Lower Primary Programs
Upper Primary Programs
Youth Choices Programs
RU OK? Day is a national movement that reminds us all of the importance of looking out for one another. It’s about starting conversations, listening without judgement, and showing up for friends, family, colleagues, and people in our communities who might be struggling. Asking someone if they are okay can have a profoundly positive impact on their life.
RU OK? Day encourages meaningful conversations that can promote mental health and wellbeing, and can assist in the prevention of fatal consequences of mental illness. The message is clear: you don’t need to be an expert, you just need to care. Research shows that people who are regularly asked, “Are you okay?”, feel more supported, connected, and less alone. It’s a reminder that nobody should struggle in silence, and that connection really does make a difference.
For children and young people, the unique pressures in their lives can be difficult to navigate. With mental ill-health impacting the next generation at increasingly earlier stages in their lives, how do we ensure they feel empowered not only to notice the signs, but to reach out and have those vital conversations?
Youth Choices program Broken uses interactive Forum Theatre to engage students in tackling real-world issues. Instead of passively spectating, students are encouraged to step into the story, becoming part of the solution and exploring different outcomes. Broken follows the journey of a young person experiencing depression and mental illness, and shows the warning signs, the struggles, and the impact on those around them. Students are invited to change the course of the story, steering it in different directions as they explore ways to ask for help, to support a friend, and what they might do next.
Delivered as an in-school Forum Theatre program, Broken addresses concepts such as:
- Combatting depression with holistic community approaches
- Mental illness does not discriminate and can happen to anyone
- Our duty of care to those close to us and in our communities
- The nature of the effects of mental illness, and the individual experiences different people have
- Help seeking behaviours, including talking to trusted adults, school and community leaders, and utilising school resources
- The disadvantages of ‘suffering in silence’
Through participation in the program, students learn to recognise the signs of mental distress, break down the stigma surrounding mental illness, build empathy and resilience, how to safely support their peers, and how to seek help when needed.
As RU OK? Day approaches, schools have a unique opportunity to go beyond awareness, and into action. Programs like Broken can turn the RU OK? message into real-life practice – helping students to not only ask the question, but to know how to respond.