Deloraine Primary School kids take care

Two large scale murals adorn the walls of the outside playgrounds, for children to remember a pledge they have signed by being members of the school community.

Teacher Justine Page said Deloraine Primary has been “Kids Matter School” since 2014, with a focus on taking care of each other and having courage,

“This is all about building resilience and well-being in children, so it’s a big initiative that we have taken on,” she said.

“Our focus at the moment is on our core values, so each week we focus on one of the core values and its taught specifically in each of the classes and the kids come back to assembly and share what they have learnt.”

The program aims to empower the pupils to better manage their emotions and bounce back from things that might be getting them down.

The murals are a small part of the larger scale program.

“They came about because of the national day of no bullying earlier this year,” Ms Page said.

“We came up with the concept of doing two murals in our playground where our kids play as a way of reminding those who might be offenders but also helping to remind other students that the signed up for this and we don’t do it at this school.

“Every child put their hand print on the wall as a signature or a way or saying they were against bullying and this is what our school stands for.”

Another key project in the school’s program is ‘Every face has a Place’ which can be seem the moment parents, pupils or visitors steps into the school office.

“At the beginning of the year we had every child in every class do a puzzle piece and all throughout the whole hallway we have the display running through to show that every child in this school belongs and that we all are connected,” Ms Page said.

The school also encourages participation in lunch clubs, where older children teach younger kids sports, play duplo or do buddy reading programs.