Assistant Head of Gioia House

R U OK?

R U OK Day was celebrated nationally on Thursday 11 September. R U OK Day is an opportunity to remind people to check in with friends, family, and colleagues and to start conversations about mental health. The initiative encourages everyone to ask, ‘Are you OK?’, listen actively, encourage action and follow up, fostering a culture where people feel supported and connected to help them through life’s challenges.

Throughout Week 8 the Gioia House and Secondary students participated in a number of activities during Homeroom, Pastoral and Community Time. We came together and started our day with prayer. We discussed the importance of conversation and connection and you do not need to be an expert to reach out … you just need to be a good friend and great listener. 

During Community Time, our Gioia House students used this opportunity to meet their Senior Buddies. The students moved into House Groups and the Year 5 students met their Year 9 Buddies; the Year 6 students met their Year 10 Buddies. The students had the chance to get to know each other and participated in a variety of fun team-building activities. The students had such a wonderful time getting to know each other, they cannot wait for our next Buddy session.

We finished off our week by acknowledging all the things we are grateful for and what brings us joy. The students created their joy bubble and created a Gioia House mural in the front foyer of Gioia House. This serves as an important reminder of all that we are grateful for and the things in life that allow us to experience joy.

We continue to encourage our students to look out for each other and start a conversation. It is through our care and connection that we can continue to check in and look after each other. 

Gioia House Action Girls

Throughout this term, we continue to see many Gioia House students display Action Girl qualities. We encourage all our students to be Action Girls every day. Through our teacher nomination process, there have been many students who have been showing compassion for others, trying their best to achieve their personal goals within their learning environment, taking initiative, looking for ways to care for our environment and school and being kind and respectful through our interactions with everyone each day. 

This week, we acknowledged the following Action Girls. Congratulations to:

Amelia Cloran
Alira Djordjevic
Eve Kelly
Marley Seeto
Amelia Coscarella
Kate Hennessy
Ava Lapanaitis
Irina Li

We look forward to continuing to recognise Action Girls who rise to the challenge of demonstrating kindness at all times, caring for our environment, trying their best and being respectful within our classrooms and taking action to promote positive change. I wonder who will be awarded as our next Action Girls. 

This week, Year 6 are off to their Canberra and Tallong Outdoor Education Experience. The teachers and students are excited to take our learning outdoors. We look forward to sharing our experiences in the next VV Newsletter.

As we near the end of another busy term, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the parents and community for their continued support. I hope you have a wonderful holiday break with your family.

Marisa Maks
Assistant Head of Gioia House