Thrive

The Thrive Approach at Walsh

At Walsh Infant School, we use a whole school approach called ‘Thrive’. Thrive supports children with their emotional health, well-being and social skills, all of which are needed for learning to take place.  At the end of this document are Thrive activities to support your children at home (from Infant to Secondary aged children).

What is the Thrive Approach?             

Children cannot always put their needs into words, but the way children behave can tell us a lot about how they are feeling. Thrive is an approach to working with all children. The Thrive Approach draws on the latest research - It is based on neurological evidence which addresses brain development so that all children learn to regulate their emotional responses, develop resilience and manage disappointment and frustration. All children (and adults!) need a little emotional support when things are going wrong. Thrive provides a way of understanding and addressing the emotional and social development of all children. It pays specific attention to children as and when they experience interruptions to that development wherever and for whatever reason they arise. It gives us targeted strategies and activities to help them re-engage with learning and life

There are four guiding principles of the Thrive Approach:

•            Every child is a unique person, constantly developing and leaning in different ways and at different rates, each with his/her own abilities, talents and potential to be fulfilled.

•            Children’s healthy development, emotional well-being and learning are crucially dependent upon and promoted through positive relationships.

•            Children flourish when they are confident, self-assured, capable and resilient.

•            Children thrive in enabling environments, in which their individual development, learning experiences and needs are understood, responded to and supported through strong partnerships with parents/carers.

The THRIVE approach is based on growing evidence that the brain develops through personal and social interaction. The relationships that we have with significant adults is fundamental to who we grow up to be. Our brain is built through trillions of brain-cell connections made by sight, sound, smell, touch and movement. Positive experiences enhance brain connections, and sustained negative experiences can restrict them. Through simple, repeated activities over time, within a safe and caring environment, THRIVE aims to compensate for interruptions in emotional development, when they affect a child’s ability to enjoy life and learn.

Why do we need Thrive?

Like many of us at some point in our lives, children may face challenges that they need support to manage and they need understanding and support to get them back on track. Many children will respond to the care, understanding and support given by parents, family, friends and teachers. However, some children need a little bit extra support to help develop these skills and strategies.

A THRIVE assessment helps us to identify emotional developmental needs as early as possible, in order to support and meet those needs on an individual basis. As well as offering new ways of dealing with challenging behaviour, THRIVE also offers both teaching staff and parents useful approaches to working with and helping any child who is experiencing emotional upheaval, whether short or long term. This is not a quick-fix; it  takes time and commitment to see results. However, from research it is clear that early intervention to support children’s needs is the most effective approach to preventing issues becoming more problematic in later life.

What extra support can we offer?

Children who need a little bit of extra help are identified through our whole-class screening process completed by their class teachers. For some children there may be an obvious reason why they need a bit of extra support. This might be bereavement, family break down or an identified medical condition such as ADHD. For others, there can be no obvious trigger to why they are finding some aspects of school and/or home life difficult.

Working together with parents and class teachers, our Thrive Practitioner carries out full assessments of identified children's social, emotional and behavioural needs. This helps us to build a bespoke Thrive Action Plan of activities to support their needs.

What is a Thrive Action Plan?

A Thrive Action Plan is plan of activities tailored to support a child's identified social and emotional learning targets. The activities are one-to-one and small group relational, play and arts-based activities designed to help the child feel better about himself; become more resilient and resourceful; form trusting, rewarding relationships; be compassionate and empathetic; and/or  be able to overcome difficulties and setbacks. They might include playing in the sand, cooking, painting, model making, exploring difficult situations through role-play or comic strips, playing strategy games or projects focusing on the child's own interests.

 Action Plans are shared with parents and they are encouraged to do some of the activities at home if possible. They are reviewed regularly to see the progress children have made.

So who gets Thrive?

We chose Thrive because all children get Thrive, children who are working within their age/stage band, for our children at Infants within ‘Power and Identity’ activities are planned throughout their learning time ie class games. For some children across the school, Thrive time is managed in small groups or with one child. Thrive is just like any other learning intervention that we give children that need support.  

Everyone gets class Thrive activities (although they might not realise it); most art or sport  activities are taught within the Thrive Approach. But if your child needs regular out of class Thrive time, one-to-one or in a small group, you will be consulted and asked for your input into their assessment and Action Plan. We are working to become a Thrive school

At Walsh Infant School we consider Thrive to be a whole-school approach. We all believe that all behaviour is communication, that that communication needs to be understood and supported - not "dealt" with. Thrive feeds into everything we do; celebration assemblies, getting to know everyone and their families, sharing all achievements not just academic ones, celebrating our diversity and our collective spirit and learning how to identify and manage our emotions.  

For more information visit https://www.thriveapproach.com/

Weekly Thrive ideas to enjoy at home with your Primary and Secondary aged children.

Thrive activities for Infant children Week 1

Thrive activities for Junior children Week 1

Thrive activities for Secondary school children Week 1