The Four Rs

Resilience, Rights & Respectful Relationships at FPS

The Resilience, Rights and Respectful Relationships (RRRR) teaching and learning resource is a research-based program designed to support all teachers to provide social and emotional learning and respectful relationships education.

Social and emotional learning (SEL) is the term used to describe teaching and learning which explicitly promotes mental wellbeing by improving students’ social, emotional and positive relationship skills. Studies show that well-devised and well-implemented SEL programs help students to develop the relationship skills needed in everyday life, such as emotional awareness, empathy, perspective taking, self-regulation, cooperation, problem solving, positive coping, responsible decision making, peer support and help-seeking.

As a core component of the Victorian Curriculum, RRRR is taught weekly across all year levels. The lessons link to achievement standards in both Health and Physical Education and Personal and Social Capability. They also complement our School Wide Positive Behaviour Support (SWPBS) program and the Talking The Talk sexuality education program.

In September 2024, an updated version of RRRR was released by the Department of Education. To facilitate the introduction of the updated program, a Respectful Relationships team was formed. This team has created resources to inform teachers of the modified curriculum and support them to establish friendly and respectful classroom environments where students and teachers feel safe to share their views.

Research shows that a structured curriculum for children and young people which promotes SEL and positive gender norms leads to improved health-related outcomes and wellbeing. It also reduces antisocial behaviours including bullying and gender-based violence.

There are eight topics that each year level covers – while the topics are the same, activities and language used will differ according to the age of the students. The lessons focus on understanding every person’s rights to respect, to bodily autonomy and to protection from violence within their relationships with peers, families, schools and society. It teaches them about their rights to be free from discrimination and how to seek help if affected by violence at school, home, online or in the community.

The eight topics are listed below. Click on the image to see further information on each topic.

• Emotional Literacy
• Personal Strengths
• Positive Coping
• Problem Solving
• Stress Management
• Help Seeking
• Gender and Identity
• Positive Gender Relationships

Click to access the curriculum.

Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

~ Cathy Turner, Wellbeing & Disability Inclusion Leading Teacher