Student Engagment & Welfare Programs

Bad times don’t last. Things always get better. Stay optimistic.Other people can help if you talk to them. Get a reality check.

Unhelpful thinking makes you feel more upset. Think again.

Nobody is perfect – not you and not others.

Concentrate on the positives (no matter how small) and use laughter.

Everybody experiences sadness, hurt, failure, rejection and setbacks sometimes, not just you. They’re normal, don’t personalize them.

Blame fairly—how much of what happened was due to you, to others, and to bad luck?

Accept what can’t be changed (but try to change what you can change first).

Catastrophising exaggerates your worries. Don’t believe the worst possible picture.

Keep things in perspective. It is only one part of your life.

Bounce Back: Students participate in timetabled (weekly) Bounce Back lessons with our School Chaplain. A Positive Education approach to wellbeing, resilience and social-emotional learning. The award-winning Bounce Back program supports teachers and schools in their efforts to promote positive mental health, wellbeing and resilience for both students and teachers and build safe and supportive class and school learning environments.
Each Book includes an introductory section which outlines the theory and research that underpins the program plus ten substantially revised Curriculum Units, all with updated topics and resources including new quality children’s literature and links to age appropriate websites.10 Curriculum UnitsCore values and Social ValuesThese units focus on developing pro-social values including values related to ethical and intercultural understandingPeople Bouncing BackThis unit focuses on developing self-management strategies for coping and bouncing backCourage

This unit focuses on strategies to find and act with courage in both everyday life and difficult circumstances.

Looking on the Bright Side

This unit focuses on teaching optimistic thinking, positive tracking, being appreciative and expressing gratitude.

Emotions

This unit focuses on strategies for developing & boosting positive emotions and managing negative emotions.

Relationships

This unit focuses on explicitly teaching social skills for building relationships and maintaining friendships.

Humour

This unit focuses on the use of humour as a coping skill.

Being Safe

This unit focuses on strategies and skills for creating a safe class and school environment and discouraging and managing bullying incidents.

Success

This unit focuses on skills and attitudes for identifying & applying character and ability strengths, setting goals, planning, persevering (grit & the development of a growth mindset), overcoming mistakes and obstacles and being successful in achieving personal and learning goals.

Better Buddies The “Better Buddies” program is an initiative of “The Alannah and Madeline Foundation” which helps students entering their first year of school to feel safe, valued and connected to the school community.  The school pairs each new student with an older buddy.  At Hepburn we are able to extend this just a little bit further and each student has a buddy regardless of grade level.”Better Buddies” is designed to reduce Bullying and create friendly and caring school environments.  The framework builds strong relationships with the younger students feeling safe and cared for and the older students feeling valued and respected.
Kids Matter“Kids Matter” is a whole-school approach to children’s mental health and well being.  This program fits comfortably together with other programs we run at the school which focus on student welfare and wellbeing.”Kids Matter” works with schools, parents, health services and the wider community to nurture happy, balanced kids.Hepburn Primary School is trialling this program and staff are continuing to learn as we undertake the professional development elements of the program and implement them in the school.At Hepburn Primary School “Kids Matter”.