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Ms Suzanne Eldridge, Ms Kathleen White, Ms Melissa Miller and Ms Robyn Ryan.
LIBRARY INITIATIVES MS MELISSA MILLER, HEAD OF THE LEARNING CENTRE
My mum lived with significant physical disabilities as a result of an aggressive form of Multiple Sclerosis. From the age of six, my days involved dressing, cooking and caring for my mum as a normal part of daily life. I saw from a young age that everyone is beautifully different. We all have different abilities, different bodies, different ways of coping, and different experiences in life. I realised that many people do not always know what to do with these differences, meaning that those who are perceived as different are sometimes left out, excluded or ignored. This understanding drove me to find ways to include and lift up those who might be feeling left out or ignored. Ensuring that everyone I encounter feels a sense of care, belonging, and acceptance drives my daily actions, my professional pedagogies, and my personal values.
When I became a Teacher Librarian at Nudgee College, I quickly realised that the Library had the potential to sustain this sense of acceptance, belonging and safety in our entire school community. Every lunchtime, I saw the Library draw in the boys who sought refuge from the loud and busy playground, the boys with no one to sit with, and the boys who struggled
As a classroom teacher, I realised that I could create a safe and inclusive space for all my students, where they always know they belong and are accepted.
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to make connections with others. The aim to provide the space, activities, and someone to play with for any child who needs it, is what drives the lunchtime activities we run in the Library today. I have held games of Uno with 15 young people and will often have up to 20 students engaged in different board games and card games.
