At St John the Baptist, we believe students learn best when they feel safe, known, valued and connected.
Student wellbeing is an important part of everyday life at SJB and is closely connected to learning, relationships, behaviour, attendance and belonging. Grounded in our Catholic faith and Dominican tradition, we seek to create a community where every student is treated with dignity, compassion and respect.
Supporting wellbeing is a shared responsibility. Students, families and staff work in partnership, recognising that strong relationships between home and school help us to know our students well, celebrate their strengths and respond when they need additional support.
A Positive and Supportive School Culture
Our approach to wellbeing begins with strong relationships and clear, consistent expectations.
Through our Positive Behaviour for Learning (PB4L) approach, students are explicitly taught the behaviours and expectations that support positive learning and relationships across our school.
We recognise that behaviour is also an opportunity for learning. When difficulties arise, students are supported to reflect on their choices, understand the impact of their actions, repair relationships where appropriate and develop more positive ways of responding in the future.
Our aim is to help students develop increasing self-awareness, responsibility, resilience and independence as they move through primary school.
Belonging and Connection
A strong sense of belonging is central to student wellbeing.
We want every student at SJB to know that there are adults who know them, care about them and will listen when they need help.
Opportunities for connection are built into everyday school life through classroom relationships, prayer and faith experiences, peer relationships, student leadership and voice, sporting and creative opportunities, school celebrations and our wider community life.
We explicitly teach students about respectful relationships, inclusion, help-seeking and how to respond when they or someone else needs support.
Working in Partnership with Families
Strong relationships with families are an important part of supporting student wellbeing at SJB. Families know their children well, and we value the knowledge, perspectives and insights they bring.
We encourage open and respectful communication between home and school. Parents and carers are encouraged to connect with their child’s teacher when circumstances may be affecting their child’s wellbeing, relationships, engagement, attendance or learning.
Likewise, when we notice changes or concerns at school, we recognise the importance of connecting with families so that we can develop a shared understanding of what may be happening for the child.
By working together, we can celebrate strengths, respond to concerns and provide the support students need to experience success, connection and belonging at school.
Supporting Social and Emotional Development
Students are supported to develop the social and emotional skills they need to navigate friendships, learning challenges, conflict and change.
Age-appropriate learning experiences help students build their understanding of emotions, regulation, respectful relationships, resilience, problem-solving and positive decision-making.
These skills are taught within classrooms and reinforced through everyday interactions across the school.
Responding When Students Need Additional Support
There will be times when a student requires additional support with their wellbeing, behaviour, engagement or attendance.
Our first response is to understand what is happening for the student. The student, their family and relevant school staff work together to identify strengths, understand concerns and determine what support may be helpful.
Depending on individual circumstances, this may involve additional classroom strategies, targeted wellbeing or behaviour support, individual planning, learning support processes or collaboration with relevant Catholic Schools Maitland-Newcastle personnel and external professionals.
Supports are responsive to the needs of the individual student and are monitored and reviewed over time.
Student Voice and Wellbeing
Listening to students is an important part of understanding and strengthening wellbeing at SJB.
Students have opportunities to share their experiences and perspectives through classroom conversations, our Student Representative Council (SRC), surveys and other feedback opportunities.
This information, together with school wellbeing, behaviour, attendance and learning data, helps us identify strengths, respond to emerging needs and make informed decisions about our school.
You can learn more about the ways students contribute to school life on our Student Voice page.
Wellbeing Through Faith
Our Catholic faith provides an important foundation for wellbeing at St John the Baptist.
Through prayer, Religious Education, liturgy, formation, service and our Dominican pillars of Prayer, Study, Community and Service, students are encouraged to recognise their own dignity and the dignity of others.
We seek to be a community where compassion is visible, relationships matter, differences are respected and every student has the opportunity to belong, learn and thrive.