Whole School Matters draft manuscript
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Getting Started on The Whole School Approach
MindMatters Recognition and Overview
MindMatters Planning Tools
School Audits and Surveys
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Australian Capital Territory
New South Wales
Northern Territory
Queensland
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Community Partnerships
Whole Student Approach
Student Empowerment
School Stories

Understanding Mental Illness links to Social Responsibility

Activities & Sessions

Possible Outcomes 

Understanding mental illnesses 

Exploring understandings of mental health/illness - page 17

Introducing the Understanding Mental Illness unit - page 18

Language brainstorm - page 18

Understanding what we mean by mental illness - page 19

Mental illness - the facts (handout) - pages 20-22

Learning the language of mental illness (worksheet) - pages 23-24

4.2 Community: 

Interpersonal cooperation and social responsibility are encouraged.

4.5 Authority:   

People should respect legitimate and just authority structures and the rule of the law, while recognising and observing human rights.

4.7 Social justice: 

The right of each person to a fair share of society’s economic and cultural resources is recognised.

Experiences of mental illness 

Video Understanding Mental Illness - group discussion of section 1 - page 26

Homework - reading information sheets - page 28

Video discussion sheet - page 29

Eating disorders (information) - pages 30-32

Depression (information) - pages 33-35

Anxiety disorders (information) - pages 36-38

Bipolar mood disorder (information) - pages 39-41

Schizophrenia (information) - pages 42-44

4.2 Community: 

Interpersonal cooperation and social responsibility are encouraged.

4.5 Authority:   

People should respect legitimate and just authority structures and the rule of the law, while recognising and observing human rights.

4.7 Social justice: 

The right of each person to a fair share of society’s economic and cultural resources is recognised.

4.9 Benefits of research: 

Society should support the advancement of knowledge in all its domains, promote scholarship and research that promise to improve the quality of life and share the benefits as widely as possible.

Mental illnesses – the same but different 

Specialist groups - recording information about specific illnesses - pages 45-46

Sharing the pieces or follow up quiz - page 46

Answers for quiz - page 47

Understanding anxiety disorders (record sheet) - page 48

Understanding depression (record sheet) - page 49

Understanding schizophrenia (record sheet) - page 50

Understanding eating disorders (record sheet) - page 51

Understanding bipolar mood disorder or manic depression (record sheet) - page 52

Mental illness. How much do you understand? Quiz (worksheet) - page 53

Community attitude survey (template) - page 55

Survey record sheet - page 56

4.2 Community: 

Interpersonal cooperation and social responsibility are encouraged.

4.5 Authority:   

People should respect legitimate and just authority structures and the rule of the law, while recognising and observing human rights.

4.7 Social justice: 

The right of each person to a fair share of society’s economic and cultural resources is recognised.

4.9 Benefits of research: 

Society should support the advancement of knowledge in all its domains, promote scholarship and research that promise to improve the quality of life and share the benefits as widely as possible.

Changing people’s minds & attitudes 

Survey collation - pages 57-59

Video - changing people’s attitudes - pages 59-61

Script your own advertisement - pages 61-62

Exploring attitudes - page 62

The kindness of strangers (handout) - page 63

Key communication messages (handout) - page 64

4.2 Community: 

Interpersonal cooperation and social responsibility are encouraged.

4.3 Diversity: 

The richness of many cultural expressions is recognised, and diversity in the context of shared community life is welcome.

4.4 Contribution: 

Society has something to gain from every individual life, and should maximise the opportunities for all persons to contribute to the common good.

4.5 Authority:   

People should respect legitimate and just authority structures and the rule of the law, while recognising and observing human rights.

4.6 Reconciliation: 

Strategies of cooperation and reconciliation are preferred to coercion and confrontation, especially where groups or individuals are in conflict.

4.7 Social justice: 

The right of each person to a fair share of society’s economic and cultural resources is recognised.

4.8 Responsibility and freedom: 

People have the right to choose their way of life, and are responsible for the impact of their choices on nature and other community members.

4.9 Benefits of research: 

Society should support the advancement of knowledge in all its domains, promote scholarship and research that promise to improve the quality of life and share the benefits as widely as possible.

Labels are for jars 

Labels - pages 65-67

Option A if the shoe fits - pages 65-66

Option B labelling jars not people - page 66

Fact, fear, furphy or fiction - a summary quiz - page 67

Creative writing - uses ‘A thesaurus of madness’ - page 68

Newsletter - page 68

Labels (worksheet) - page 69

Jam-jars (worksheet) - page 70

Fact, fear, furphy or fiction (worksheet) - pages 71-72

A thesaurus of madness (handout) - page 73

4.2 Community: 

Interpersonal cooperation and social responsibility are encouraged.

4.3 Diversity: 

The richness of many cultural expressions is recognised, and diversity in the context of shared community life is welcome.

4.4 Contribution: 

Society has something to gain from every individual life, and should maximise the opportunities for all persons to contribute to the common good.

4.5 Authority:   

People should respect legitimate and just authority structures and the rule of the law, while recognising and observing human rights.

4.6 Reconciliation: 

Strategies of cooperation and reconciliation are preferred to coercion and confrontation, especially where groups or individuals are in conflict.

4.7 Social justice: 

The right of each person to a fair share of society’s economic and cultural resources is recognised.

4.8 Responsibility and freedom: 

People have the right to choose their way of life, and are responsible for the impact of their choices on nature and other community members.

4.9 Benefits of research: 

Society should support the advancement of knowledge in all its domains, promote scholarship and research that promise to improve the quality of life and share the benefits as widely as possible.

Seeking help, finding support 

Identifying the need for support - page 75

Local services - page 75

Care of the seriously mentally ill in Australia - page 76

Something is not quite right - getting help early for mental illness (handout) - pages 77-78

Scenario cards (handouts) - pages 79-82 - 8 scenarios provided

Care of the seriously mentally ill in Australia (handout) - pages 83-86

4.2 Community: 

Interpersonal cooperation and social responsibility are encouraged.

4.3 Diversity: 

The richness of many cultural expressions is recognised, and diversity in the context of shared community life is welcome.

4.4 Contribution: 

Society has something to gain from every individual life, and should maximise the opportunities for all persons to contribute to the common good.

4.5 Authority:   

People should respect legitimate and just authority structures and the rule of the law, while recognising and observing human rights.

4.6 Reconciliation: 

Strategies of cooperation and reconciliation are preferred to coercion and confrontation, especially where groups or individuals are in conflict.

4.7 Social justice: 

The right of each person to a fair share of society’s economic and cultural resources is recognised.

4.8 Responsibility and freedom: 

People have the right to choose their way of life, and are responsible for the impact of their choices on nature and other community members.

4.9 Benefits of research: 

Society should support the advancement of knowledge in all its domains, promote scholarship and research that promise to improve the quality of life and share the benefits as widely as possible.

Taking actions, creating options 

Getting help - pages 87-88

Sample questions - page 88

Actions & reactions - page 89

Discussion - options for help seeking - page 89

4.2 Community: 

Interpersonal cooperation and social responsibility are encouraged.

4.3 Diversity: 

The richness of many cultural expressions is recognised, and diversity in the context of shared community life is welcome.

4.4 Contribution: 

Society has something to gain from every individual life, and should maximise the opportunities for all persons to contribute to the common good.

4.5 Authority:   

People should respect legitimate and just authority structures and the rule of the law, while recognising and observing human rights.

4.6 Reconciliation: 

Strategies of cooperation and reconciliation are preferred to coercion and confrontation, especially where groups or individuals are in conflict.

4.7 Social justice: 

The right of each person to a fair share of society’s economic and cultural resources is recognised.

4.8 Responsibility and freedom: 

People have the right to choose their way of life, and are responsible for the impact of their choices on nature and other community members.

4.9 Benefits of research: 

Society should support the advancement of knowledge in all its domains, promote scholarship and research that promise to improve the quality of life and share the benefits as widely as possible.

Face to face 

Guest speaker - page 90

Reflecting upon the new information - page 91

Selected video - personal experiences of mental illness - page 91

Sample questions - considering prior and current beliefs and understandings - page 91

4.2 Community: 

Interpersonal cooperation and social responsibility are encouraged.

4.3 Diversity: 

The richness of many cultural expressions is recognised, and diversity in the context of shared community life is welcome.

4.4 Contribution: 

Society has something to gain from every individual life, and should maximise the opportunities for all persons to contribute to the common good.

4.5 Authority:   

People should respect legitimate and just authority structures and the rule of the law, while recognising and observing human rights.

4.6 Reconciliation: 

Strategies of cooperation and reconciliation are preferred to coercion and confrontation, especially where groups or individuals are in conflict.

4.7 Social justice: 

The right of each person to a fair share of society’s economic and cultural resources is recognised.

4.8 Responsibility and freedom: 

People have the right to choose their way of life, and are responsible for the impact of their choices on nature and other community members.

4.9 Benefits of research: 

Society should support the advancement of knowledge in all its domains, promote scholarship and research that promise to improve the quality of life and share the benefits as widely as possible.

Resource list 

Resource list - websites, videos & brochures - page 92

4.2 Community: 

Interpersonal cooperation and social responsibility are encouraged.

4.3 Diversity: 

The richness of many cultural expressions is recognised, and diversity in the context of shared community life is welcome.

4.4 Contribution: 

Society has something to gain from every individual life, and should maximise the opportunities for all persons to contribute to the common good.

4.5 Authority:   

People should respect legitimate and just authority structures and the rule of the law, while recognising and observing human rights.

4.6 Reconciliation: 

Strategies of cooperation and reconciliation are preferred to coercion and confrontation, especially where groups or individuals are in conflict.

4.7 Social justice: 

The right of each person to a fair share of society’s economic and cultural resources is recognised.

4.8 Responsibility and freedom: 

People have the right to choose their way of life, and are responsible for the impact of their choices on nature and other community members.

4.9 Benefits of research: 

Society should support the advancement of knowledge in all its domains, promote scholarship and research that promise to improve the quality of life and share the benefits as widely as possible.