Jade Speaks Up Educational Trust

Keeping Children's Wellbeing At The Heart Of Learning

We believe every child deserves a safe and nurturing childhood.

Children are vulnerable when adults are stressed or angry - especially in instances of family violence.

The Jade Speaks Up Educational Trust provides schools and communities with a strengths-based, trauma-informed and experiential learning approach to responding to emotions and behaviours stemming from family violence.

Using skills and strategies that have been developed over decades, we teach tools for teachers and students that create a culture that enables learning and belonging.

Of the teachers that attended our workshops from 2017-2023:

The Jade Speaks Up Educational Trust was founded by Elaine Dyer and Andrea O’Hagan - passionate advocates for peace, social justice and the prevention of violence

Having witnessed the empowerment that role-play, language expansion, and emotional literacy brings to individuals, whānau, and communities, we have meticulously crafted three transformative programs. These programs are implemented by our specialist team of facilitators and educators.

We know first-hand the challenges teachers face - often feeling overwhelmed and under-equipped to address the complex issues expressed in their classrooms.

Our programmes are designed to provide practical tools and strategies, not just theory, to support your students effectively.

MEET THE TEAM

Enabling the power of our children's voices

We understand the unique challenges that today's children face, from the hidden impacts of family violence to the increasing stress and anxiety levels brought on by the aftermath of Covid, climate change and social media use.

These experiences can take a heavy toll on a child's mental wellbeing and ability to learn, and we're here to help you navigate the behaviour challenges these emotions bring into the classroom.

We stand alongside teachers, families, social services, and local agencies to create a supportive network for our children through a whole community response.

LANGUAGE IS POWERFUL.

When you have the right words to describe what you’re feeling, what you’re experiencing and what impact these are having on you, you have the power to change.

Our training programmes have been based on decades of experience working with vulnerable groups in New Zealand and beyond. Helping adults and children increase their language around emotions.

Our programmes are designed to help teachers and tamariki on a growth journey, supporting everyones’ well-being along the way.

Taking inspiration from leading New Zealand psychologist, Dr Paul Woods, we firmly believe in the power of emotional literacy as a game-changer for children's futures.

As such, our programmes are dedicated to cultivating this essential skill in children, giving them the tools to express their feelings, seek help, and navigate life's challenges with resilience and confidence.

The programmes we deliver align with the Ministry of Education’s Health Curriculum and the Government's 2019 Child and Youth Wellbeing Strategy while addressing key aims of Te Aorerekura's 2022 Family Violence and Sexual Violence prevention strategy.

What people are saying

Jane Smith

"The clinical team use Jade Speaks Up extensively within the agency both with individual children, siblings and families. It is used for safety planning, helping to facilitate conversations and for parents to understand the impact of violence on their children. We use the worksheets which are excellent and straightforward.

It is a tremendous asset to the skilled family violence practitioner tool kit."

Michelle Clayton - Family Action CEO / Linda Cooper - Auckland City Councillor

"Jade Speaks up allow conversations to begin and one’s stories to be told. Then we have the beginning of understanding our emotions and behaviour. To see there are alternatives and some simple strategies can help get us through scary situations."

Jacqueline Graham-Barley - former Senior Lecturer Central Queensland School of Medicine

"Jade Speaks Up is a teacher-delivered programme for students in years 5-8 (8-14 years old) that aims to improve students’ emotional literacy, self-calming and social problem-solving, and to give them skills to stay safe in scary situations including family violence. Teachers receive dedicated professional development on how to deliver the programme and respond to disclosures, support from mentor teachers and supervision."