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parents information
Why is the Better Buddies Framework helpful
to my child?
What does the Better Buddies Framework do?
How to volunteer in your child’s Better Buddies school
When you’re in the school, remember the values of the Better
Buddies Framework
Guidelines for working with students
Guidelines for working with other parents/carers
Guidelines for working with teachers
The Alannah and Madeline Foundation’s Better Buddies Framework
is based on several years of research into buddy programs in
schools. Buddy systems also play an important role in helping
to create safe school environments.
Buddy systems teach and give children the
opportunity to practise the key values of respect, care, inclusion
and acceptance, responsibility and friendship. Through looking
after and caring for smaller, vulnerable children who are just
starting school, older children learn the skills associated with
empathy and compassion through activities in the classroom and
in the playground. This helps in combating bullying and other
forms of anti-social behaviour such as harassment and teasing.
Teaching prosocial values and social skills can also contribute
to the development of resilience, a protective factor for children
as they experience hardship and loss.
- Assists with student
transition to primary school
- Develops positive cross-age
relationships
- Provides opportunities
for peer tutoring
- Contributes to a positive
and caring school culture
- Contributes to more
positive behaviour through positive role models
- Develops social skills
and pro-social Values
- Involves parents
- Develops responsibility
- Builds self confidence
- Develops empathy
- Promotes inclusion
- Discourages bullying
Parents, carers and relatives of students can make a significant
contribution to the school. There are many ways and times where
you can volunteer, apart from the traditional ‘working bee’.
Many schools appreciate help with aspects
of their programs, from participation on school council to helping
in the reading room. Keep an eye out for parent newsletters,
or contact the school directly to see where you can be involved.
Here are some times during the year when teachers
may appreciate help with the Better Buddies Framework. Here are
some of the things you might be able to contribute:
Start of the school year – February – Orientation/Buddy
Week
- Act as photographer
at Better Buddies events. Take photos of buddies, print,
laminate, frame and display in the
school
- Assist in the preparation of breakfast, morning teas,
lunch, afternoon teas or BBQs during Orientation/Buddy
Week.
- Assist with Parent Information Day - help prepare and
serve food, hand out information, run school tours.
Midyear – Buddy Games
- Help teachers
set up for Buddy Games
- Assist on the day – e.g. running or supervising one of
the tabloid sports or playground games
- Act as photographer at the Buddy Games
- Process, laminate display photographs and other artwork
from the Buddy Games day
- Videotape buddies in action
End of year – October/November –Transition
-
Assist
with the preparation of Buddy Lunch/Picnic
- Assist with
the Graduation of Buddies – preparation of farewell
supper
- Use your ICT skills to assist with creating Graduation
certificates
- Assist at Parent Information Days – preparing
morning and afternoon teas.
- Assist in Musical or Drama performances
– making or decorating costumes, outfits
for
plays, help with
lighting, stage management
productions, helping with the publicity and media releases.
Some skills volunteers
might contribute to schools
-
Artistic - helping
to make and fire tiles, help mount displays of children’s
work, paint murals, signs e.g.
We are Better Buddies
School sign, sets for school dramatic productions
- Carpentry - using jigsaw to cut outlines of Buddy
Bear
- Cooking - helping with school fete, setting up,
cooking barbeque, serve food, manage cleanup, help
with morning
or afternoon tea
or lunch, supper for school events
- Gardening – help with flower or vegetable garden
- ICT skills – school newsletter layout, edit school
magazine, help with layout, etc, create data
base of parent helpers and
local businesses which donate to the school
(see below, ‘organisational skills’)
- Media - helping with publicity releases
- Musical - accompanist, singer to help with
school musical
- Office skills - photocopying classroom
materials, collating materials, organising
prizes for
end of year
- Organisational skills - networking,
sourcing and managing donations (e.g.
meat, sausages,
bread, paint,
seedlings,
fruit) and sponsorships
- Painting - paint Buddy Bear cut-outs,
Buddy ‘bus-stops’ etc, paint hopscotch
outline
on playground
- People skills - Interest in helping
children read, other teacher support
- Photography – still and video
- Sewing - making or decorating
costumes, outfits for plays,
musical productions,
etc
- Sporting – helping with school
sports, organising tabloid
sports, helping
with cross-country (e.g.
helping with marshalling children
, or on a checkpoint)
- Stage experience – help
with lighting, sound, stage
management
for school
dramatic productions
- Writing - write articles for school newsletter, etc.
- Friendliness – you’re not there
to be a ‘friend’, but to act in a friendly fashion towards
all the children
- Respect – show all children
that they are valued. Talk to children without using put-downs.
Don’t ‘talk down’
to children
or use
sarcasm. Remember to ask their opinions. In turn,
expect respect as a visitor and helper.
- Accepting difference - all
children are different from one another in greater or smaller
ways. It’s more important
to
focus on what makes them similar to each other
- Including others - watch out
to ensure all children are included in activities. Some
children may be
excluded by other children.
Try to find ways to encourage them to be accepted.
Also, look for ways to encourage solitary children
to join
in, and make
sure you make contact with them: if they don’t
want to be involved in an activity, you can encourage
them to
help you with whatever
you are doing. (If this is fun, then other will
join in).
- Responsibility - Your position
as volunteers will ensure that you will be a role model
to the students.
- Empathy – put yourself in the
position of other people and treat them as you would wish
to be
treated.
- Beware of making
judgements
- All children can learn
- Children learn at different
rates and have different learning needs
- We now talk in terms of ‘intelligences’
rather than ‘intelligence’, as children are good at
different things. Ask ‘how is this
child intelligent?’ rather than ‘how intelligent
is this child?’
- Retain confidentiality
- The privacy of both parents
and children must be respected at all times
- Do not mention the names of
children or teachers with whom you are working in front
of other children
– even
you own!
- Children can easily be hurt
by apparently harmless remarks. Be careful not to criticise,
use sarcasm
or
talk about children
with your own children or other members of the
school community.
- Remember the three Ps: Pause, Prompt, Praise
- Pause – it is important to
wait, giving the child time to try to work out solutions
for themselves
- Prompt – encourage and ask questions that help children
find their own way to a solution
- Praise – at all times it is important to praise
children and encourage them for their efforts.
The support and
encouragement provided through classroom helpers’
praise will greatly assist
children’s development. Try comments like:
- I like the way you…
- Well done...
- That’s really great…
- You must have been practising…
- You worked hard on that…
- Thanks for helping. That made a real difference…
- Beware of making judgements
- Parents do the best they can
with what they have
- Parents approach child rearing with a range of different
expectations
- Parents want the best for their children
- Retain confidentiality
- Don’t talk about other children
with parents, even when encouraged to do so.
- Don’t talk to parents about other parents
- Don’t talk about teachers to parents
- If you notice anything that makes you feel a child
is unsafe, see the Principal of the school about
it before you go home.
- The teachers are the experts. Be guided
by their advice
- Be respectful. If you are helping in a classroom, abide
by the rules, even if you don’t agree
with them. Don’t undermine
what the teacher is doing by taking sides
with the children (eye rolling, gestures, other body language).
Talk
to them about it
afterwards.
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