Gratitude - acknowledging the goodness in our lives.

As we start our new term and enjoy the new life that emerges with the warming weather of Spring, we are reminded to stop, breathe and be thankful for the small moments of goodness in our lives.  The beautiful colours of a sunset, flowers growing in the garden, the quiet of the house when the children have left for school, or the smile of your child when you see them at the gate at the end of the day. Acknowledging the good of these everyday moments, is such an important practice to hold onto in this fast-paced, often negative focused, world we live in. 

Most of us associate gratitude with saying “thank you” to someone who has helped us or given us a gift. From a scientific perspective, gratitude is not just an action. Gratitude is a positive emotion, which is really important because it  helps people connect to something larger than themselves as individuals – whether to other people, nature, or a higher power.

Research shows that when children exhibit gratitude, it's the behavior that most closely correlates with life satisfaction and happiness for that child. It's also linked to less stress and depression and more optimism.  Gratitude is also a powerful tool for strengthening interpersonal relationships. 

In order to practice gratitude, the first step is to pay attention - noticing and becoming aware of blessings that we normally take for granted.

Here are some tips to further develop gratitude in your children.

1. Role model gratitude and teach your kids to think gratefully.

Express gratitude often--by speaking it, writing it, gifting it.

2. Be present and empathetic with your child.

Spending time with your children is, of course, good. Spending time when you're fully present, enjoying each moment, and ready to express empathy and understanding is priceless.

3. Nurture their strengths.

Doing so builds confidence. Confidence builds self-appreciation, which makes it easier to see and appreciate things around you (as you're not busy combating feelings of inadequacy). You can even encourage your children to directly use strengths (like writing, speaking well, being kind-hearted) to show gratitude.

4. Encourage them to accumulate growth, not gadgets.

When you encourage a child to focus on developing deeper connections with people or the community and on pursuing experiences that excite their interest and help them achieve growth, it's much more likely to foster gratitude.

5. Give them a hand in lending helping hands.

Encourage your child to look for opportunities to help others, again role modeling it yourself as a closely held value. This is one of the most direct routes possible towards encouraging gratitude.

6. Help them find what matters to them.

When kids find something that's important to them, something bigger than themselves, (like a social issue, cause, or form of service), they realise they're a player in something more important. Gratitude comes from an appreciation of that larger picture and what they can do to affect it.

Paul Anderson

Student Wellbeing Leader

Personal Development Sessions

Our Lady Star of the Sea is offering you an opportunity for Parents and Students from Year 4, 5 & 6 to attend a Health and Human Development session.  

Each session includes the use of a short video from The Wonder of Living series.  Following the screening of the video there will be an opportunity for parent and child discussion.  Whilst the sessions will not cover all aspects relating to Human Development and sexuality, it is an opportunity to open up discussion that is appropriate for you and your child. 

Our Year 4 sessions will be held on Tuesday 24th Oct 5:00 - 5:45pm or 6:00 - 6:45pm

The focus for this session will be on A New Baby.  This explores the development and birth of a baby using animation and real foetal footage.  This will be held in Purple Hub.

Our Year 5 sessions will be held on Wednesday 25th Oct 5:00 - 6:00pm or 6:15 - 7:15pm

This session will explore the amazing human body and how a baby begins.  It also explores physical and emotional changes of puberty, handling change, seeking support from trusted grownups, identifying unhealthy social media pressures and acting in ways that are safe. This will be held in Purple Hub.

Our Year 6 session will be held on Wednesday 25th Oct 6:00 - 7:00pm 

This session will explore the amazing human body and how a baby begins.  It also explores physical and emotional changes of puberty, handling change, seeking support from trusted grownups, identifying unhealthy social media pressures and acting in ways that are safe. This will be held in Djila Tjarri Hall.

Parenting Education Opportunities

Please refer to the Community Notice section of this week’s newsletter for information on dates, times and venues  for Parenting Education opportunities offered by Regional Parenting Service programs along with MELI (formerly Barwon Child Youth & Family (BCYF) and Bethany), Family Relationship Centre, Drummond St Services and Barwon Southwest Region.