Before you begin running lessons, you might wish to explain the Open Parachute program to parents and caregivers of your students. We have a few options available for you to explain the program to families.
Caregiver Introduction PDF
You can access the Caregiver Introduction within the Parents & Caregivers section of the Side Menu to provide information to the caregivers of your students:
This PDF download provides a clear one-page overview of the free resources available to parents and caregivers, highlights common topics such as behavior challenges, stress & anxiety, social media & communication, and introduces Open Parachute's evidence-informed approach to supporting student well-being.
We recommend sending this PDF out to the families of students using Open Parachute resources at the start of each school year, to both introduce the program, and provide them with their own free resources.
Letter or Email Copy
Some schools may wish to send messaging home to parents & caregivers of Open Parachute students. We've created some language you can use in your own letterhead, website or email templates:
Letter for Caregivers
Letter for Caregivers
Dear Parents,
We are pleased to announce that this year we will be delivering the Open Parachute Mental Health Program to our students.
This program addresses issues of stigma surrounding mental health in young people, encourages help-seeking, and creates a culture of mutual support and respect for any struggles that students may face.
This program was developed by Dr Hayley Watson, an adolescent clinical psychologist who has been developing programs globally for the past 15 years. There are audio and video-based resources to provide you, as a parent, with practical tools for supporting the well-being of your child at all stages of their life. We will be sending you links to access these resources as your child progresses through the program.
Here is a message from the founder of Open Parachute, Dr Watson:
I am so pleased that your child is taking part in this program. I developed this resource because I want every child to learn practical mental health skills, so they can live life to their fullest potential.
This program aims to build a strong foundation of resilience so that your child can learn to trust in their own abilities, relate to their own feelings in a healthy way, and change any unhelpful patterns that may hold them back at any point in their lives.
It is normal for your children to have feelings stirred up throughout the course of this program, because we are intentionally providing a space where they can address challenging issues in a safe, nurturing, and supportive environment. These conversations can also continue at home if you and your child would like to explore these topics further – the video-based resources for parents can help guide these discussions.
We look forward to working with you to support the well-being of your child!
Caregiver Resources Registration
Open Parachute also offers Caregiver Resources within the Parents & Caregivers section of the Side Menu to provide helpful information for supporting students at home:
Once you open the Caregiver Resources page, you can select "Share" to copy a unique link for your school. You can provide this link directly to parents and caregivers.
You can find out more about the Caregiver Resources by visiting our Help Article.