VIRTUES From the Director of Wellbeing & Positive Education
ensure the students understand their strengths and are able to use them in all areas of their lives, to help them build resilience and wellbeing by shifting the lens to what they can do, not what they cannot. The concept of mindfulness was again introduced to staff and students, giving them permission to pause in their day to ensure they are present and aware of how they are tracking. This was reinforced through our Physical Education & Health, MINDfit and MANifesto programmes. It is a great tool for our young men to learn, to ensure they are becoming aware of how they are feeling and to help them manage their thoughts and busy lives. We will look to embed this more into the classroom and day-to- day life of the boys. Within the counselling department, we unfortunately had to say goodbye to College Counsellor Wiremu Grey, who left in Term 3 to take up a role at St Bede’s College. Wiremu was a huge loss, not just to counselling but to all the other areas he contributed to around the school. He was involved in many activities outside the office, and formed trusting and strong relationships with the boys, their families and staff. Replacing someone like Wiremu was hard, and we ended up replacing him with two people. We were fortunate to have clinical psychologists Emily Baird and Dr Sarah Anticich apply. They now share the role, with both being here part-time over the week. They bring huge experience in working
with teenagers and their families, as well as a skill set that complements our positive education and wellbeing programmes. What is very clear with our young people is that they need consistent support and messages to ensure we equip them with the tools they need to manage their lives. The famous phrase “It takes a village to raise a child” is very important for all of us as we move into 2020. When we all work together we can support our young boys and help them grow into young men ready to deal with the complexities of adult life when they leave school and become College graduates. John Quinn Director of Wellbeing & Positive Education
2019 has been another busy year at College as we look to embed wellbeing practices for staff and students. The focus for the year was character strengths and mindfulness. At the start of the year, all students were asked to complete the VIA Character Strengths survey, which enabled them to identify their top five strengths. Research suggests that understanding your individual strengths and then learning how to apply them enhances wellbeing and can change the lens through which we view the world. Many boys were then able to use their strengths and reference them in their day-to-day lives, both in and outside the classroom. Using their strengths aligns with the work of psychologist Lea Waters on the “Strength Switch” for parents. College ran a parents’ education evening on strength-based parenting to complement the work staff are doing during the day. In 2020 we will see a continuation of this work, to
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Christ’s College Canterbury
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