“If you are teaching help seeking – teach about being a help giver.”

A fantastic first PDHPE Masterclass for 2023 with Claire Goodall from R U OK?, exploring young people as mental health care givers.

Young people are more likely to discuss mental health concerns with a friend 1:1. Claire provided plenty of great advice for teachers to discuss HELP GIVING with students:

• Mental health is like a team sport – share the load. One person cannot fill every role, every day
• Set boundaries – help givers don’t need all the answers or to be the only support person
• Encourage ‘warm handovers’ – help givers can go with their peer to seek help
• Help givers should ask themselves: ‘Am I ready:’, ‘Am I prepared?’, ‘Have I picked my moment?’
• Use the R U OK? model when help giving – Listen, Encourage Action and Check In.
• Try fostering a whole school approach to R U OK conversations throughout the year, not just on R U OK Day. www.ruok.org.au/education

Next Masterclass: Fitness education

Our next Masterclass is Improving Fitness Education in Schools with Dr Laura Alfrey on 23 March 2023.

The beep test, sit & reach, 1.6km run and standing broad jump –  is this fitness education at your school?

The pros and cons of fitness testing has been widely debated. But not only did the 2018 syllabus remove all reference to it – a growing body of research has captured exactly how students feel about it.

“The syllabus focuses on learning how fitness can be enhanced and maintained, rather than tests. This is so we encourage young people to be more physically active, not turn them off,” says Janice Atkin from ACHPER NSW.

 Dr Alfrey will share her work in redefining what effective fitness education can look like. Read more and register

Check out this video from Monash Education on Why We Need to Change Fitness Testing in Schools: