On Thursday 12 June, we hosted our inaugural Parent Expo, bringing together families and wellbeing experts for an evening of learning, insight and connection. The event drew parents from both our School community and the wider public, all united by a common goal: understanding how to nurture resilient, confident children in today’s complex world.
The evening commenced with a keynote address by renowned adolescent psychologist Dr Michael Carr-Gregg, followed by parents selecting two sessions from six practical workshops covering everything from study support and emotion coaching to digital safety and friendship foundations.
The science of resilience: Carr-Gregg’s keynote insights
In his address, Carr-Gregg shared the groundbreaking research from Dr Emmy Werner’s longitudinal study on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. Werner followed 698 children born in 1955, many raised in environments marked by pervasive adversity—including parental substance abuse, poverty, mental illness, and domestic violence. Remarkably, one-third overcame their circumstances and went on to thrive not only in education but across multiple areas of life.
‘That begs the question, how did they do it?’ Carr-Gregg asked the assembled parents. ‘What were the characteristics of these resilient children and what can we at St Michael’s learn from that?’
Drawing from Werner’s globally replicated research, Carr-Gregg outlined five fundamental needs that enable young people to build resilience—principles that align naturally with St Michael’s educational approach and community culture.
Five pillars of resilience: how St Michael’s delivers
The charismatic adult connection
‘The first and most important thing is that resilient kids have found themselves what I call a charismatic adult,’ Carr-Gregg explained, ‘an adult in their life that makes them feel safe, valued and listened to.’ In Werner’s study, this connection was never a family member but rather someone in the community who taught these children ‘how to read a room, how to understand the way in which you can communicate’.
At St Michael’s, this principle is embedded through multiple touchpoints. Our House system ensures every student has additional caring adults through Heads of House and House Tutors, while the extensive Old Michaelian network provides mentorship and inspiration. The School’s Teaching, Learning and Caring Framework recognises every staff member as an educator, creating multiple opportunities for meaningful adult–student relationships built on trust.
The evening’s Keep Calm and Parent On session, led by Lead Psychologist Zoe Ganim and Deputy Head and Head of Senior School Emma McDonald, reinforced how parents can strengthen these connections at home through emotion coaching techniques. Parents learned the five-step process of tuning in, connecting, listening empathetically, labelling emotions, and supporting problem-solving—strategies that help them become the trusted adults their children need during challenging moments.
Social and emotional competencies
Resilient children possess strong social and emotional skills that help them navigate life’s challenges. St Michael’s approaches this through comprehensive programs rather than isolated lessons. The PERMAH wellbeing framework—focusing on positive emotions, engagement, relationships, meaning, accomplishment and health—is woven throughout daily school life as the foundation of the School’s Way of Wellbeing.
The Junior School’s U R Strong Program delivers structured friendship education through its Friendology curriculum, teaching students friendship facts, the Friend-o-Meter for gauging healthy versus unhealthy relationships, and conflict resolution strategies. Head of Tim Roberts and Director P–3 Belinda Klose demonstrated in their Friendship Foundations session how parents can become ‘friendship coaches’ rather than problem-solvers, empowering children to navigate social challenges independently.
The evening’s Building Resilience and Self-Regulation in the Early Years session provided parents with practical strategies to help children bounce back from setbacks, think flexibly, and manage big emotions—essential skills that support learning, behaviour, and wellbeing from the earliest years.
Spiritual connection and meaning
Perhaps most surprisingly, Dr Werner’s research revealed that resilient children often possessed a sense of connectedness to something greater than themselves—a spiritual or relational anchor that transcended material hardship.
At St Michael’s, this is honoured through Anglican traditions emphasising service, compassion, and community care. The Anam Cara Learning program spans Prep to Year 9, exploring biblical stories, the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, and world religions—ensuring all students can engage meaningfully regardless of their personal faith background. Community initiatives like the Merry Month of May, where students raise funds for selected charities, embody the School’s values in action and emphasise the importance of contributing citizenship by encouraging students to look beyond themselves to their broader context.
Islands of competence
Every child needs areas where they experience success and build confidence. At St Michael’s, this philosophy manifests through comprehensive offerings that develop global competencies: character, citizenship, collaboration, communication, creativity and critical thinking.
The evening’s Smart Study Support session, delivered by School Psychologist Nathan McNamara and Head of Hughes House (7–9) Esther Myles, demonstrated how parents can reinforce this at home by understanding what’s happening in the adolescent brain and why motivation can be inconsistent. Parents received evidence-based strategies and toolkits to create calm, structured environments that support productive habits without becoming ‘the homework police’.
Positive self-talk and inner strength
The final pillar focuses on developing internal strength and positive self-regard. For senior students, the Personal Wellbeing curriculum builds essential life skills through the PERMAH framework, with focus on emotional regulation, mental health, respectful relationships, and digital wellbeing.
The evening’s digital safety sessions provided critical support in this area. Behind the Screens, presented by Heads of Health and Wellbeing Kelsey Fox and Emma Cowan alongside Health and Wellbeing Teacher Jade Domingo, tackled digital risks including sexting, sextortion, and image-based abuse. Parents learned about St Michael’s comprehensive digital literacy curriculum spanning Years 7–10, which teaches students to navigate online spaces with critical thinking and empathy. The session emphasised parents becoming calm, non-judgmental listeners—responding with ‘I’m glad you told me. I’m here to help’ rather than blame or punishment.
Meanwhile, the Video Games – Promoting Healthy Gaming Habits and Boundaries session, delivered by GameAware founder Andrew Kinch and Extended Tuition Provider, demonstrated how families can reduce gaming conflict while helping young people develop sustainable habits. His approach focuses not just on reducing screen time but on increasing meaningful time and transferring gaming’s motivational systems into real-world pursuits.
A partnership in purpose
What distinguished the Parent Expo was its demonstration of genuine partnership between school and families. As Dr Carr-Gregg noted, building resilience isn’t about protecting children from life’s challenges but ‘equipping them with the skills, relationships and inner strength to navigate whatever comes their way’.
The research is unequivocal: children thrive when they feel safe, valued and listened to; when they have meaningful relationships with caring adults; when they discover their unique talents; and when they’re part of something bigger than themselves. At St Michael’s, these aren’t aspirations—they’re the daily reality experienced by students through intentionally designed programs, caring relationships and a community culture that puts child wellbeing at its heart.
