By Mr Scott Corbett, Acting Assistant Principal Students

Like many, I have been closely watching the FIFA Women’s World Cup with great excitement as the Matildas continue to power ahead. Monday night’s game against Denmark was no exception. Watching the World Cup, I realise it is a privilege to see such a display of talent and dedication to a skill. In our community at Radford, we are fortunate enough to have the opportunity to watch people share their skills and talents on a regular basis. As a teacher, it is always a joy to see a student excel in an area, especially when it is an unexpected, hidden talent.

I wanted to take the opportunity that this space in the Bulletin provides to encourage you all to celebrate the skills and talents of those around you. Whilst much of our time at school is spent on the pursuit of academic success, many of our students are very dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in a myriad of fields. From chess to soccer, acting, volunteering and debating, our students fill their universal growth-need of mastery in an excitingly diverse set of ways.

The time spent in these areas of passion, whatever it is for you, is not a distraction from success at school, but rather an important part of it. When young people find ‘that thing’ they love and commit to getting better because they enjoy the journey, they are fostering a love of learning. Most importantly, we are creating space in their lives for them to invest in their well-being. Growing in mastery, being connected to a community of people who also love what they love, and developing the skills of a lifelong learner are powerful tools that add positively to their well-being.

I recently presented at the Anglican Schools Australia National Conference on the importance of service learning. At the conference, I shared a recent prognosis handed down by the 21st US Surgeon General, Dr Vivek H. Murthy, titled an epidemic of loneliness. He shared in his diagnosis that:

"Loneliness is associated with a greater risk of cardiovascular disease, dementia, stroke, depression, anxiety, and premature death. The mortality impact of being socially disconnected is similar to that caused by smoking up to 15 cigarettes a day."

When we support and foster our young peoples' interests, we are not only helping to grow their skills but also their capacity to connect, ability to build relationships and fulfil their growth needs. Dr Murthy suggests parents and families can provide support to combat the epidemic by, “investing in relationship[s] with your child, model[ing] healthy social connection, and talk[ing] to your children about social connection regularly.”

So, I encourage you to value and support the world of passions, hobbies, sports and skills that your child is, or might soon be, interested in. And stay connected yourself. Give yourself permission to try something new and celebrate your own skills and passions – it is something our world will benefit from. The trumpet I have borrowed from Music Teacher, Mr Knapp, is my commitment to this cause. So, if you hear some out-of-tune trumpet playing coming from the well-being centre, try to hear it as an ode to trying something new and building connections.