Junior School

Year 8 Respect Education Day: Values in Action

Week 8 saw the Year 8 students participating in the inaugural Year 8 Respect Education Day, 'Values in Action'. This new initiative, supported by Ballarat Community Health, involved a series of engaging workshops and a soccer round-robin, where students earned points for their engagement, sportsmanship and teamwork.

Well done to all students and staff who participated in the day and congratulations to the students in Teams 9 and 10, who were the inaugural winners of the 'Values in Action' Shield. There were many learnings from the event which will be implemented in the future. I hope that the boys enjoyed the experience and were able to walk away having learnt something.

Elephant Ed Workshops

In Week 9, our Year 7 and 8 students participated in a series of 60-minute workshops with Elephant Education. These sessions covered important topics, including:

• An introduction to everyday sexualised imagery in the media
• A critical analysis of how such imagery distorts body image and concepts of consent
• An exploration of sexual consent and the issues of consent in sexualised media
• A discussion on the physical and emotional impacts of pornography, along with strategies for coping and changing these narratives

The workshops were well received by both students and staff, fostering valuable conversations and insights. We appreciate the engagement and openness with which our students approached these important discussions.

Thank you

I want to extend my appreciation to everyone for a productive and inspiring term. Our students have shown remarkable dedication and enthusiasm, and their efforts have not gone unnoticed. 

It’s this dedication that makes us proud and reinforces the positive and supportive environment we strive to create at St Pat’s. Thank you to our students for their hard work, and to our teachers, support staff and families for your ongoing encouragement and support.

As we approach the holidays, we wish everyone a relaxing and rejuvenating break and we look forward to welcoming everyone back for the final term of 2024. It’s hard to believe how quickly this year has flown by!

Tom Nash, Head of Junior School

Margie Dodd & Jacinta Burge, Year 7 Coordinators  

Sam Cue & John Hearn, Year 8 Coordinators