Coffs Harbour Public School school was lucky to host two players from the Newcastle Knights as part of the National Rugby League’s (NRL) ‘Tackle Bullying’ campaign.
The NRL stars spoke about Rugby League’s powerful new anti-bullying message and all up it will be delivered to a record of more than 120,000 students across Australia, New Zealand, Tonga and Samoa as a part of a game-wide campaign.
The 2013 Community Carnival will deliver important lessons on the effects of bullying and the importance of building positive self-esteem through a powerful DVD and other resources.
Rugby League’s 12th annual Community Carnival is the ideal platform for launching the NRL’s ‘Tackle Bullying’ campaign with the most recent Australian Government study into bullying revealing one in four (27%) Australian students (Year 4-9) are bullied frequently.
“Community Carnival is a special time of year where a huge contingent of players travel far and wide to visit those areas that don’t usually get the chance to come face-to-face with NRL players,” NRL Chief Executive, Mr Mattiske, said.
This year’s ‘Tackle Bullying’ message is an important one, with the effects of bullying well documented in the media.
“We know from experience that students listen when NRL players visit the classroom and if our players can help provide them with some tools to combat bullying then hopefully we can make a positive difference to their lives.”
“If students are equipped with the skills to deal with bullying from a young age, as well as being taught the harmful effects that bullying can have, hopefully one day every student will feel safe at school and online.
“I believe the most important lesson in dealing with bullying is to speak out against it and that is exactly what the NRL is encouraging students to do.”
One activity the NRL players will facilitate throughout Community Carnival is ‘drop-a-note box’, which sees classmates write anonymous positive affirmations about their fellow students, with the goal to build self-esteem and self-confidence.
The ‘drop-a-note box’ activity has been used by Bulldogs coach Des Hasler on his players in recent years, during which time his teams (Bulldogs and Sea Eagles) have played in four of the past six Grand Finals, winning two.
“It is simple but powerful and I have seen the benefits an activity like that has in helping to build an individual’s self-esteem and self-confidence,” said Hasler.
Information sourced from NRL.Com
The session with the Newcastle Knights was fantastic and all our staff and students are huge rugby fans so were very excited to have the players visit the school. The NRL have also made an excellent video that supports their message and it can be viewed here. I suggest everyone watch it and maybe even watch it a few times. Coffs Harbour Public School does not tolerate bullying in any form and our school motto Courtesy and Honour underpins all our relationships within the school community.
Remember to always Be Safe, Be Fair, Be Kind and Be Cooperative and don’t be a bystander!
A big thank you to Mr Pike for organising the visit.
Mrs Booth
