Welcome to the Richard Gill School Blog for the month of August. I am excited to be back in the Principal seat and want to thank Nigel Limon for helping to keep things running in my absence, we wish him all the best for his future roles. The beginning of Semester 2 is off to a flying start with students and staff settling in quickly.
National Tree Planting Day at RGS
Thank you once again to Michael Brady from Muswellbrook Shire’s Sustainability Hub who supplied some new trees and plants for our gardens. At RGS, we believe in nurturing not only young minds but also the environment that surrounds us. On Friday 25th July, we celebrated National Tree Planting Day. To mark the occasion, students broke into groups and headed out into our school grounds. Equipped with shovels, gloves and plenty of enthusiasm, each group worked as a team to carefully plant young saplings, learning along the way about the importance of trees in our ecosystem.
Why is National Tree Planting Day so important?
Trees are vital for a healthy planet. They clean the air we breathe, provide homes for wildlife, prevent soil erosion and help fight climate change by absorbing carbon dioxide. Planting trees is a hands-on way for students to see how small actions can have a big impact. We enjoy participating in this event each year and look forward to continuing this in 2026.
John’s Playground Boat!
We are very grateful to our handyman extraordinaire John, who donated and installed a beautiful boat for our playground. Lovingly restored and adapted to be a safe play space for students, John’s boat has been a hugely popular addition to our playground. It has been wonderful to watch students engage in imaginative play both in and around the boat. Thank you John for your generous support of our school.
Gymnastics for Term 3
We have kicked off a new gymnastics program this term, made possible through a Sporting Schools grant. This funding has allowed us to bring in qualified external coaches to run weekly sessions with our students across all year levels.
So, why gymnastics? It’s one of the best foundational sports for children, promoting strength, flexibility, balance and coordination. By exposing students to gymnastics, we are encouraging them to try new forms of movement in a supportive and fun environment. Programs like this help promote an active lifestyle, which is crucial for healthy physical and mental development. Research shows that regular physical activity boosts concentration, mood, sleep quality and overall wellbeing in children. Our hope is that by introducing students to new ways of being active, we help them find joy in movement—and make fitness a lifelong habit.
Building Stronger Minds With The Resilience Project
This year, we have begun implementing The Resilience Project across all classrooms. This wellbeing program is designed to support the mental health and emotional growth of students by focusing on three key principles: Gratitude, Empathy and Mindfulness (GEM).
Each class is engaging in age-appropriate lessons, reflections and activities that help students build resilience, improve emotional literacy and better understand their own feelings and the feelings of others. The benefits of the program are already being felt around the school—students are learning how to manage stress, build stronger relationships and approach challenges with a positive mindset.
For the school community as a whole, The Resilience Project helps create a culture of kindness, openness and connection. When wellbeing is prioritised alongside academic learning, we see students flourish not just as learners, but as people. We are excited to see how this program continues to shape our school environment. For more information about the evidence behind this program, follow the link below.
Whether it's planting trees, mastering a handstand or learning to express gratitude, the last few weeks have been full of growth at the Richard Gill School. We are proud to offer experiences that nurture not just academic skills, but the whole child.
Tara Stanford
Principal