Wellbeing

We believe this is the foundation for lasting wellness in life.

When our children feel well, they grow and learn well. They are intrinsically more motivated, determined, fulfilled and cognitively capable. 

At Tatachilla, student wellbeing is a part of daily life. It is not practised through a single curriculum unit or one-off program. 

We consciously embed student wellbeing into everyday living and learning through the six key dimensions outlined in the PERMA+ model of wellbeing developed by leading psychologist, Dr. Martin Seligman:

• P (Positive emotion)
• E (Engagement)
• R (Positive relationships)
• M (Meaning)
• A (Accomplishments)
• + (Optimism, nutrition, physical activity, sleep and other important areas essential for mental wellbeing)

We actively apply the PERMA+ model to student wellbeing at the college by encouraging all children in our care to accept the full range of emotional experiences in life – including negative experiences – and actively cultivate situations that generate hope, interest, joy, love, compassion, pride, amusement, gratitude and growth.

All students are given the opportunities they need to pursue their passions, make decisions that align with their soul, know the satisfaction that comes with achieving personal excellence and develop a strong sense of self-worth and personal voice. 

Emotional health and mindfulness

Tatachilla students are taught to be aware of their own emotional health and to be mindful of that of others.

They are also given practical tools to help them successfully navigate the complexities of relationships, personal challenges and change. These tools include strategies in social-emotional learning and executive functioning*.

All students from Reception to Year 12 undertake the Keeping Safe: Child Protection Curriculum (KS:CPC), which helps them understand what inappropriate or abusive behaviour looks like, take action if they experience such behaviour and implement ways to keep themselves safe online and in everyday life.

They also complete modules from the Positive Education Enhanced Curriculum (PEEC), which teaches students about key concepts in wellbeing to help them lead healthy and fulfilling lives. These concepts include self-knowledge, grit and persistence, gratitude, self-control, empathy, forgiveness, decision-making, the mind-body connection and character development.

The teaching of these concepts is reinforced through:

• authentic pastoral care
• peer support
• positive and supportive relationships between caregivers, teachers and students
• a restorative approach to teaching and learning
• the celebration of student success
• open discussion of difficult issues
• counselling from the college’s two professional counsellors (if and when required).

All students in our care are guided to use their God-given gifts and natural resourcefulness to discover their purpose and contribute meaningfully to the world: professionally, socially, creatively and spiritually. 

They receive this guidance in a safe and secure environment of compassion and trust.

*Executive functioning skills are the essential self-regulating skills that we all use every day to plan, organise, make decisions, and learn from past mistakes. They include impulse control, emotional control, flexible thinking, working memory, self-monitoring, planning and prioritising, task initiation and organisation.