The Thrive Hive

at Bovey Tracey Primary School!

What is the Thrive Hive where is it and what happens there?

Based in the pavilion on our school field, morning and afternoon groups are held at the Thrive Hive four days a week. Here, small group intervention is delivered by Mrs S, our school Thrive Practitioner, along with Mrs Stoppard and a team of Teaching Assistants from Key Stage 1 and 2.

Using the Thrive Online whole class screenings and individual baselines assessment resources, children’s developmental and emotional needs can be more clearly identified and suggested activities and approaches will then be used by all staff when engaging with each child. As with any other area of learning, where needed, small group intervention will be implemented to support children’s development.

Many of the activities in the Thrive Hive will often be simple, repetitive, arts based tasks completed over time, within a safe and caring environment. It is from this repetition and positive approach that pathways in the brain are developed leading to a child enjoying life and learning. The Thrive Hive is not a short term fix to life’s ups and downs but more a long term investment in preparing our children for the future.

As well as planned art based activities, Thrive Hive sessions include elements of sensory play, gardening and other outdoor activities such as den-building and nature treasure hunts.  To help children develop their emotional and social skills, many of the tasks at the Hive will include exploration of ways to manage and express feelings, develop empathy with others, build self-esteem and build strategies to cope with strong feelings. 

In our afternoon Thrive Hive sessions, children also take part in activities to help them improve their confidence to express their ideas and feelings as well as develop their social skills when engaging in small group play and taking part in snack time in a supportive environment.

Thrive Hive sessions are designed to meet individual need.  Mrs S runs a range of bespoke groups in the morning, including one to one Thrive sessions as well as paired and small group support.

One of our newest recruits at the Thrive Hive is Paddy, Mrs S’s dog!  Paddy works alongside Mrs S and the children at the Hive. The children enjoy working with Paddy and gain much from shared roles to help look after him.

Whole school use of the Thrive Approach

At Bovey Tracey Primary School, the Thrive approach is inherent in the way that we work. It involves a specific way of working with all children that supports emotional and social well-being. The Thrive Approach helps us to respond to the needs of children and informs us to provide bespoke targeted strategies and activities to help them to re-engage learning. This might involve specific strategies in class, a member of staff meeting and greeting a child each morning, implementing provision to segment learning or a personalised programme to build self-esteem.

Using the Thrive Online resources, teachers monitor to social and emotional development of their children and use the outcomes to inform their teaching and class provision. Linking with Thrive Hive staff, agreed strategies can be used consistently throughout the school to ensure that individual need is catered for.

What do the children say about the Thrive Hive?