Wellbeing

Mindfulness/Meditation

At St Anthony’s students participate in a range of mindfulness and meditation practices to assist with emotional regulation, improved focus and wellbeing.  In a world that moves fast and can be quite noisy, our minds can sometimes feel like they’re on overdrive. Mindfulness and meditation are like a gentle pause button for our busy brains. They help us slow down, focus, and be present in the moment. This is really important because it helps us regulate our emotions and improve our readiness to learn.

Transition Processes

Times of big change can present a challenge to wellbeing. We have a number of transition processes in place to support our students through big changes. We offer the Little Learners Kindy Transition Program in Term 4, helping incoming Kindergarten students adjust to the school environment and ensuring a smooth transition into their first year of school.  At the end of the year classes participate in a transition day where they visit the next year level to meet their new teacher and get a bit of an idea of what the next year will bring.  Students who need extra support with big changes are invited to attend school before the year starts to meet with their new teacher and see their new classroom.

Buddy Program

The buddy program at St Anthony’s has been utilised for many years as a way of providing support for our youngest students and developing the leadership skills and empathy of our older students.  It is in the process of being more formalised and being linked to the RULER approach to social emotional learning.

Our School Library

Our school library provides a sanctuary for students who need a bit of time to relax or withdraw from the social challenges that are sometimes presented by the playground.  Mrs Moynihan creates a space where students feel safe and welcome.  She often facilitates activities that allow students time to be reflective or creative such as Lego competitions and craft stations.

We recognize the critical importance of early intervention in supporting the wellbeing and development of young children. Our programs are designed to provide a strong foundation for children from infancy through the early years of schooling.

Our community playgroup, held on Fridays for children aged 0-3, fosters social connections among parents and children through shared play experiences.

Speech and occupational therapy screenings are conducted at the beginning of kindergarten to identify potential developmental concerns early, allowing for timely intervention. In collaboration with Edith Cowan University, we run a speech and language program targeting Pre-Primary children for early speech and language intervention.

The Pregnancy to Parenthood service provides crucial psychological support for parents from the prenatal period through the first two years of their child’s life.

Together these programs and initiatives reflect our commitment to nurturing each child’s growth and wellbeing from their earliest years.

At St Anthony’s we know we can be most effective in supporting the holistic development of our students when we work together with parents and families.

Family Night

Family Night at St Anthony’s is a wonderful opportunity to visit the school and engage with some of our wellbeing initiatives.  Explore interesting vocabulary for emotions and practice being an emotion scientist.

Father’s Day, Mother’s Day and Grandparent’s Day

We look forward to opportunities for parents and families to visit the school.  There are a number of different events throughout the year when we welcome families onsite to spend some time with their child in the place where they spend so much of their time.

Parent/Family Helpers

We are so grateful for the village of people that support the students at our school.  Staff are often looking for ways to involve families in school life.  If you have a particular passion that you think you could contribute to St Anthony’s please let us know.  Keep an eye out for when we need helpers for in the classroom or on excursions.

Rainbows

The core of the Rainbows program is centred on trust, acceptance and sharing.  It supports students to understand their feelings and to develop some tools to help them in dealing with different situations. Many experiences which may occur in a child’s life can be overwhelming for them to be able to cope with and indeed enjoy their precious years of childhood.  Separation or divorce between parents, the loss of a family member/close family friend, a serious illness or accident, moving house/school/state/country or any other significant change can be a crushing event in a child’s life. These situations affect children socially, spiritually, behaviourally and academically.  Children are helped to speak about their feelings, build a stronger sense of self-esteem and dispel any guilt or anger over the changes in their lives.  They no longer feel alone when they gather with other children who are facing similar situations.

The Rainbows program runs from the beginning of Term 3, and goes for 6 weeks.  After the program is completed, fortnightly catch ups are held to touch base. In order for children to gain the most benefit from the program, group sizes are usually between 4-6 children of similar age.

Social Worker

The role of the social worker at St Anthony’s is to provide social and emotional support to students as they navigate their way through the ups and downs of life, friendships and family changes. Ann love’s to help children identify their strengths, develop tools and implement strategies to overcome the challenges they are experiencing.