Recently, Reverend Susan Pickering from the Uniting Church let us know about some YouTube clips she’d created of her reading a series of children’s books. The list of books she read included two Innovative Resources classics, Captain Grumpy (written by Russell Deal and illustrated …Read more
When a crisis hits, many people who have never accessed services before suddenly need support, placing additional strains on already stretched services. Organisations offering support around mental health, family violence, housing, food, financial counselling, AOD, amongst other things, are all under pressure at the …Read more
The importance of mental health is something we are continuously learning more about. Mental health impacts on so many areas of our lives, from relationships and work to our physical health and sense of worth. Any one of us can experience challenges to our …Read more
Digital communication tools are not new. For many years, people working in human services and education have been using digital tools to facilitate conversations. Given that lots of clients and students are ‘digital natives’, and they often feel more comfortable using tech-based tools and …Read more
In many workplaces across Australia, many of the conversations in the lunch room are about bushfires and related topics (like the impact of climate change and how we feel about government responses). While Australia manages this most recent manifestation of climate change, these issues …Read more
Lillian Daley, a Grade 6 teacher in Darwin—the capital city of Australia’s Northern Territory—writes about the power of vulnerability and trust in the classroom. I first came across Innovative Resources when I was a pre-service teacher completing a placement at a school for disengaged …Read more
Those who choose to work in human services are often well-equipped, not only to do their jobs, but to do their jobs well. Those in power endeavour to provide them with frameworks, procedures, infrastructure, leadership, professional development, teams and resources intended to support them …Read more
As a child, did you ever pick up a stone, rub your wet thumb over its surface to reveal the colours, feel the satisfying heft and shape of it in your palm, and then carry it around in your pocket? Before long, you …Read more
The original purpose of developing POSTCARDS From Me to You was to provide residential care workers, carers, youth workers and young people with a simple, fun and meaningful way of communicating with each other. With a postcard they can send a message that can …Read more
At Innovative Resources we never tire of hearing about new and creative ways that Picture This is used. Why is it so useful, and so popular? Possibly because of the large number and variety of photos within the set, or maybe because there is …Read more
Scaling is a simple, highly visual and easily understood way of measuring and evaluating anything. Look around and you will see scaling being used in countless ways every day. A wall of a hospital might show a big temperature gauge to measure how fundraising …Read more
If you are a youth worker, counsellor, mentor, teacher, chaplain or welfare coordinator in a school, chances are you’ve come across the Reflexions cards somewhere along the line. You may even have a set kicking around in your tool bag of resources. A new …Read more
Organisations that work well draw on a dynamic combination of strengths. What are the strengths of your organisation? How well does your organisation do with strengths such as planning, leadership, fairness, communication, role clarity, and creativity? What about managing change and resolving disputes? Which …Read more
SOON Article from the archives (April 2015, issue 76) Nicole Rotarua got in touch during a short break in Nairobi, Kenya. Here’s her moving account of a team building session in Sudan. Since 2013 I have been working in the Nuba Mountains, a site of war and …Read more
‘A metaphor is a figure of speech that describes an object or action in a way that isn’t literally true, but helps explain an idea or make a comparison.’ (https://www.grammarly.com/blog/metaphor/) Once upon a time, in a land far away (to use a metaphor to …Read more
All of the tools published by Innovative Resources have grown out of, or are compatible with, strengths-based practice. Also known as the ‘strengths approach’, this is a way of working that focusses primarily on strengths and hopeful possibilities. It does not ignore difficulties or challenges but the …Read more
‘We are surrounded by symbols. They are present in every facet of our existence. At a practical level, they point us in the right direction, they issue caution, they give us choices, and they limit our choices. Symbols are necessary to navigate …Read more
‘Metaphor has a paradoxical power. It distances an experience by equating it with something else, but in so doing actually brings that experience closer.’ James Geary, ‘The Secret Life of Metaphor’, Ode Magazine, Spring 2011, p. 55 Human language is alive with metaphor. Not …Read more
Ever been to a funeral of someone you liked and thought you knew well, only to discover through the eulogy that there was so much more about the person than you knew? How many times have you walked by the reception desk, said hello …Read more
Peer supervision—why do it? Human service workers get together in peer supervision sessions to discuss practice, to reflect, and to wonder about ethical considerations. Lucky souls, aren’t we? And, it feels entirely congruent to approach peer supervision sessions from a strengths-based perspective. The idea …Read more
Menu