Wellbeing 

Supporting our students to reach their greatest potential

As a school community and as parents, our greatest desire is to see each individual student develop to their greatest potential. 

There are numerous ways in which educational processes are in place to support students to enhance their skill levels and engage with learning. However, what is more difficult to measure is the crucial aspect of motivation, which can have a negative or positive impact on a student’s social and academic functioning. 

Motivation can be a challenge for many students for a range of reasons some of which relate to whether they require additional learning support; have a disability; are experiencing additional challenges at home or at school; and for those who have difficulty with regulating their emotions. 

I refer back to Issue 12/2022 of the Bimbadeen Blaze newsletter and the article on ‘The Window of Tolerance’. As covered in that article there are many things that we can do, at home and at school, to assist our students to improve their self-regulation, their self-control and to support their emotional wellbeing in the many challenges that they are facing.

As a community we can all work together to assist our students to:

1. Increase their vocabulary of emotional terms.
2. Improve their awareness of another’s emotions. 
3. Gain greater insight into triggering behaviours.
4. Practice calming techniques.

1. Increasing a student’s vocabulary of emotional terms 

When a student is demonstrating heightened emotions, such as anger, provide support to enable them explore what the underlying emotions may be, such as: frustrated; disappointed; sad; worried; anxious; embarrassed; hurt; jealous; fear; shame & guilt. This provides an opportunity for a student to begin to process the angry feelings.

2. Improving a student’s awareness of another’s emotions

a. Model empathy to the student and to others in front of the student.

b. Discuss emotions rather than dismissing or burying them. 

c. Encourage the student to help out at home, in the community, or globally, as doing so increases acceptance, kindness and caring attitudes and behaviours. 

d. Praising empathetic behaviour does encourage more of the                                                                 same.

3. Gain greater insight into triggering behaviours

To greatly assist with self-management skills, once triggers are identified, new strategies can be implemented to manage them. Be aware of the student’s misperceptions and negative self-talk that can greatly impact this process.

4. Practice calming techniques

Many suggestions are listed in the article about The Window of Tolerance. However, any slow breathing techniques or the practice of mindfulness are a good place to begin.

In conclusion, at home and at school, it is my hope that as we continue to engage with our students and provide them with a comfortable and supportive environment, we will continue to see improvements in their ability to self-regulate, as well as an increase in their motivation to be the best person that they can be for their own sakes and for the sake of others.

Take care of yourself and your loved ones,

Anne Lawry

Chaplain