Wellbeing

Holy Family Primary School Doveton

At Holy Family we create a climate of positivity and inclusion, fostering the spiritual, cognitive, physical and social & emotional wellbeing of every student.

Wellbeing practices such as mindfulness, gratitude, a growth mindset and emotional regulation are explored and explicitly taught through our social and emotional curriculum as well as being integrated through literacy and inquiry.

With respect and dignity, we identify each child’s strengths and enable them to grow and flourish within an environment of acceptance; acknowledging that positive wellbeing plays an vital role in school engagement and is crucial in empowering children to navigate challenges, build resilience, and embrace a future filled with limitless possibilities.

Programs

Using the Response to Intervention Model, students who require support beyond the universal level have the opportunity to participate in a range of Tier 2 and Tier 3 interventions in literacy, mathematics and personal & social capabilities. We intervene as early as possible, using current data and

We value our connection with a local speech pathology service who regularly collaborate with two of our trained Educational Support Staff to deliver evidence based interventions either one-to-one or in a small group.

Tier 3 interventions are delivered by the Learning Diversity and Literacy Leaders, with each program being designed to meet the needs of the student.

Heart Values

Our HEART values of: Honesty, Empathy, Acceptance, Respect and Trust are an integral part of the school landscape and serve as a foundation for defining and communicating our behavioural expectations. These five values contribute to our students’ social and emotional development by helping them to develop a sense of self-worth, emotional intelligence and the ability to form positive relationships with their peers.

Dance Crew

At Holy Family, the Dance Club is a hive of creativity. Every Tuesday lunchtime, the Performing Arts room fills with energetic anticipation as students wait to rehearse, learn and perform dances to an eclectic range of music and movement styles. With a spot for everyone, the Dance Club is a great way for all year levels to express themselves, develop their gross motor skills and have fun in a safe environment. Throughout the year, opportunities to perform at school and within the local community also help to boost students’ confidence and build their stage presence.

Chess Program

The Holy Family Chess Club takes place every Friday lunchtime in the school library. It is open to students of all ages and experience levels, whether they are a seasoned player or completely new to chess. It is a place to learn the rules of chess, meet new friends, develop chess strategies and participate in tournaments. Learning chess is a great way to develop creative problem-solving skills, memory, confidence and good sportsmanship.

Garden Club

Like plants, flowers and vegetables in garden beds, our lunchtime Garden Club helps the students that participate grow. They enjoy the opportunity to engage in gardening activities that bring personal calmness and help them to cultivate a connection with the environment.

Art Club

Drawing Club is a club that is held once a week during recess. It is an opportunity for students to get creative and practise their drawing skills. The children suggest what they would like to draw, sometimes with a theme running over a few weeks, and they have a lot of fun producing cute and creative illustrations.

Counselling

Complementing our wellbeing practices and social and emotional curriculum, we are fortunate to provide individual counselling sessions for students who may require additional support. Our psychologist, from Catholic Care, understands how young people think, feel, behave and react. Via one to one support, students have the opportunity to develop and enhance their psychological health and their social and emotional wellbeing.

Mental Health Support

Children’s mental health is fundamental to their development and learning. Good mental health means having a positive sense of wellbeing, coping with challenges and being able to realise individual potential.

Our school is part of the Government Mental Health in Primary Schools Program (MHiPS) which aims to promote children’s mental health.

To ensure that we are providing the best mental health support to every student within our care, our leader, Ms Connie Drossaert will be involved in:

establishing community partnerships
providing professional learning to upskill staff
engaging with other schools

Buddy Program

We work collegially with our feeder school, St John’s Regional College Dandenong. One of the most exciting initiatives is our Buddy Program, where students from Year 11 and 12 visit our students and run programs for all of our classes. This ensures our students have positive peer role models, who understand the challenges of youth today and can positively influence our students’ ability to aim high.

Cooking Club

This is an amazing club where students learn to cook with the ingredients that we have received from generous donations. Students learn to look up the ingredients and find recipes that will work with what we have.

The food is shared with the whole school through Breakfast Club or handed out to students at lunchtime. We are very proud of how hard our students work to make sure the food is shared throughout the school. They have even prepared cakes and slices for Father’s Day and Grandparent’s Day.