Reconciliation Week Activities at PLHS – Thursday

Today’s activities revolved around a well-attended, kangaroo-flavoured barbecue and volleyball games on the Oval. It was wonderful to see so many staff and students enjoying themselves in the sunshine.

Year 10 Dharna Crews Discuss Reconciliation

Some of our Year 10 Dharna Crews came together to discuss the theme of reconciliation – what it means, why we have a week to honour this process, and what reconciliation can look like for our Year 10 students.

We spoke about how long our Indigenous Australians have walked this land, how colonisation caused displacement, trauma and loss of culture and identity, and how this has affected generations of Indigenous families. We spoke about the need to represent the true history of Australia and the importance of why our history can never be forgotten.

We spoke about putting ourselves in the lives of the Stolen generations and how this might feel. We also spoke about generational trauma, the need for healing and how this may look, feel and be. We spoke about how healing can be achieved through communication, listening and respect.

Respect was our key takeaway word; we can all respect ourselves and our peers, and it is one of our three school values here at PLHS. Hopefully, we have started the narrative of “Bridging Now to Next” with respect.

~ Mrs. Nat van Riet (Year 10 Dharna Crew Leader)