We all need reminders sometimes that, even when things feel overwhelming or out-of-control, we always have choices. We can choose how we interpret a situation, what we choose to focus on, the things we choose to tell ourselves, and how we choose to respond. …Read more
Today, I thought I’d talk about a tool that has been around for a while but is still a favourite – the five-column tool. The five-column approach was pioneered by Di O’Neil and Wayne MCcashen at St Luke’s Anglicare back in 1990 and is …Read more
Want to be in the running for a resources and training prize pack worth $1000? All you need to do is make a single purchase of $100 or more in May or June 2025 (including any of our training products) and go into the …Read more
‘…whether we lose a person, or whether we lose a place, or whether we lose some ’thing’ that’s important to us, it’s normal for us to need an extended period of emotion or reaction to that.’ Shelley Skinner isn’t afraid to talk about grief …Read more
When artist and designer, Fiona Mansfield, thinks about the awakening of her creative self, she’s taken back to a time in her childhood when she was stuck at home with the measles. ‘I was in quarantine with a big A3 pad of paper and …Read more
Wherever you turn these days, there seems to be reports of teachers leaving the education system in droves. And things seem to have become significantly worse over the past few years. A 2023 national survey of 4000 teachers by the Black Dog Institute in …Read more
Nick Avery is the CEO of South West Autism Network (SWAN) in Bussleton, Western Australia, a not-for-profit organisation that grew out of a very real need for families in regional areas to have access to support, information, community networks and advocacy. SWAN’s vision is …Read more
One of the things we pride ourselves on at Innovative Resources is the combination of lived experience and industry expertise that goes into the development of each and every card set. For more than 30 years we’ve partnered with leading experts in their respective …Read more
Sharon Dunn lives and breathes creativity. Whether she’s creating unique artwork for an Innovative Resources card set, fulfilling a design brief for a business client, or writing and performing music, she is always searching for originality—the offbeat and quirkier the better. ‘Being a musician …Read more
Are you an educator looking for a better work-life balance? Are you feeling exhausted or overwhelmed in your teaching role and looking for ways to improve your energy levels and sense of connection? Do you work in a team that needs an infusion of …Read more
Every New Year’s Eve, millions of people make resolutions related to losing weight or changing their body shape. In fact, losing weight is one of the most common new year’s resolutions, along with eating more healthily and getting fitter (which are often alternate ways …Read more
Have you ever said sorry to someone, and yet you know they have not experienced your apology as authentic? Somehow your sincere apology did not land. This may be more likely to happen when the offence is perceived as a grave one. But it …Read more
If you ask people to describe the role that children play in the world, you will get a range of responses, which may include things like, ‘They are the future’, ‘They are the reason we get up and go to work in the morning’, …Read more
I shouldn’t be at all surprised by the creative ways Innovative Resources’ tools are used in classrooms, in the playground, in groups, or on the family fridge. But every time I deliver training or a workshop, I hear incredibly innovative stories from people—social workers, …Read more
I recently read The Salt Path by Raynor Winn, and it reminded me that becoming homeless can happen to anyone, anytime. As she says in the book: ‘We are all just a slip away from losing everything we have. Life is precarious, and we …Read more
Every step we take follows another. Every step we take precedes another. The smallest shifts—doing some dishes, putting something away, stopping something, starting something, taking a shower—can all be significant events on a continuum of ‘next steps’, representing our unique pathways through life. ‘A …Read more
“People, especially children, respond much better when given positive labels, even if it is a label they intend to pursue.” I’d been working with this family for several weeks and using the Solution Focused Approach. We’d seen marginal and inconsistent improvement in the boy’s …Read more
A gift is not always something that is wrapped up with brightly coloured paper. Not all gifts are the kind you can place under a Christmas tree or tuck under your arm when attending a birthday party. While tangible gifts can be utterly delightful …Read more
Acts of everyday kindness are all around us. They can come in the form of a kind word, a helping hand, a nod of appreciation, an encouraging smile, a story, a wave, a letter, a gentle caution, a friendly visit or a meal shared. …Read more
Cate Kennedy’s foreword for Storycatching (Innovative Resources, 2008) may have just turned 16, but it’s still one of the most beautiful pieces of writing about the shared experience of storytelling you’ll ever read. When Cate references the influence of TV, you realise this resource …Read more
