Chaplain's Corner
Hi Everyone,
Helping Others Can Help You Cope with Lockdown
On one of my daily walks around my neighbourhood this week it was great to see some children’s chalk drawings and messages on the footpath.
By reaching out we are helping others, but ALSO HELPING OURSELVES – I am sure that the children who drew these pictures and wrote these messages felt uplifted mentally.
This week I watched a webinar presented by well-known psychologist, Dr. Michael Carr-Gregg and Educationalist and author, Sharon Witt – “Riding the Coronacoaster – How we can manage the wellbeing of our young people during repeated lockdowns”. Setting routines and boundaries, healthy eating, SOCIAL INTERACTION and good sleep were common themes, but Michael also emphasised COMPASSION AND GRATITUDE as important for mental health – looking outwards. It buoys both the helper and the recipient. I was certainly buoyed by the footpath art. He also mentioned how important it is for parents to model optimism. One family exercise he noted was to draw a big circle and write/draw what we can control inside the circle and write/draw what we can’t control outside the circle and discuss.
Sharon Witt who is a speaker, an author AND ALSO A SECONDARY TEACHER, had some timely words for parents of year 6 students who may be anxious about their learning in lockdown. After last year’s lengthy lockdown, she has found that her year 7 students this year showed that they had learnt more than they realised as last year’s year 6s:
- Problem solving - Resilience - How they operate best as learners
- Communicating with teachers - WHEN they operate best during the day
- How to manage their own well being - To be ADAPTABLE
- They CAN do this All skills that will assist them in adapting to secondary schools. She also stated that secondary schools and universities are fully aware of their students learning needs due to lockdown and accommodate these.
While typing this article I just received GOOD NEWS! DUE TO ITS POPULARITY, THIS FREE WEBINAR WILL BE REPEATED ON MONDAY 23RD AT 7.00 – 8.00 PM. YOU WILL NEED TO REGISTER BY CLICKING ON ‘Get tickets’ at
So I encourage you and your family to ‘nut out’ ways you can show GRATITUDE AND COMPASSION both within your family and your neighbourhood. During an online PD on Monday afternoon, presented by a lovely, knowledgeable man in his 80s, Graeme Cann (he developed El Kanah in Marysville many years ago as an outreach counselling service – unfortunately it burnt down during the 2009 fires), he noted that his wife, also in her 80s, is currently busy making jars of jam and leaving a jar on her neighbours’ doorsteps! So, age is no barrier, young or old – even the smile of a baby!
Don’t forget to reach out to the school staff who are working so hard to do their best for their students!
I know that many teachers and support staff feel this way!
TAKE CARE AND STAY SAFE! Robyn Mulholland (School Chaplain) robyn.mulholland@education.vic.gov.au
