From the Assistant Principal: Wellbeing

By Kerryn Boyko

Term 3 Recap

It has been another full term with many opportunities for our students to challenge and extend themselves. Events such as the BAS Culinary Competition, House Arts and Winter Sport have seen students engaged with collaborative and innovative teamwork.  

I recently attended a session focused on building resilience in young people. ‘The Resilience Doughnut’ identifies seven factors that contribute to a person’s internal resilience: parent, peer, family, skill, community, money/work and education. The Education Factor relates to students having a sense of belonging in school. Engaging in extracurricular activities, like the ones listed above, is a way for students to feel connected, to feel good about themselves and to extend the range of resources available during tough times. 

We deeply appreciate our local Loreto family.  Some of our recent alumni: Ava Simpson, Alex Grieve, Lucy Eales and Rose Canavan returned to participate in a Q & A session for our Year 11 and 12 students. The session had a focus on getting the best out of the remainder of the year and tips for life beyond our Sturt Street walls. Advice was shared about maintaining life balance, improving organisation, gaining motivation for study, as well as how to  prepare for life after school. Our senior students were totally engaged and grateful for the time given by our past students.   

Mary Ward Connect is always a valuable opportunity to engage with our national Loreto family. Sixteen Year 10 students travelled to Loreto Normanhurst, Sydney, and Loreto Marryatville in Adelaide whilst we hosted their students in Ballarat. Our students were able to learn about the history and culture of a sister school  and in a short few days, solid friendships were formed. 

Youth Mental Health First Aid Training has been delivered to our Year 8 and 10 students over the course of the last two terms. The goals of the Live4Life program are to better inform our youth about mental health. Students are trained to be proactive in identifying the signs and symptoms of an emerging health issue and to seek help.