Behaviour and engagement

• Strong teacher/student relationships.
• Explicit teaching and modelling of specific skills including behaviour expectations and social skills.
• Communication with parents around school expectations.
• Class based systems of expectations and positive reinforcement.
• Consistent teacher expectations, routines, modelling and responses to behaviour.
• Liaison with previous teachers, pre-schools, external paraprofessionals
• Curriculum links, particularly in PDHPE (including respectful relationships), and personal and social capabilities in all syllabi.
• Social skills programs, role play and drama activities, and circle time.
• Turn taking activities, board games, card games, picture talks and barrier games to develop expressive and receptive communication skills.
• Engaging parent involvement.
• Integrating mindfulness, movement breaks and social/emotional learning into teaching and learning programs.
• High quality differentiated teaching that addresses individual learning needs of all students, where appropriate learning adjustments are documented in an individual student support plan and/or Personal Learning Pathways (PLPs).
• The Inclusive Practice hub is a platform that provides evidence-based resources to support students with disability and additional needs. Access easy to download and print materials, learn from practical online resources and utilise evidence-based strategies to support and strengthen inclusive practice in schools.
• A restorative approach that focuses on building, maintaining and restoring positive relationships.

• Aboriginal Language and Culture Nests

This resource provides further information about Aboriginal Language programs in schools, Aboriginal Language and Cultural Nests, Languages outside of the Nests and an Aboriginal Language and Cultural Nest factsheet and guidelines.

• Partnership with the NSW Aboriginal Education Consultative Group Inc (AECG)

This resource provides further information about the partnership with the NSW Aboriginal Education Consultative Group Inc (AECG), including working in partnership with AECG, the Partnership Agreement, Connecting to Country, Healthy Culture, Healthy Country, professional development and local representatives.

• Positive Behaviour for Learning Tier 1 School-wide and Tier 1 Classroom Systems of support eLearning. This eLearning focuses on flexible, continuously available prevention and early interventions for all students to reduce inappropriate behaviour in all learning spaces before it becomes chronic.
• Classroom Management Fundamentals eLearning. This eLearning provides the fundamentals to help teachers establish essential good classroom practice. Classroom Management Fundamentals eLearning is divided into five modules: setting the scene, positive classroom environments, establishing your practice, active engagement and responding to student behaviour.
• Understanding Behaviour. This eLearning was developed with the Professional Learning Non-Teaching Staff team. It is designed to provide an overview of why non-teaching staff need to understand behaviour, what factors may contribute towards it, and some simple strategies to respond to behaviour across a continuum.
• Trauma Informed Practice. Trauma-informed Practice for Improved Learning and Wellbeing consists of four, 90-minute modules, which provide a foundational understanding of childhood trauma, its causes and impact for schools. Participants learn to recognise the signs that students have experienced trauma and develop a repertoire of inclusive strategies to mitigate its impact at school, both as individuals and through the implementation of school-wide systems.
• Disability and additional learning and support. This link provides further information about Disability Standards for Education eLearning and resources that explain the Disability Standards and outlines how the responsibility of schools towards students with disability should be met. There is also information about a suite of supported online courses which are available to support classroom teachers and support staff from the departments' primary schools, high schools and special schools. Each of the courses is registered with the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA).
• PAX Good Behaviour Game (primary school) behaviour management. This resource provides additional information about the PAX Good Behaviour Game. PAX means peace, productivity, health and happiness, and is what the PAX Good Behaviour Game helps create and strengthen in each classroom. PAX GBG consists of proven behavioural strategies used daily by teachers with students. The 10 evidence-based and trauma informed strategies build self-regulation in children, strengthen peer networks, reduce impulsivity and teach prosocial decision-making in children. The ‘peaceful’ classroom environment supports learning, wellbeing, participation and confidence.
• Whole school professional learning about the additional needs of vulnerable EAL/D students and students from refugee backgrounds.
• Safeguarding Kids Together modules. These modules and factsheets provide further information to offer schools on-the-ground specialist knowledge and support to foster continuous improvement in health, safety and wellbeing. SKT is available to all NSW public schools.
• Training for school administrative staff to develop understanding on supporting students and families from refugee backgrounds.
• Connecting to Country professional learning for principals, teachers and all department staff. Connecting to Country is an Aboriginal community cultural awareness teaching programme. This programme provides a much-needed cultural conduit between the States teaching fraternity and Aboriginal peoples and communities. Teachers are offered a unique opportunity to engage directly with Aboriginal Australians at the local community level.

• English as an additional language or dialect education resources. This resource provides more information about EAL/D learnings, funding for schools, supporting documents and state-wide staffroom.
• The implementation of programs to support newly arrived EAL/D students and students from refugee backgrounds and their families such as The Welcome Program, Settling in Program and Families In Cultural Transition. These resources provide more information about the New Arrivals Program and supporting refugee students.
• Using support personnel such as Bilingual School Learning Support Officers, translated documents and the use of interpreting services to facilitate communication with families. These resources provide more information about interpreting and translating services.
• Additional support for newly arrived EAL/D students at points of transition, including enrolment in first Australian school, transition to high school from a primary school or an Intensive English Centre
• Henry Parkes Equity Resource Centre including over 45,000 resources. This resource provides more information about the equity resource library’s collection and conference facilities.
• School’s in for refugees (SIFR): A whole-school approach to supporting students and families of refugee background.
• The Rainbow Program for Children in Refugee Families - Foundation House (9-12 years age).

• Jill Sherlock Memorial Library provides educational and curriculum resources to meet the learning and support needs of students with disability.
• Mental health programs and partnerships.
• Student support officers work in schools to enhance the wellbeing and learning outcomes of students. SSOs support the implementation of the school’s whole-of-school approach to wellbeing, helping students develop social and emotional skills through targeted strengths-based programs and strategies that build resilience, coping skills and positive relationships. They also have a pivotal role in working collaboratively with external and other government agencies in their support of students and their families.
• Consider data from the Australian Early Development Census (AEDC), Best Start, Tell them From Me Surveys, NAPLAN, Record of School Achievement, information from the NSW Transition to School Statement, and the use of Transition to School programs to ensure prevention strategies are well suited to incoming students.
• Body Brain Belonging: The Story Behind Behaviour, via School Link. This resource provides practical tools and strategies to support emotional regulation and behaviour in schools.
• Accessing external providers to present sessions on cyber-safety, anti-bullying and other school-identified areas.
• Teachers reflect on practice to evaluate factors affecting behaviour.