working with vulnerable children and young people in school settings. Eliza is passionate about working in school environments with young people of all ages and assisting them to be the best they can be and do the best they can do.
Emma O'Keeffe
Mental Health in Primary Schools Leader
Emma joined the St Anne’s community in 2020. Emma is a passionate educator who has had extensive experience working with primary aged children for over a decade. This year Emma has taken on the role of Mental Health in Primary Schools leader. Emma’s role entails working alongside SOW staff to support in the implementation of evidence based strategies and identification of mental health concerns and contributors in Primary Schools. Emma also supports parents and learning mentors in the primary years to develop connections with services and supports.
eSafety Parent Resources
St Anne’s College is committed to ensuring the safety and wellbeing of all children and young people in its community. We recognise the importance of teaching children and young people to develop cybersafe practices at a young age. As such, we recommend that parents too familiarise themselves with practices that promote a safe and secure online environment. This will ensure that education of cybersafe practices is consistent between school and home life.
eSafety’s expert education team offers free live webinars designed for parents and carers. These live webinars give parents and carers the knowledge, skills and tools to support their children to have safe online experiences.
Respect everyone and everything
Respect is an intrinsic part of building positive mental health. In this clip, Hugh Van Cuylenburg, founder of The Resilience Project, urges all who support the development of young people to not only speak about respect with young people but model respect.
The Raising Children Network explores the importance that parents play in influencing their child’s behaviour, attitudes and beliefs. This article provides practical tips for parents to positively influence teens and pre-teens and support them with their emotional literacy development and overcoming conflict and challenges, and navigating relationships.
The Resilience Project at Home
The Mental wellbeing of all is so important right now. Over the last few years, we have been confronted and overcome so many obstacles. We all know that modelling is the best way to authentically teach our young people. As parents and carers, being able to model positive steps you take to support your wellbeing is essential for our young people to witness. Incorporating the Resilience Project GEM principles (Gratitude, Empathy & Mindfulness) into your daily routine is a great way for you and your family to stay mentally healthy. Evidence tells us that consistent practise and implementation of the GEM principles will make you happier and more resilient.
For further information see TRP at Home.
Parent and Carer Hub
This hub gives parents and carers access to information about the GEM+EL principles and supporting activities for their wellbeing:
Support children to stay safe online
From the time our children are born, we all put measures in place to keep our kids safe. We constantly discuss the importance of wearing bike helmets and seatbelts, crossing at the lights, not talking to strangers and staying away from hot surfaces all in the name of safety.
In today's digitally connected world, parents have to not only help navigate the safety aspects of children and young people in our physical world but also in our online world. The online world brings with it many benefits but also challenges and risks. Technology is a part of our children’s world from a young age. Children have access to online programs in their prams. The safety commissioner promotes that it is never too early to be talking to our kids about online safety. The Daniel Morecombe Foundation also has many practical tips on the measures that can be taken to support your child in being safe online.
Every Day Counts!
Did you know, students who attend school regularly are more likely to have higher paying jobs when they leave school and overall better health?
A day here or there doesn’t seem that much, but each day adds up. If a child misses two days a month, that can equal up to four weeks across the year. This equates to one year of lost learning across a child’s school journey from Foundation to Year 12! Every day counts.
Attendance is an important contributor to a student’s academic achievement and social engagement. When children miss days of school it can make it harder for them to catch up. They might fall behind and it impacts the ability to make important social connections and build relationships with their peers. This can attribute to increased feelings of anxiety and attribute to mental health problems later in life.
Parents play an important role in helping children develop healthy attendance patterns.
Parents can implement consistent morning routines at home and help their child to develop healthy sleeping patterns by minimising and setting boundaries around technology of a night time and setting up expected bed times. Where possible, making appointments outside of school hours and taking holidays in the school holiday periods can also decrease your child’s rate of absenteeism.
There are few acceptable reasons why a child should be absent from school, however if your child is unwell, there is a bereavement or a religious reason, please contact the college to notify of your child’s absence by calling the administration office on (03) 4812 2993 or by logging a parent notified absence on PAM.
If your child is showing signs of school refusal, please make contact with your child’s Pastoral Group Leader to make a time to meet to discuss how we can work together to support your child to have success.
Set your child up for a bright future - every minute of every day counts.
- Kate McGrath, Deputy Principal Community Wellbeing