From Head of Green House, Scott Coleman
As we reflect on a meaningful and encouraging year, each student in Green House should think deeply about how their approach to learning, mentoring and relationships at Waverley have shaped their experiences for the year.
These experiences would vary in levels of interaction, collaboration, and positivity. I would challenge each student to ask themselves deep questions about the lessons they learned in and out of the classroom this year. They should be asking themselves thoughtful questions such as:
- Why is Waverley a better place because of me this year?
- What could I do to improve my learning and relationships next year?
- What areas did I make the biggest improvements on this year?
- What mistakes did I make that taught me something?
- What Social responsibility did I demonstrate in my friendship group?
- What choices did I make this year to form positive experiences?
Here at Waverley, social learning and emotional intelligence underpin what each student engages in at the start of each day. Building on these with a growth mindset questioning enables students to build resilience, perseverance and a strong aptitude for growth.
We see examples of these opportunities within Green House activities such as the Anti-Domestic Violence walk, the Best Foot Forward campaign, and the Green House gratitude program. When we encourage our students to take part in something bigger than themselves and think beyond their own scope, we are able to open their minds and create that growth experience.
In partnership with parents, we at Waverley are providing an education designed to encourage the growth of our young men who will ‘Fill their minds with those things that are good and that deserve praise: things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and honourable.’ Philippians 4:8. We hope that each student will always continue to grow in spirit and do things that are right and just.
This growth comes down to each boy making choices every day. These choices are influenced by our self-awareness, emotional awareness, and empathy. By underpinning our choices with a growth mindset, we will continue to be leaders of the future world and shape the world in a positive way.
Junior School
The Junior boys have really immersed themselves into many aspects of the College this year, especially many of the initiatives run by the Green House. Participation in the annual Junior School Walkathon, the Best Foot Forward Campaign, the Walk Against Domestic Violence, has really opened their eyes to the injustices faced by many people in our local and wider communities. Their involvement in the Big Brother Little Brother program over the past two years and the fortnightly House Meetings has helped them to develop a relationship with the Senior School boys and hopefully, this will continue to flourish as they eventually enter into the Senior School years.
Our junior students were lead again by our wonderful Junior School staff. I would like to thank our Junior School staff for 2019 – Stephen Ghattas and Gabrielle Bransby – for all their efforts. They consistently go above and beyond and I am so thankful to have such supportive staff engaged in the wellbeing of their students.
Best Foot Forward Campaign
On Thursday 17 October, Green House took part in the Edmund Rice Foundation Best Foot Forward Campaign. The Campaign focused on providing girls with access to education that would otherwise not have that opportunity. There is so much value and power in education. But, sadly girls are still more likely than boys to never set foot in a classroom, despite the tremendous progress made over the past 20 years. Each student in Green House donated $10 and were given pink laces to wear to show their support for this essential cause. As a school, we raised $2,000 for the cause. The Edmund Rice Foundation provided $4 for every dollar donated – so that means our contribution resulted in a $10,000 donation to such an important cause. I would also like to thank Mr Graham Leddie who made a significant personal contribution to the campaign and for allowing Green House to be advocates for such an important cause. The donations eventually reached $270,000 in total, making a total raised over $1,080,000 dollars. A huge initiative to be a part of for all our Green and Waverley boys today.
Anti Domestic Violence Walk
On Friday 22 November, Green House took part in the “Step Out, Speak Out” Walk Against Domestic Violence (previously Sydney’s White Ribbon Walk) from Randwick to Coogee. It was overwhelming to see the students, parents and staff taking a stand and making their voices heard. Talking to the students in Green House during the walk, they mentioned they felt part of something bigger and that by taking part they were making an impact on social issues in the community. Each student in Green has been able to take part in an important social justice initiative and this will be the focus for Green House for years to come. We also had quite a few parents that came to walk with their sons. Their involvement shows the importance of the students taking a stand on this issue and the support behind us from our parents at Waverley. It was inspiring seeing parents taking part in such a significant event. I would like to thank many staff for their attendance on Friday and for taking part in the event, their involvement allows students to see the importance of these events in the college community. We are lucky to have such motivated staff at Waverley and again, these staff members went above and beyond with their participation on Friday morning.
Green House Mentors
Green House would not be the place it is without the support we have from our incredible mentors. Through the development of the Wellbeing Program this year, it has been exciting to see our Green mentors developing and engaging with the wellbeing curriculum. Our students are lucky to be greeted by your smile every morning and I sincerely wanted to thank you all for your work this year. Thank you all: Angus Brotherton, Jannet Markey/Harry Lind, Jon Walker, Gary Kennedy, Kathryn Knowles, Dominic Hearne, Daniel Kroll, Belinda Buchan, Patrick Darvill, Sinead Kenrick, Phoebe Guirguis, Stephen Ghattas and Gabrielle Bransby
I also want to thank every student for embracing our gratitude focus this year. Every day I make it my aim to talk to as many Green students as possible. I enjoy these conversations because the students in Green have welcomed me as their mentor and leader throughout their time at Waverley. Thanks for our daily conversations and discussions about the day ahead, they are one of the highlights of my role as Head of Green House. Finally, I want to thank all the parents of Green students. Your support is consistently overwhelming and we are so lucky to have you as part of the Green family. I wish the best of luck to those parents that are moving on or to a different school and look forward to making memories with parents and students in 2020.
