Pastoral Support

Mindfulness can counteract against psychological stress such as academic stress, social anxiety, etc. as it is considered as a way to calm the mind and bring focus onto the present moment. Our workshop has introduced students to the practice of mindfulness so that they have a tool to cope with stressful situations which may arise in school life.

Students use this workshop to reflect on their experience being student/boarder at NIC and identify the things they've done in each area of life in these aspects: education, boarding, leisure/entertainment/hobbies, mental health, physical health, and relationships. Under these key areas of life, students made an evaluation of what went well and what they would need to improve on.

Empathy is a positive emotion in the PERMA framework developed by a well-renowned positive psychologist, Martin Seligman. Through the workshop, students explore what empathy looks likes and what it entails. The workshop also introduces how to respond to emotionally-charged situations with more understanding and sensitivity to the feelings of other people. Finally, students will also learn about the benefits of empathic responses in building healthy relationships with people in our social circle and how to support them.

In this workshop, students exchange advice and solutions for each individual after listening to their friend's troubles by writing them on a fruit and passing it to their friend to put in their basket. At the end of the activity, each of them will have a basketful of solutions given by their friends. Based on the areas of life students are struggling with the previous workshop, we divided students into each area in which they presented solutions to their friends on how to improve on the respective areas of life.

Time Management is one of the most crucial executive functioning skills for individuals, however, the ability to master time management requires discipline, practice, and consistency. Starting it from an earlier point in life is advantageous. Time managing skills include how to estimate how long tasks will take, prioritizing, dividing time between tasks, pacing yourself, using time wisely, and meeting deadlines which were introduced in the workshop.

In this workshop, students explored "admiration" as a social emotion and how to utilize it in a constructive way for personal growth and development. Students did a research about a person and the traits they admire about him/her. They also created an action plan on how to incorporate or emulate the desirable traits/qualities of the said person in their daily life.

Students analyzed their study methods, discussed and shared various tips and tricks for preparing for an exam.
The goal of the workshop was for students to become more aware of their own study habits, and for them to learn how to identify what works and what doesn't so that they can construct a method that works efficiently.

Many students look forward to the "In-House Activities" held every Saturday night, where students and mentors work together to plan a variety of student-centered events. At Cultural Exchange Nights, students from other countries introduce their own countries, and students learn about the culture, food, and language of other countries, fostering an international-mindedness.
Game Night is an opportunity for students to interact with each other and help with teamwork and team building by simulating American TV shows, playing ping pong, board games, and other activities.
Movie Night is also a great way for students to watch foreign films and learn about the culture as well as refresh themselves over the weekend.