MacKillop Seasons trainers Fiona Hart and Monica Mudge had the pleasure of running Seasons for Growth training for the team at Mogo Public School, and a staff member from Narooma High School. It was a day filled with laughter, discussion, collaboration, and reflection (and delicious food). The training was funded by a donation to Schools Plus, that enabled the NSW Education Department to provide additional student wellbeing programs in bushfire-impacted schools.
Mogo is a town in NSW, south of Batemans Bay, with a population of just over 300 people. This small school community has been through a lot over the last few years, including devastating bushfires and floods, and the ongoing secondary changes and losses these events bring. The school staff are dedicated to ensuring that their students have access to the very best of opportunities. Seasons for Growth will be offered to the students to strengthen their emotional wellbeing, build their social and support networks, and most importantly give the children a voice to tell their stories and express their thoughts and feelings.
The staff felt that learning about the four seasons and the related grief tasks, also helped them on a personal level, building a deeper understanding of their own grief journeys and the importance of self-care.