St. Therese

On Wednesday, our school community gathered to commemorate Remembrance Day, taking time to remember and honour the brave men and women who served and sacrificed so much for the freedoms we enjoy today. Mr McCarthy and our senior students led us in a beautiful and respectful ceremony on the line. It was a wonderful opportunity for our students to reflect on the importance of remembrance, gratitude and peace.

Our senior students also enjoyed their surfing program here in Torquay this week. Along with having a fantastic time in the water, students developed important skills in water safety, understanding beach conditions and learning how to swim safely in open water. We're incredibly fortunate to have these opportunities right on our doorstep!

A big thank you to our wonderful parent volunteers, including Angie, Carly and the many others who generously gave their time to run our Book Fair in the hall each morning and afternoon this week. The Book Fair is always a popular event with our students and a terrific fundraiser for the school. We really appreciate the time and effort our families put into making these opportunities possible.

Looking ahead, our senior students will soon begin preparing for 2027 student leadership roles. This is an exciting opportunity for our students to consider how they can contribute to our school community and demonstrate leadership through service, initiative and responsibility. Grade 5 families will receive further information about the leadership process in today's newsletter.

Wishing everyone a wonderful weekend!

Josh McElgunn
Principal

The story circulating this week on the news that caught my eye was “Nature being Good Medicine.”

The Royal Australian College of GPs has recently endorsed a dose of nature to help improve mental wellbeing, keep us calmer and reduce stress - not bad for free treatment. We live in an enviable position in the world and we all get busy but 20 minutes per day outside, or even 2 hours per week can be a huge benefit- not to replace more conventional medications but to augment what we are doing to de-stress. 

We have probably all gone for a walk and felt better - but mindfully nature dosing takes all our senses to help us detox and is now recognised as seriously and credibly beneficial. 

Happy Nature trailing.

We have been lucky enough to secure a coffee van every Wednesday for the remainder of the year. Grab your morning coffee after drop off and stay for a chat with other parents.

Resilience is one of those skills that all kids need and should have. It refers to their ability to cope and adapt in situations when confronted with challenges such as adversity, trauma, tragedy, or even stress. It is essential to their mental health and wellbeing as part of their journey to adulthood. It is a skill that can be learned from an early age through the support of an adult role model.

However, being resilient does not mean your child won't experience any difficulties, but it will better equip them to manage those situations. Over-protective parenting can be viewed as being unhelpful towards the building of resilience. Although this may be a natural instinct, potentially experiencing failure is all part of the process. Encouraging children to take healthy risks will help them trust their capacity to deal with uncomfortable situations and increase their capacity for courage.

In this edition of SchoolTV, parents will gain an understanding of how to support their child’s brave behaviour to help them adapt and build resilience.

We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this edition of SchoolTV and we always welcome your feedback. If you have any concerns about your child, please contact the school counsellor for further information or seek medical or professional help.

Here is the link to the Resilience edition of SchoolTV
https://sttorquay.catholic.schooltv.me/newsletter/resilience