What is the Thrive approach?

The Thrive Approach is a dynamic, developmental, trauma sensitive approach to meeting the emotional and social development needs of all children and young people. It is informed by recent developments in neuroscientific research, and is underpinned by a theoretical base in child development theory, attachment theory and research into creativity, play and the arts.

Central to the effectiveness of the Thrive Approach is Thrive Online (TOL) – an online assessment, action planning and measurement tool. TOL enables adults to clearly and systematically identify the social and emotional needs of the children and young people they are working with, and suggests how to be and what to do in order to meet those needs. Geared towards addressing the needs of all children and young people, it equips adults with the ability to support right time emotional development, as well as to provide reparative interventions for children and young people with unmet needs from earlier on in their development. In this way, the Thrive Approach is rigorous, targeted, measurable and inclusive.

By embedding social and emotional learning across the school through adhering to a whole school ‘Thrive approach’, Thrive equips staff to better understand and respond to pupils' needs. Using Thrive-Online, educators assess and track emotional development and behaviour in schools, creating personalised action plans that support each pupil. This proactive, whole school approach to mental health reduces barriers to learning, and cultivates a positive environment where pupils feel safe, engaged, and ready to achieve their full potential.

Our Vision and Aims of using Thrive

We aim to develop children emotionally so they are able to recognise and distinguish their emotions and learn ways of responding to their feelings appropriately.

We aim to:

• Provide alternative support for children who are experiencing emotional, social or behavioural difficulties.
• Provide a safe and calm environment for children to develop their skills.
• Enable children to take pride in their achievements and enhance self-esteem.
• Help children to manage their feelings and develop skills to enjoy and participate in school life.
• Use positive approaches to manage all behaviours.

What are the principles of Thrive?

There are four guiding principles of the Thrive Approach:

• Every child is a unique person, constantly developing and learning 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.

With the support of Thrive training and Thrive-Online, adults learn how to help children and young people to:

• feel good about themselves
• know that they matter
• become more resilient and resourceful
• have a positive place in society
• form trusting, rewarding relationships
• be creative
• be compassionate and empathetic
• be thoughtful and self-aware
• be productive
• be able to overcome difficulties and setbacks

At times we use Thrive approaches with individual children whilst on other occasions the approaches are tailored to meet the needs of whole classes. The emphasis is on providing positive, descriptive feedback to children. Activities are based on the arts and unleashing children's creative talents. We use puppets, sandpits, feathers, mirrors, sensory blocks and raw materials that enable children to creatively express their thoughts, emotions and sensations. Adopting a helpful attitude is key to successes. By working in this extremely focused way with individual children we can really make a difference to their social and emotional resilience.

Why might my child attend Thrive sessions?

Many children experience difficulties during their time in school. These may include:

• Difficulties with friendships.
• Finding it hard to transition and/or settle in the classroom.
• 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 may seem overwhelming at times. They might include: anger, frustration, sadness, loneliness, confusion or anxiety. All these feelings are very normal and happen to a lot of children. The Thrive sessions are to help children learn to manage their feelings and teach them strategies that will help promote their learning at school.

What will happen in a Thrive session?

The sessions may be individual or part of a small group

During each session there will be an activity tailored to an individual profile, which may include:

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

For more information about the Thrive approach, please click here.