Student Care and Wellbeing
R U OK?Day
Thursday 14 September is R U OK? Day. Students will be encouraged to wear yellow accessories. We will also be encouraging students to organise a picnic at recess and/or lunch to share with their friendship groups and engage in positive conversations.
Understanding the growing challenges related to mental health among young people is an important consideration. Anxiety, depression and self-harm – are all causes for concern. Factors like academic pressure, social media, family dynamics, and societal expectations, are contributing to these issues. It's therefore crucial for parents and caregivers to take action early, remove the stigma around discussing mental health, and offer accessible support to address these issues and the wellbeing of their children.
R U OK? contributes to suicide prevention year round by urging people to invest time in personal relationships and empowering informal support networks to identify signs of distress. We urge all families to take part, emphasising the value of genuine human relationships and reminding everyone to ask the important question, “Are you OK?”Engaging in R U OK?Day activities goes beyond the classroom; it's a commitment to our students' overall development. By talking openly about mental health, schools create safe spaces where students feel understood, valued, and supported. As parents and caregivers, you can contribute by fostering open conversations, normalising feelings and breaking down mental health stigmas. Participating in R U OK?
Day promotes compassion and shows our dedication to the wellbeing of the entire school community, reaffirming that together, we can truly make a difference.This Special Report provides guidance on how to talk to your child about mental health and engage in meaningful discussions. We hope you take a moment to reflect on the information offered, and as always, we welcome your feedback. If this raises any concerns for you, a loved one or the wellbeing of your child, please consider seeking medical or professional help.Here is the link to your special report
https://stmaryscollege.nsw.schooltv.me/wellbeing_news/special-report-r-u-ok-day
Students will also participate in activities from The Resilience Project in PACC this week to support the R U OK? initiative. Activities include writing a brief letter consisting of a request for advice concerning a real problem; present or past. The aim is to include enough facts and clues as to the emotions of the people involved to allow someone reading the letter to empathise with their feelings and point of view. Students share their letter with someone else so the reader can come up with responses in writing. This will be followed with a discussion about how much empathy students felt for the person in the situation described.
Students will also think of three acts of kindness they will perform during the week for three different people.
Year 12 Parent Breakfast
Earlier this term Year 12 parents were invited to breakfast to mark our students completing the trial exams.
It was a lovely opportunity to celebrate our families and the student achievements.
How You Can Support Your Child During Exams
We’re excited to announce that Elevate Education will be hosting a free webinar for our parents on Wednesday 13th September.
Elevate Education works with our students, delivering high impact workshops on study skills, motivation, wellbeing, and exam preparation. By tuning into their webinar series you will learn how you can help better support your children at home through reinforcing the skills they learn at school:
Wednesday 13th September @ 6:30pm (AEST) How You Can Support Your Child During Exams
Click here to register for free
Here's what Elevate will be covering:
- What to do in the final days before any test or assessment
- How to establish a good routine for the night before
- How to optimise exam-room performance
Click here to register for free
Young Drivers Expo
Every year the annual Young Drivers Expo is held at TREC in Tamworth. It is aimed at Year 11 students and covers many aspects relating to safely operating vehicles on the road.
This year students came away with some great insight into road safety and the seriousness of some situations, and the devastating impacts the wrong choices when driving can have.
