STICKS & STONES Yrs K-6

CYBER SAFETY & ANTI BULLYING PROGRAM

EDUCATIONAL THEATRE FOR PRIMARY STUDENTS THAT PROMOTES RESILIENCE, CYBER SAFETY AND ANTI BULLYING IN AUSTRALIAN SCHOOLS. SUPPORTED BY A Q&A AND CURRICULUM-LINKED CLASSROOM RESOURCES.

Sticks and Stones is a fun and inclusive student wellbeing program for primary schools that reinforces positive relationships and supports vulnerable children to build confidence and social and emotional skills.

When things go wrong at home, at school or online, Toby’s body goes into fight/flight. He feels angry, frightened and confused by messages from peers, family, video games and YouTube. Toby responds in the only way he knows how – with aggression and antisocial behaviour.

When Toby meets Joe, he learns to be assertive and respect boundaries. He deals with negative online experiences by reporting and telling an adult, and learns more positive ways to deal with anger: he stops, breathes, puts his hands in his pockets, walks away and talks about his feelings. Toby cooperates with other kids to create a circus routine with acrobatics and juggling.

Sticks & Stones is designed to complement your school’s existing programs, engage students in discussions and facilitate further learning in the classroom. It encourages positive connections cooperation, impulse control and respect. Brainstorm Productions is endorsed by the eSafety Commissioner as a Trusted eSafety Provider.

Professional, relevant, engaging, realistic, educational and appropriate for this age group-Prep to Year 6. Great messaging delivered in a fun creative way: staying safe online, no hitting, pushing, name calling or bullying, deep breaths, hands in pockets, finding your happy place and talking about your problems. Children said ‘Loved the tricks, juggling, I learnt some ways to stay calm and to stay safe online, to take a deep breath when you’re sad or angry and it’s ok to show your feelings’. 10/10

Fantastic! Well rehearsed and communicated a lot of depth in a clever interesting, entertaining, serious but light hearted way. Children were animated and connected and responded appropriately: cheering clapping, laughing and asking questions at the end. Real life scenarios acted out with lots of strategies: be honest with your friends, it’s ok to be angry but channel it into something safe and positive and how to stay safe online. Loved the whole Teachers Resource Pack. Supports our safety and anti bullying and wellbeing Programs. 10/10

Fantastic! Easily the most professional I have ever witnessed! Great combination of appropriate humour and serious messages about real life problems: internet and safety, violence and bullying. Kids saw bullying from a different perspective and could identify when it was negative behaviour. Amazing talented organised actors who are great role models. Words to the song are incredible and gives teachers a great opening for discussion with kids. Supports ALL our policies and curriculum areas especially safety, bullying and wellbeing. 10/10

Thank you for an absolutely wonderful show! A brilliant support for our Values teaching! Strong messages about being assertive, breathing and calming tools, practice, focus, friendship, team work, collaboration, healthy activities, inclusion, controlling anger and the misuse of tech. Relatable engaging characterisations that give children a language to discuss and share their feelings and experiences. Prompt professional lovely actors-great role models. Supports our Restorative Practices, Respectful Relationships, Zones of Regulations, Learning for Life, Resilience, School wide Positive Behaviour and Wellbeing Program and Performing Arts. Thank you! 10/10

Fantastic job of demonstrating what triggers emotions, anger and frustrations and how to manage them. Real life scenarios clearly represented how students should face bullying and gave them tools to control their anger in many situations, encouraged resilience and how to improve relationships. Educational, entertaining and informative. Fantastic, polite, well presented young actors. Supports PDHPE-Health, Student Welfare and discipline policy and Creative Arts. 10/10

Students who struggle to regulate and control their behaviour learnt some great strategies and received a good understanding of how their actions look to others. Subject matter was highly relatable and entertaining for my K-2s. Humour and juggling was a way to connect and focus the relevance and reflection of the real world. Supports PBL and PDHPE and Emotional and Social Wellbeing Program. 10/10

Highly recommended! Loved how you interacted with the students relating it to ‘their calm place’. It broke down barriers and was highly relevant to boys and girls. Pre and Post Learning activities in the Teachers Pack were very helpful and good for planning. Supports Student Wellbeing, and digital Technologies. Thank You!

High energy! Clearly articulated dialogue and messages: dangers of talking to strangers online, fighting, awareness of how our bodies react to anger and how to stay calm. Performance differentiated to cater for various ages and learners. They enjoyed the music, humour, juggling, physical activity and messages about how to deal with a variety of issues common to students which will be reinforced in the classroom and assist students in making positive decisions in the future. Actors were polite, friendly and displayed positivity in the refection at the end of the performance. Supports social and Emotional Learning and anti bullying Program.10/10

Perfectly pitched for Prep –Year7! Engaging and interactive! Students were hooked from the outset! Absolutely wonderful energetic actors! The relevant experiences played out and the acrobatics, juggling and gaming kept the kids focussed! Will enable children to make positive changes in their lives especially pertaining to dangers of cyber grooming, desensitization from gaming to normalise violence and appropriate skills to combat bullying. Supports our Programs that promote Zero Tolerance to Bullying, anti bullying and Welfare Programs. 10/10

This incursion was engaging, entertaining and well suited to the age group. Students loved the acrobatics, references to online games, cyber safety, catchy song, explanation of real life challenges they face and was in tune with their interests. Questioning at the end was very valuable. Encouraged acceptance of others, tolerance, breathing techniques, being safe online and not talking to strangers. Supports our Social and Emotional Learning, Wellbeing and Bullying Policies. 10/10

Highly recommended! Kids totally engaged. The intensity was nicely combined with fun, humour and entertainment. Great approach: teaching the student who is being bullied about his own body, feelings, emotions and learning to be self aware, take control and deal appropriately with the problem. Plenty of dilemmas and solutions!

Fantastic! Age appropriate, sensible, practical techniques embedded in the performance: cooling down, going to your calm place, anger management and dealing with aggressive behaviour. 9/10

Great real life situations and skills to deal with: friendships, school yard problems, online games/ safety and family relationships. Loved the Teachers Resource Pack: Lesson plans, the song, games and activities for learning about ‘ going to your calm place’. Fabulous, friendly, talented young actors-great role models! 10/10

A 50 minute live theatre performance, with themes and outcomes aligned with the curriculum and key wellbeing, bullying and cyber safety frameworks. The actors are young, professional performers who are positive role models for your students.
A 5-10 minute discussion with the students, in which key themes and practical strategies are explored and help-seeking information is provided. Students also have the opportunity to ask the actors questions.
A Teacher Resource Pack, containing:
- Pre-performance resources, including permission slip, newsletter insert, promotional tools, compliance documents and everything else you need to prepare for the day.
- Curriculum-aligned classroom resources, including lesson plans, discussion points, extension activities, worksheets and online resources.
- Printable A3 colour posters.
- The theme song from the show to download.
Full support from our Booking Coordinators, who are available from 8am to 5pm weekdays to guide you through the process and answer any questions you may have.

The Australian Curriculum: General Capabilities (Personal & Social Capability, Ethical Understanding, Critical & Creative Thinking, Intercultural Understanding, ICT Capability, Literacy), HPE, The Arts, English, Digital Technologies, Online Safety & Respect Matters Curriculum Connections.

NSW: PDHPE, Creative Arts, English.

VIC: Drama, Critical & Creative Thinking, English, Ethical Capability, HPE, Civics & Citizenship, Intercultural Capability, Personal & Social Capability, Digital Technologies.

Also supports: The Australian Student Wellbeing Framework, Best Practice Framework for Online Safety Education, eSafety Toolkit for Schools, The National Education Initiative (Be You), National Framework for Values Education in Australian Schools & Pastoral Care. Supports Positive Behaviour for Learning (PBL), eSmart Schools, and other programs that promote student wellbeing, anti bullying, behaviour management, resilience, cyber safety, mental health and positive relationships in schools.

What sort of venue do we need?

An indoor venue with access to electricity. There is no need for any special theatre style venue as the show works best in an open space, with students seated on the floor. A school hall or gym is ideal but we can also use triple classroom areas, libraries etc. Unfortunately due to WHS we cannot use outdoor areas. If you have an unusual venue and would like to discuss it with us please contact our team on 1800 676 224.

What is the cost and how does the minimum fee structure work?

Our maximum audience for all primary school productions is 280. The cost is $6.50 per student (+GST). A minimum fee of $780 (+GST) applies when less than 120 students attend. Our office will email you a tax invoice after the show, based on the number of students that attended.

What provisions do you have in place for supporting child safety and wellbeing?

We are a Child Safe Organisation and comply with all aspects of Child Protection and screening in each state and territory. We have Risk Assessments in place and all our actors are trained in WHS, appropriate behaviour in schools, dealing with student disclosures and providing appropriate help-seeking information. Scripts have been researched and developed in consultation with teachers and a Clinical Psychologist.

What will the actors need on the day?

The actors will arrive one hour and fifteen minutes before the performance time to sign in and access the venue. The shows are performed on the floor (preferably NOT a stage) and need a playing space of approximately 5m x 5m No chairs please. They have all their own equipment.

For more information please go to our FAQ page, or call us on:

1800 676 224