Mental Health in Primary Schools (MHiPS)

Welcome back to Term 2! It has been a pleasure to welcome our students back to school, settled, happy, and ready to learn, and we are looking forward to a terrific term ahead.

Part of our role as a Mental Health and Wellbeing Leader team is to promote a whole school approach to mental health and wellbeing, which involves embedding consistent, preventative wellbeing practices across teaching, relationships, routines, and our school culture. This is reflected in a range of ways.

At the beginning of each term, we implement our Start Up program. Start Up is the establishment phase of setting up our classrooms and learning spaces. A range of activities are implemented to promote a positive classroom climate and develop a sense of identity and community.

The Start Up program incorporates the agreed-upon Rights and Responsibilities of our school community. Start Up embeds our social and emotional learning programs and frameworks including Visible Wellbeing, Marrung, eSafety, Respectful Relationships, Learning Assets and Zones of Regulation. It has been wonderful to see the Start Up activities in action and the impact that this is having on readiness to learn, sense of belonging and connectedness to our school. 

Wellbeing and learning are strongly aligned within our teaching and learning practice, with clear evidence that students learn most effectively when their social, emotional, and academic development are supported in an integrated way. Our Start Up program is one example of how we put this into practice.

At Boroondara Park Primary School, we prioritise social and emotional wellbeing through our safe and supportive learning environment, evidence-based strategies, our curriculum programs, and whole-school community engagement. 

I look forward to sharing further information with you throughout the term regarding our mental health and wellbeing approach at BPPS. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about the wellbeing programs and initiatives that we have at Boroondara Park Primary School.

Kind regards,

Kristen Schultz

Mental Health and Wellbeing Leader and Learning Specialist - Wellbeing