B.

Journal
Day One - 18.11.13
Today was a very interesting experience. Surprisingly, even though I have grown up
and lived in the area my entire life, I knew very little about Rivendell before coming
on this placement. I was placed in the Yaralla program where I will be for the next
two days. This particular program is for students who suffer from psychotic illnesses
such as psychosis or anxiety. Going into the program I knew very little on psychosis
which pushed me to look into it and do a bit of research. Building a relationship with
the students seemed it would be a difficult task after first meeting them as the
majority were all quite reserved and kept very much to themselves. As the day went
on and I was given the opportunity to work one on one with the students it proved to
be very rewarding as I felt I made some good progress with them. It was quite an
eye opening experience as I witnessed firsthand what some of these children are
going through.
I was given the opportunity to sit in on a preadmission meeting for a student who
was making the switch from the involuntary unit to the voluntary unit. The students
mother was present at the meeting. There were moments of the meeting that were
extremely confronting as I gained an idea of the students history. I gained a real
awareness of the difficulty situations like this can be on the student and the family. At
first it was confronting to develop an awareness of what some of these children have
gone through, but after witnessing the extremely positive environment the teachers
and staff of the school create for the students, as well as the clear progress the
students are making it proved to be a very enriching experience in which I can gain a
lot from. The students mother was very positive and it was obvious she was pleased
with the handling of the situation.

Day Two - 19.11.13

Today I was once again placed in the Yaralla program. With a class of only up to five
students it is a very personal experience. A growing theme in the Yaralla program is
'circle time', which the students and teachers participate in group sharing as a tool to
build relationships and trust. The school is currently focusing on a theme of
'community' so the day was started with a group discussion on different communities
everyone is part of and why they are proud of that community. The discussion was
effectively ran as all the students were encouraged to participate which was very
uplifting to see. The circle created for the students to share in the discussion
creates a safe and trusting environment for the students to share in. After working
through some school work we sat down and played a game of 'go fish'. The students
are regularly given the chance to take a break from their work in class and take part
in a fun activity to ensure they are not becoming overwhelmed with the pressure
from completing school work. This was a great experience as I was really able to

have some fun with them all and share a laugh. I thoroughly enjoyed today and left
looking forward to returning tomorrow.

Day Three - 20.11.13

Today I was placed in the Sulman program, where I will also be tomorrow. This
program is for students from years 9-12 who for personal reasons don't deal well
with being in a normal school environment and require a small and supportive
environment. Something which occurred to me which has made this a very different
experience was the fact that I am majoring in primary education. Due to this I am
much more accustomed to dealing with children who are much younger than me, but
on this occasion I am working with students who are not that much younger than me.
I found the change very positive as I found it very enjoyable working on some of the
school work they have been assigned. Luckily for me the student I was working with
today was working on construction, which was a subject I myself studied in school so
I took to helping him with ease. It was quite a different experience for me as the
student is diagnosed with behavioural problems. He tended to try to venture away
from the work, but I found after sitting with him for the day we were able to make
some good progress through his assigned work and keeping him on task by
implementing strategies such as pacing and providing regular breaks to assist with
completing the work. Together we set work-related goals for the day that he would
aim to achieve. Generally this would consist of him reaching a particular point in his
work, which he would then be rewarded for with a short break.