Thrive at Hook Junior School

What is Thrive?

The THRIVE approach supports children’s emotional / mental health, wellbeing and social skills, all of which are needed to enable learning to take place.

Children cannot always put our needs into words, but the way they behave can tell us a lot about how they are feeling.

Positive relationships are at the heart of Thrive and our ethos at Hook Junior School. Thrive promotes resilience, self-awareness and empathy. It aims to lead to better relationships at home and in school.

Developmental Model

The Thrive approach uses a development model and to help us understand how we develop social and emotionally from birth through to adulthood. The model is split into stages of development. As children aged 7 – 11 years, our stage of development at juniors is Skills and Structure.

There are three ‘development tasks’ for each phase. The development tasks for Skills and Structure are:

Motivation for developing skills – Enjoys diversity, difference and acquiring new skills.
Developing Morals and Values – Possesses internal/external structure: values; rules
Understanding the rules

Whole School Thrive targets

As a school, throughout the year we are going to focus on ‘Whole School Targets’ suitable for our stage of development. We aim to incorporate the target into all aspects of school life, including the curriculum.

Our current whole school target, based on these developmental tasks is:

To help champion our whole school targets and Thrive programme, each class has an allocated Thrive Ambassador. The Ambassador team is an enthusiastic, proactive group of children who regularly meet with Miss Carne to review how their class is progressing against the current target and to set new goals.

Our Thrive Ambassadors:

Year 3: 3LE: Alma B, 3BR: Esther C, 3LO: Emelia P, 3ZF: Evie H

Year 4: 4CT: Jak J, 4RE: Pasha S, 4GG: Henry F, 4HR: Henry K

Year 5: 5GH: Thomas R, 5TC: James B, 5PB: Oscar P, 5BL: Jakey S

Year 6: 6GR: Summer K, 6SB: Olivia S, 6KH: Ravit G, 6FS: Zac K

In order to get everyone involved with the current whole school target, the Thrive Ambassadors wanted to set pupils and staff a challenge. They have challenged everyone in the next few weeks to ‘try something new’. This can be something big or small but the most important thing is learning about the skills/behaviours required to try something we haven’t before. Examples of some of the behaviours / skills we need include:

Setting clear goals
Showing resilience
Learning from mistakes
Adopting a growth mindset
Learning from someone with more experience
Practice

The Ambassadors are collecting up examples of the new things we have tried across the school and we are looking forward to sharing what we have been up to on the weekly newsletter. Indeed, we are looking forward to giving you regular feedback / information about how we use the Thrive approach in school both at a whole school level and through individual sessions.

What do we understand by Mental Health?

The World Health Organisation defines mental health as a state of wellbeing in which every individual achieves their potential, copes with the normal stresses of life, works productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to their community. Mental health includes our emotional, psychological and social wellbeing. It affects how we think, feel and act.

Like physical health, mental health is something we all have. It can range across a spectrum from healthy to unwell; it can fluctuate on a daily basis and change over time.

Mental Health Spectrum

Healthy

Coping

Struggling

Unwell

Good mental health helps children:

learn and explore the world
feel, express and manage a range of positive and negative emotions
form and maintain good relationships with others
cope with, and manage change and uncertainty
develop and thrive

Building strong mental health early in life can help children build their self-esteem, learn to settle themselves and engage positively with their education. This, in turn, can lead to improved academic attainment, enhanced future employment opportunities and positive life choices.

Coping skills

Mental health doesn’t mean being happy all the time. Neither does it mean avoiding stress altogether. Coping and adjusting to setbacks are critical life skills for children, but it’s important that they develop positive, rather than negative, coping skills.

Negative coping skills are attitudes and behaviours that have often been learned in the absence of positive support and in the face of stressful and often traumatic events and experiences which, over time, may put good mental health at risk.
Positive coping skills are ways of thinking, attitudes and behaviours that allow children to deal with stress or adversity and which help them flourish. These positive coping skills form an important part of a child’s ability to be resilient in the face of setbacks and challenges. Children who have cultivated robust coping skills can still thrive with support, even when they are mentally unwell.

What affects child mental health?

A child’s mental health is influenced by many things over time.

Children have different personalities and they will be exposed to a range of factors in their homes and communities that can trigger worsening mental health (risk factors), or alternatively protect them and help them feel able to cope (protective factors). Ideally, all children should have at least one adult in their life who is monitoring whether they are coping or not.

Mental Health in the Curriculum

Children are taught regularly about positive mental health and how to support their mental health and wellbeing through PSHE lessons, assemblies and themed days and week’s such as Children’s Mental Health Week.

All children also have a taught session weekly called MyHappyMind. This is an NHS approved programme that is taught across five modules and each introduces a new set of content and habits to help children build resilience, self-esteem and confidence:

Understanding how your brain works and how to ensure we look after it so that we can manage our emotions and be at our best. Growth mindset is a key part of this too.

Understanding your unique character strengths and learning to celebrate them. This is a fantastic module for building self esteem.

Understanding why gratitude matters and how you can develop gratitude as a habit. Gratitude is key to wellbeing and resilience and we’re all about making it a habit!

Understanding why positive relationships matter and how to build them. We’re focussed on the building blocks of good relationships and friendships.

Understanding how to set meaningful goals that matter and how to keep resilient in times of challenge. This module is all about building self esteem and resilience too.

For further information about MyHappyMind visit https://myhappymind.org/

Useful links and resources

No Limits Help

https://nolimitshelp.org.uk/

No Limits is an award-winning, local, independent charity providing a unique combination of prevention, early intervention and crisis support to young people, based on a nationally evidenced model. They provide information, advice, counselling and support through a range of services.

Happy Maps

https://happymaps.co.uk/

HappyMaps is an award-winning charity developed by healthcare professionals with help from parents and young people.

Young Minds

https://youngminds.org.uk/

The Young Minds Crisis Messenger text service provides free, 24/7 crisis support across the UK. If you are experiencing a mental health crisis and need support, you can text YM to 85258. Parents' helpline 0808 802 5544 (Monday to Friday, 9.30am to 4pm).

ChildLine

https://www.childline.org.uk/

ChildLine is a service to help anyone under 19 in the UK with any issue they’re going through. Call ChildLine free on 0800 1111 or speak to a counsellor online.

CAMHS

Welcome to CAMHS Leaflet

Hampshire Youth Access

Counselling, mental health and emotional wellbeing advice and support for children and young people.

OLLEE

A digital friend for ages 8-11 it helps children explore feelings

Ollee asks how you’re feeling and offers ideas about what to do. If you’re not sure, Ollee will help you figure it out. Children and parents can both create and connect accounts – to share advice together. Try in a web browser or download the app.

SHOUT

Free, confidential, 24/7 text support service for anyone in the UK who is struggling to cope. To start a conversation, text the word ‘SHOUT’ to 85258. Trained volunteers are there to listen at any time of day or night, and messages won’t appear on the phone bill.

Behind the Bandana

BBC Children in Need - finding help and support.

Marchants Hill

Children in year 6 enjoy a week long residential trip to PGL Marchants Hill in Hindhead during the summer term.

The resources will will help you and your child get ready for this exiting opportunity. We also encourage you to review the PGL Marchants Parents Guide for more details. Included here is a 3D interactive map of the site and some activities.

Kit List

There are some specific items that your child will need to take with them for their stay. Having the right kit with them will ensure that they can participate in all activities and enjoy them fully.

Kit List

Our Presentation for Parents

Our pre-departure presentation explains they key things you need to know before children leave. It explains the arrical and depature processes, activities children will participate in, daily routines, food and drink and much more.

Year 5 Marchants Hill Sep 2023 Parent Presentation

If you need any further advice or guidance regarding the Marchants Hill residential visit, please speak to your childs class teacher in the first instance.

Hampshire County Council has provided us with a useful reference sheet for parents to help you identify coronavirus symptoms, understand what to if you think someone has symptoms and what to do when you receive coronavirus test results.

Thank you to all the critical workers and key workers who have made the difficult decision to keep their child/children at home for the safety of pupils, staff, and the wider community.

Government guidelines state that parents who are critical workers and key workers should aim to keep children at home if they can.

If your child has a place at school and your circumstances change or you change your mind, you can withdraw your child from school to complete remote education.

If your child has been invited to attend school during this lockdown, we expect them to attend every day unless you advise us that you are withdrawing them to learn at home. If your child is unable to for any reason (for example, they are unwell), please report this as usual by calling us and leaving a clear message on the absence line. Your message must include your name, your child’s name, their class and the reason for absence.

Changes to operating arrangements in response to national lockdown (@21:15, 04.01.2021)

The Prime Minister in his announcement at 8pm this evening announced closure from tomorrow until February half term for all schools as part of a second national lockdown. Therefore Hook Junior School will be closed for ALL pupils from tomorrow, Tuesday January 5th with children accessing remote learning via Seesaw.

Children of key workers and vulnerable children only

As yet, we await formal written guidance from the DfE but children of key workers and vulnerable children will be invited to attend school from Wednesday January 6th. In order for us to plan and organise staffing for pupil numbers we politely request that if you are a key worker or a parent of a vulnerable child that you inform us if you wish for your child to attend school from Wednesday January 6th by completing a brief survey by 1pm on Tuesday January 5th, 2021. Given the rate of infection and the move to lockdown, it is entirely up to parents (key workers or of vulnerable children) to decide if you wish your child to attend school or not. Children of key workers and vulnerable children will undertake at school the same remote learning that children are undertaking at home.

In the meantime, we will be in touch with further advice as soon as we have more details from the DfE. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we act in response to Government advice and work for the children’s best interest towards a move back to remote learning.

Yours sincerely,

Mrs L Martin

Headteacher

Catch Up Premium Funding Report

Our Covid Catch Up Premium Funding Report explains how we will invest additional funding allocated by the Government to support all children who have experienced interruption to their learning as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic.

Local Restriction Checker

To coincide with three tier restrictions coming into force on Monday 12 October 2020, the Government has published a post code checker for you to check the local tier level for any given area and explains what you can and cannot do.

Remote Learning Strategy and Remote Learning Policy

To provide continuity of education during the coronavirus pandemic, we have created a Remote Learning Strategy and a Remote Learning Policy .

These documents set out our intention for providing remote learning for pupils who are self-isolating and unable to attend school.

My child has one or more symptoms of Coronavirus. What should I do?

It is important that if your child (or anyone in their household) has any coronavirus symptoms, they must not attend school and stay at home.

You must arrange for the person with symptoms to get a test and tell us their test results.

If the test is negative and nobody else in the household is displaying symptoms, your child can return to school.

We recommend that all parents and carers read advice published by the NHS Test and Trace team and offers further advice on when to get a coronavirus test.

Staying safe when online

Children have access to a multitude of online sites and apps and understanding the potential benefit and risks associated with each can be challenging.

The Parent Zone website includes a guide to the most popular online services that your child may have access to.

NetAware.org.uk offers a similar collection of resources.

Home Learning for families who are isolating

Home Learning resources are provided for children who are isolating.

Home Learning resources posted daily on SeeSaw
Resources are only assigned to those pupils who we know are in isolation
When you have notified us that you are isolating, the teacher will upload work each day for your child to complete the following day
Work will continue to be uploaded daily until your child returns
Home learning is explained in more detail in a letter for year 6, year 5, year 4 and year 3.

Online Learning while in Isolation

We are providing online learning for children who are isolating. This is made available via our learning platform, SeeSaw. Spending more time at home, children may be online for longer than under normal circumstances during term time and exposed to different content and associated risks. The London Grid for Learning has produced a video aimed at parents of children in primary school to help you support your child in this respect.