Wellbeing Update

Wellbeing Skills for Today's World

On the last day of Term 2, we travelled to Sydney to take part in a student-led Wellbeing Conference. Hosted by Knox Grammar School and Ravenswood School for Girls, the event brought together over 350 students from more than 40 schools across NSW. This year’s theme, Mental Toughness – The Power of Growth, focused on equipping young people with practical wellbeing skills for today’s world.

As Ravenswood’s Wellbeing and Community Prefects, Madeline Lappin and Erin Brady, shared:

“Every presentation, every discussion, every interaction is a step toward creating a culture where wellbeing is understood, prioritised, and embraced. This conference is a reminder that education isn’t just about knowledge—it’s about equipping students with the tools to navigate life with confidence, compassion, and a deep understanding of themselves and the world around them.”

The day kicked off with a high-energy drumming workshop to get us moving and focused. We then heard from guest speaker Michael Crossland, whose story was nothing short of inspiring. Michael has faced immense adversity, surviving a rare and life-threatening cancer and being the sole survivor of a devastating drug trial. Despite spending nearly a quarter of his life in hospital, he’s represented Australia in baseball, held an executive role at a major company by age 23, and founded a school and orphanage in Haiti after the 2010 earthquakes. He’s also served as an Australia Day Ambassador for seven consecutive years.

Michael’s powerful and emotional talk reminded us of the importance of gratitude, embracing change, and maintaining a positive mindset. He also shared practical strategies to reduce anxiety and live more positively—like being intentional with our words to uplift others and using breathing techniques to stay calm under pressure.

Later, we split into 12 groups to attend two student-led workshops. Some of the sessions included:

• The Power of Positivity: Building an Optimistic Mindset
• Digital Micro-Habits to Supercharge Your Focus
• Challenge Accepted: Embracing and Overcoming Obstacles

The day wrapped up with student presentations on how different schools integrate wellbeing into daily life. We also participated in a seminar on the “5 D’s” – Define, Discover, Dream, Design, and Deliver – which led to group brainstorming around new wellbeing strategies we could bring back to our own schools.

We left the conference feeling inspired and full of fresh ideas we’re excited to implement at KWS to help strengthen our school’s approach to wellbeing.

Thank you to Mrs Nicola Byrne and Mr Will Waterson for attending. 

Olive Quigley, Bukumni Adetifa, Ebony Inman, Luca Popa and Jackson Davis.