PARENTS
Helping Hands
This is a fun and participative Helping Hands programme.
Helping Hands is a preventative education programme, developed by Women’s Aid Federation Northern Ireland for primary school aged children at key stage two. Several members of staff have availed of the training to allow the program to run successfully in school. The overall aim of the programme is to:
Increase children’s understanding of feeling safe and to explore and promote behaviours which will contribute to a safe environment
The objectives are to:
- develop children’s levels of self esteem and confidence
- enable children to explore and express feelings
- inform children of the right to feel safe at all times
- increase children’s ability in safety planning
- empower children to identify their own personal support network
- explore how choice of behaviour can affect the feelings of others, and
- identify healthy ways to manage conflict.
This programme can teach children to express their feelings, make choices and solve problems. It can help children to develop a strong sense of self and an ability to express their own wants and needs.
By working with children, using Helping Hands, we can help them:
- understand that feelings are okay
- express strong feelings without violence, and
- practice non violent problem solving skills.
Links to the curriculum
Helping Hands complements the Northern Ireland curriculum’s statutory requirements for Personal Development and Mutual Understanding. It uses different tools and techniques to meet varying learning styles in order to maximise pupil potential.
