Pastoral Care and Wellbeing

Be Brave! Let the little things be stepping stones for growth.

As we celebrate the Kildare Ministries value of Courage in 2023, we are asking all members of our College community to Be Brave! When we show courage in the classroom, in our relationships with others and in the global world we get to make progress in our own lives, in our community and across the world.

But what are the stepping stones that will help us to grow?

In Years 7 to 9, many of the stepping stones for students are simple, yet good learning behaviours. It is coming to class on time, having a charged laptop, listening carefully when instructions are being given, asking for help when stuck and completing homework - such as reviewing the content covered in the four classes studied that day and making connections between lessons. 

All of these stepping stones help to maximise opportunities for learning. All of these actions require us to be brave, because sometimes our friends are asking us to do something different, or the classroom environment might make it hard for me to stay focused. When we are brave, we do the right thing despite these distractions and challenges.

In Years 10 to 12 stepping stones might include undertaking regular and ongoing revision of subject content each week to consolidate learning, build memory and recall of content, and to prepare for exams. It could be writing down questions about things you are unsure about so you remember to ask your teacher about them in the next lesson. It could be creating a classroom environment where everyone feels safe to make mistakes, to collaborate and to learn together. When this happens we have the opportunity to share our gifts and talents with others - we get to be brave! 

Being brave with our learning means trying our best at all times, not settling for a half hearted attempt at an assessment task, it means being organised so we are not forced to do a rushed job (being organised also helps to reduce stress and pressure). Being brave is asking for help, going to after school classes even when there are temptations to not attend; it is balancing our time across school work, part time jobs and other commitments such as sport. Being brave is not stressing about scores, but trusting that you have given your absolute best, and you have made the most of all opportunities given to you to achieve your best.

The Year 10s were challenged to be brave at their personal development day on February 2. The REACH program asks them to step outside their comfort zones, be brave to love themselves and to be kind to others, and to challenge the stigma and pressure placed on young people by their peers and society in general. Hopefully they stepped out onto the stepping stones put before them in each of the workshops: to recognise their potential as leaders, to develop teamwork and communication skills, to practice ways to relax, ‘de-stress’ and connect to their faith, and the importance of building positive, healthy relationships with each other.

The Year 11s had an amazing opportunity to visit the Holocaust Museum in Melbourne. As they explored the museum and listened to stories from survivors they witnessed examples of extreme courage in action. To do this also required the students to be brave, to listen to the harrowing stories with empathy and a conviction to never let these atrocities occur in our world again. It is important that we don’t become complacent about the events happening in our world.

Project Compassion also asks us to recognise the suffering of others. At the whole school assembly on Friday, Zayah and Hugh (Chisholm House Captains) challenged us to see the poverty in our world and to be brave to do something about it. It is easy to go home and forget about the Project Compassion box in each LM room. When we don’t forget, and actually bring some coins in to add to the box, we are being brave. The Project Compassion box is one way we can support the incredible work of Caritas Australia. The Year 7s are collecting 5 cent pieces to see which House can create the longest line of coins. All members of our community are asked to find and save their 5c coins and pass them onto their Kildare Campus House members. 

Our Foundation Day will once again have a mini-mart with all money raised going to Project Compassion, and the House Captains are organising a crazy sock day on the last day of term as a way to raise awareness about the poverty in our country and in the world. When we participate and contribute to these activities we are being brave, and putting out stepping stones for others to reach their full potential.

Over the coming weeks our Year 12s and Year 7s will be asked to be brave in many ways when they embark on their respective retreat and camp. Being away from home and away from social media requires us to be brave. Each of the activities undertaken will provide stepping stones for growth across all dimensions of health and wellbeing - physical, social, mental, emotional and spiritual. We hope that all students embrace these stepping stones to maximise their personal and collective growth. We wish all staff and students the very best over this time outside of the school environment.

Our staff have also been brave this year as they navigate a new LMS in Compass. They have provided stepping stones for each other as they learn new skills and share these within their office and teaching teams.

Sometimes we forget that learning is supposed to be hard, and that it takes time. When we learnt to walk we fell down many times, but our parents were very excited with each step we took. Learning to drive takes time, that’s why our government insists on 120 hours of practice before you drive on your own. But sometimes in the classroom, we don’t afford ourselves the opportunities to make mistakes and to learn and progress. We expect to be experts straight away and forget the practice that needs to happen as the central part of the learning process. If we don’t get something right straight away we feel ‘dumb’ and we might simply give up. Always remember to find the stepping stones that will help you to show progress with your learning - these stepping stones can come from classroom activities, teacher instructions and examples, your peers in the classroom and the work you do at home. Your parents will put down many stepping stones for you. Be brave, take the steps one at a time, consider which next stone is the best one for you and always keep taking the next step.

Geraldine Ryan

Director - Brigidine Campus