Wellbeing in Action - 'Find your values'

Last week, Year 9 had our first wellbeing lesson for the year. Everyone was wondering why we had to be in sports uniform, and what was in store for us.

We arrived outside the gym, eager and interested in what we were about to be learning about. To our surprise, our activity for the day was an interactive treasure hunt around the school! This hunt was based on different values that are important in becoming the best version of ourselves and help us to lead a happier, healthier and more successful life.

Each group was given a different set of values - some of these included gratitude, kindness, patience, integrity and courage. We formed two teams per house, and divided ourselves into different categories of creators, researchers, runners and a group manager. Together we worked as a team to figure out the clues we were given, the runners would go and collect the value from the location of the clue, bring it back to us and collect the next clue. Whilst all of this was happening, the researchers would find a definition of the value that the runners had retrieved, why it’s important and how it can be displayed. The creators then took this information and made a poster creatively displaying the value and its properties.

This Wellbeing lesson perfectly ties in with the theme for this term; Self. Whether we realised it or not, this activity helped us to experience so many different positive aspects of wellbeing that we often forget about. When was the last time you paid someone a random act of kindness? When was the last time you took a step back and thanked the people in your life you are most grateful for? Through this activity, we learned that by demonstrating more of these values, not only will it benefit others, but you will find that giving someone else a compliment or doing something for them (even if it’s just holding a door open or helping them hold their books), often makes you feel good as well.

So, in preparation for the upcoming, Random Acts of Kindness Week, I challenge you to give one person a compliment per day, help out someone in some way or another, and be grateful for what you have, even the small things.

Right now, my compliments go to the Wellbeing teachers, without whom, this amazing first lesson would never have been possible, and the staff and College leaders from last year who helped to form the Wellbeing Committee. My act of kindness will be to help the committee in any way that I can to help us achieve our goals for this year, and strive towards many new accomplishments to come. (I think this lesson can be counted as the first!) And finally, my thanks go out to every student, staff member and parent supporting, helping and looking out for one another – you have no idea what one kind or thoughtful action can do.