Raising Resilience

BOUNCE focuses on helping schools build a shared language for emotional regulation, resilience and mentally healthy habits that can be used consistently across classrooms, playgrounds and conversations with parents.

Many wellbeing programmes focus primarily on lessons. BOUNCE includes structured lessons, but its real strength lies in helping staff use simple, consistent language and strategies during everyday moments when emotions arise.

Written by clinical psychologists and child mental health specialists for UK primary schools, the programme focuses on helping children understand how their brains and emotions work and developing practical skills they can use in real life.

We’re not quite sure where you sit. Are you PSHE?

That’s one of the most common questions we’re asked.

BOUNCE is not a PSHE scheme of work.

PSHE teaches children important knowledge about health, relationships and personal development.

BOUNCE teaches the emotional regulation and resilience skills that allow children to access all learning — including PSHE.

But there’s another key difference.

BOUNCE is designed as a whole-school approach, not just a curriculum resource.

It creates:

• A shared emotional language across classrooms
• Consistent adult responses
• Parent-friendly tools that extend learning into the home
• Practical strategies that staff can use themselves

Many schools deliver BOUNCE within PSHE time, but it is equally effective in:

• Assembly
• Tutor time
• Wellbeing sessions
• Staff meetings
• Parent workshops

It strengthens culture — not just curriculum.

Jigsaw is a structured PSHE programme covering a broad range of topics.

BOUNCE focuses specifically on:

• How the brain works under stress
• What happens when we “flip our lid”
• How to recognise body signals
• How to calm the nervous system
• How to recover from mistakes
• How to build resilience over time

Jigsaw teaches themes.

BOUNCE teaches regulation skills.

BOUNCE also supports implementation at a whole-school level by:

• Giving staff consistent scripts and language
• Providing parent phrase cards and guidance
• Encouraging shared modelling from adults
• Supporting staff wellbeing through the same tools children learn

Many schools use both successfully because:

BOUNCE strengthens children’s ability to engage in Jigsaw lessons calmly and confidently.

It builds the emotional foundation that makes PSHE more impactful.

We already use Zones of Regulation. Isn’t that similar?

There is some helpful overlap around recognising and naming feelings.

Zones of Regulation supports children to identify and categorise their emotional state, often with the aim of helping them return to a state that is ready for learning.

BOUNCE goes further and broader.

BOUNCE teaches:

• The brain science behind dysregulation
• What happens when we “flip our lid”
• How to recognise body signals
• Concrete calming strategies
• How to repair after mistakes
• How to build resilience over time

Importantly, BOUNCE is not about getting children into the “right zone” for learning.

It carries a core message woven throughout the programme:

✔ Whatever you are feeling is OK
✔ All feelings are part of being human
✔ We all experience emotions differently
✔ The goal is not to eliminate feelings — but to understand and manage them

BOUNCE skills are designed for:

• The classroom
• The playground
• Exams
• Friendship challenges
• Sporting events
• Transitions
• Family life
• Adult stress and staff wellbeing

They are life skills — not just learning readiness tools.

Many schools use BOUNCE alongside Zones because:

• Zones helps children identify where they are.
• BOUNCE helps them understand why, what’s happening in their brain and body, and what to do next — in any area of life.

BOUNCE also strengthens consistency across pupils, staff and families by embedding shared language beyond the classroom.

It is less about moving children to a particular colour — and more about building lifelong emotional literacy and resilience.

BOUNCE is universal and preventative.

It is not a targeted therapy programme.

However, because it explicitly teaches emotional regulation skills and builds consistent adult language, it often strengthens:

• Behaviour policy
• SEMH provision
• Inclusion practice
• Attendance work
• Playground support
• Exam readiness
• Staff confidence

Schools often describe BOUNCE as:

• A Tier 1 universal foundation
• A preventative mental health approach
• A whole-school culture shift
• An early intervention strategy

It reduces escalation because children — and adults — share the same understanding and tools.

BOUNCE is intentionally flexible.

Schools typically:

• Teach a weekly 15-20 minute session
• Deliver in half-term blocks
• Introduce in assembly then reinforce in class
• Embed daily 5-minute regulation moments
• Integrate language into behaviour conversations

Because BOUNCE is skill-based, it works best when:

✔ It is modelled by adults
✔ It is reinforced across the week
✔ It is shared with parents
✔ It becomes part of everyday language

It should feel integrated — not like “another subject.”

Yes — and this is a crucial part of what makes it powerful.

The same regulation and resilience skills taught to children are relevant for adults.

Staff report that BOUNCE:

• Strengthens their own regulation under pressure
• Increases confidence in responding to behaviour
• Reduces emotional firefighting
• Creates consistency across teams
• Supports wellbeing culture

Because the language is shared across pupils, staff and families, it reduces fragmentation and misunderstanding.

It supports the emotional climate of the whole school.

Yes — and this is a vital part of what makes BOUNCE effective.

BOUNCE is designed as a whole-school approach that extends beyond the classroom. When children hear the same language at school and at home, skills embed more deeply and consistently.

We provide:

• Parent guides
• Phrase cards
• Simple scripts and conversation starters
• Workshops (where schools choose to include them)
• Shared explanations of the brain science behind big feelings

Early engagement makes the biggest difference.

Schools that begin involving parents from the Infant stage — particularly through Little BOUNCE — often see the strongest long-term impact. When families understand from the start that:

✔ All feelings are OK
✔ Big emotions are part of development
✔ Calm can be taught
✔ Resilience can be practised

Children grow up hearing one consistent message across home and school.

This shared language reduces confusion, strengthens emotional safety, and builds confidence in both children and adults.

BOUNCE supports not only pupil mental health, but also parent and staff confidence — creating alignment across the whole school community.

Pastoral systems often support children when difficulties arise.

BOUNCE builds emotional regulation skills in every child so that:

• Fewer issues escalate
• Recovery is quicker
• Staff responses are consistent
• Parents feel equipped
• Wellbeing becomes proactive rather than reactive

It strengthens what you already do.

The Whole-School BOUNCE Programme is designed for primary schools from Nursery through to Year 6.

The same core ideas and shared language are used across the school, while lessons and resources are adapted for each stage of development. Younger pupils focus on recognising feelings and simple calming strategies, while older pupils develop deeper understanding of emotions, resilience and problem-solving.

The programme includes clear learning outcomes for each year group, mapped to PSHE Association Learning Outcomes and aligned with key areas of the Ofsted framework, helping schools demonstrate how emotional wellbeing, personal development and behaviour are being supported through the curriculum.

This progression helps children build emotional understanding and skills gradually as they grow through the school.