THRIVE

At Blue Sky Learning, we work as a team to provide exceptional pastoral care that is based on the individual needs of the children. We constantly reassess the support we provide to ensure we are helping children to develop socially and emotionally. We work alongside families to ensure a comprehensive approach to supporting each child and this input from families is both essential and invaluable.

Pupils at Blue Sky are supported through a variety of interventions and in a variety of ways. Through:

  • Support with social and emotional issues that can be accessed through whole class Thrive Activities, work with all staff and their peers.
  • A structured and personalised approach with time both in and out of the classroom using ELSA strategies and also thrive activities, often based in the Rainbow Room with our Thrive Practitioner
  • Daily focused and regular interventions to support difficulties they may be experiencing. This will include personalised thrive activities, a personalised timetable and some alternative provision. Based in the Rainbow room and other areas of the school

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Nurture Provision for every child

​At Blue Sky we are proud to use the THRIVE Approach to support emotional and social development. This includes whole class activities, group sessions and also interventions for individuals. There is a recognised link between children’s sense of wellbeing and their success as learners. Nurture support is not limited to specific individuals or groups, as we embed nurturing principles and practice at a whole school level, providing appropriate support for all pupils attending our school. We will facilitate this through the use of THRIVE interventions and activities with classes throughout our school. We utilise strategies to overcome difficulties through the provision of a social and emotional curriculum in every year group. This aims to develop their social skills and understand their emotional needs. This enables many children to be successful in their academic learning.

Thrive support

Some children need a further intervention to support them and our trained thrive practitioner will work with these children through individual or group sessions that are personalised to meet their needs

Some of the difficulties these children may have include:

  • Difficulties with friendships.
  • Getting into trouble at playtime.
  • Finding it hard to settle into the classroom routine/structure.
  • Finding it difficult to manage their strong feelings.
  • Not knowing who to turn to when feelings are too big to manage on their own.

These situations can lead to many different feelings, which can feel overwhelming at times. They might include: anger, frustration, sadness, loneliness, confusion or anxiety. All these feelings are very normal and are felt by many children.

Thrive sessions for individuals or small groups

Through our comprehensive Thrive support we provide a range of programmes of regular sessions that help children learn to manage their feelings and teach them strategies that will help promote their learning at school.

The Rainbow room is a quiet/calm space which will facilitate these Thrive sessions and can also be used if pupils need somewhere to withdraw when feelings overwhelm them. It is used in a variety of ways including:

  • Individual work, group work and interventions designed to meet specific needs, with Nurture staff using a range of activities and interventions.
  • Staff may work with pupils developing relationships in the Rainbow Room which will transfer into the main school room.
  • Peers can work with other individuals to build relationships and develop successful social skills.

The Thrive approach offers practical strategies and techniques and is built around online assessments which identify children’s emotional development and provides action plans for their individual needs.

Thrive promotes children’s emotional and social growth by building positive relationships between a child and their peers and helps them explore and understand their feelings through various activities.

​Thrive sessions

The session may be on an individual basis or as part of a small group of children. During each session there will be an activity which may include:

  • Story telling
  • Circle games
  • Arts and crafts
  • Sand play
  • Movement and relaxation
  • Music
  • Cooking and preparing food
  • Role play and puppet work
  • Games

​Pupil profiles are undertaken in order to identify the area of need. An action plan of activities to support pupil development is created and a series of activities and interventions are put in place. At the end of approximately 6 weeks, pupils are assessed, progress measured and a new action plan created.

​The Group Principles:

  • Children’s learning is understood and assessed developmentally
  • The classroom offers a safe base
  • All behaviour is communication
  • Recognises the importance of transition in children’s lives
  • Has a varying adult/child ration of either 1:1, 1:2 or 1:3, and provides lots of opportunities for speaking and listening activities
  • Builds a child’s self-esteem, confidence and well-being
  • Builds skills for classroom learning
  • Language is a vital means of communication

How will being part of this group help my child?

These sessions are meant to help them manage situations and increase their skills to become more successful learners.

The nurture group aims to boost confidence and self- esteem and provide children with the extra help they sometimes need to improve social skills and independence for example:

  • To join in
  • To settle
  • To listen
  • To concentrate & focus on their learning
  • To share and take turns
  • To accept losing a game
  • To build up friendships with their classmates
  • It gives them a chance and helps to encourage a more positive profile among their peers and members of staff.

Family Thrive at Blue Sky Learning 

The Thrive Approach is a specific way of working with children that help them to develop their social and emotional wellbeing. This enables them to engage with life and learning, become more self-assured, capable, and adaptable. Thrive provides a firm foundation for academic attainment by addressing troubling behaviours. 

The course is designed to support families to learn about The Thrive Approach and its practical application to family life. Parents/carers will learn how relationships help their child’s emotional development, how children’s brains and nervous systems develop, how play and creativity are important for their child’s healthy emotional development, how to understand behaviour as communication and therefore how to support their child at times of challenge and change. 

The course is fun, engaging, and interactive using PowerPoints, creative art, visuals, and plenty of opportunity for discussion. 

In small groups of between 2-6 adults, parents will attend Blue Sky’s sister site SB Mentoring over six sessions, run over a six-week period. Each session is designed to last 1.5 hours though with comfort breaks (plenty of tea/coffee, cake/biscuits!) and allowing time for parents to arrive and depart, time allocated will be 2 hours.