Building and Belonging – Resource for Manifesto Point 3

Manifesto Point 3: Our lives are better when we focus on each other’s strengths, abilities, interests and gifts.

Introducing a Booklet from the Community Resource Unit Ltd: BUILDING BELONGING IN THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY: Finding Roles that Help Students Participate and Contribute

Download the Resource here.

This booklet has been designed for families and teachers of children with a disability from Kindergarten to High School.

Inclusion is about more than physical presence at school. It is about belonging, being valued, and being able to fully participate in that school community.

All parents want their child’s school years to be full and productive, for them to have opportunities to discover their gifts, to grow and to ‘shine’ in many small ways. Students with disability are vulnerable to only being seen for their challenges or negative stereotypes. Helping children have access to valued social roles is one way families and schools can guard against this vulnerability. Valued roles provide opportunity for connections, personal development, self-esteem (and much more!) both at school and across the whole of life.