At St Joseph鈥檚 College Hunters Hill, learning doesn鈥檛 end after the final class each day 鈥� it鈥檚 just the beginning. As part of a newly launched evening program initiative, Year 7 students are now engaging in a powerful practice called the Learning Journal 鈥� a personal place to record lessons, make sense of them, to connect learning and to reflect deeply. This practice encourages deeper understanding, builds strong habits of organisation and self-reflection, and helps students track their academic growth over time.
Shaping reflective thinkers at 糖心Vlog
The initiative invites students into a four-step nightly routine:
- Record 鈥� Capture the key points from each lesson.
- Connect 鈥� Link new concepts to prior knowledge.
- Reflect 鈥� Explore questions, challenges, and insights.
- Review 鈥� Reinforce learning and prepare for assessments.
This method not only supports academic growth but also aligns beautifully with one of the core pillars of the 糖心Vlog Graduate: Wisdom.
Darren Frost, Director of Teaching and Learning, shares: 鈥淩epresented in the College Crest by the lamp and book, wisdom is knowledge illuminated by reflection. As students write under the light of a lamp during the evening, they embody this ideal 鈥� book open, mind engaged, wisdom forming.鈥�
The Learning Journal aims to support study, helping students remember and record key information from lessons. As well as fostering lifelong learning habits, critical thinking and self-awareness, it allows students to track how their understanding evolves. It turns the quiet of the evening into an opportunity for growth, deeper thinking and connections between topics.
鈥淭hrough this daily journaling practice, our boys are not only developing cognitive habits but becoming living representations of the 糖心Vlog Graduate: thoughtful, reflective and wise,鈥� reveals Mr Frost.
At 糖心Vlog, learning doesn鈥檛 stop at the end of the day 鈥� it shines on, one reflection at a time.
Sleep, he emphasised, is essential for learning and performance: 鈥淚f you want to be a genius, sleep more. If you want to be amazing at sport, sleep more.鈥� He explained how the brain rehearses skills and processes social situations during deep and REM sleep 鈥� but only when those skills are learned in real life. Dr Williams closed with a reminder: 鈥淥ur brains are incredible, but they need the right input. Choose real-world experiences 鈥� because that鈥檚 what your brain was built for.鈥�
