Northcote High School Newsletter

Student Service News 

NAIDOC WEEK 2020: Always Was, Always Will Be

NAIDOC Week celebrates the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and is celebrated by Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities alike.

 

NAIDOC originally stood for the National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee, which arranged events for the week. Its acronym has since become the name of the week itself.

 

NAIDOC celebrations are usually held at the start of July, however due to the pandemic this year, the National NAIDOC Committee (the Committee) postponed celebrations to 8 – 15 November. Each year, a theme is chosen to reflect the important issues and events for NAIDOC Week.

 

What does this year’s theme mean?

For this year’s NAIDOC celebrations, the Committee chose the theme ‘Always Was, Always Will Be’. The theme recognises that First Nations people have occupied and cared for this continent for 65,000+ years. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were Australia’s first explorers, navigators, engineers, farmers, botanists, scientists, diplomats, astronomers and artists. ‘Always Was, Always Will Be’ acknowledges that the very first footprints on this continent were those belonging to First Nations peoples and invites all Australians to embrace the oldest continuing cultures on the planet.

 

 

What does this year’s poster symbolise?

The poster this year, called ‘Shape of Land’ by Noongar and Saibai Islander man Tyrown Waigana, tells the story of the Rainbow Serpent. The Serpent, represented by the snake, came out of the Dreamtime to create this land. The shared colours of the Rainbow Serpent and figure symbolising First Nations peoples show the deep connection with Country, and that this land ‘Always Was, Always Will Be’ Indigenous land.

https://www.naidoc.org.au/get-involved/naidoc-week-events 

 

 

 

 

 

 

World Kindness Day

 

World Kindness Day is an internationally-observed day of kindness that was started in 1998 by the World Kindness Movement. It is held on 13 November every year and has been a part of Australia's Federal School Calendar since 2012. 

World Kindness Day is all about acceptance, diversity and love. This is done by taking opportunities to perform acts of kindness towards others. These acts may include:

  • Buying somebody a snack or a hot drink
  • Giving somebody a card with a lovely message written inside
  • Calling or sending a message to a friend or family member you have not spoken to in a while
  • Taking care of a chore or tidying a room for your friend or family member
  • Give compliments 
  • Hold a door open
  • You should be kind to yourself also. Write a short (or long) poem highlighting the things you appreciate about yourself and your life.

One Foot Forward                                     

Mental illness is very common. 1 in 5 people experience symptoms of mental illness each year. That’s more than 5 million people in Australia. The most common of these illnesses are anxiety and depression. Unfortunately, less than half of all people in Australia experiencing the symptoms of mental illness will not seek professional help – often with tragic consequences.

 

This October, during Mental Health Month, the Northcote High School Student Services team put One Foot Forward for mental health. We walked in solidarity for people in Australia living with mental illness. Together our team travelled 494KM’s to take One Foot Forward for mental health research and raised a total of $2041. We would like to thank everyone who supported us and donated to this very worthy cause.