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Defence School Mentor (DSM)

OUR COMMUNITY

Defence School Mentor (DSM)

The DSM program is funded by the Department of Defence to assist ADF families to adapt to the challenges they face due to mobility and parental absence as part of serving in the Australian Defence Force.

The DSM provides assistance to Defence students and their families and raises awareness of the unique needs of families due to the military lifestyle. The military lifestyle, whilst rewarding, can also have its challenges. The DSM works with the school to ensure the social and emotional well-being of students while in our care. It also provides an opportunity to create a special community within the school where students and families feel valued and supported by a group of people with common goals and circumstances.

OUR COMMUNITY

Defence School Mentor (DSM)

Support to Students

  • Assist students to identify individual concerns
  • Assistance in managing concerns and developing coping strategies
  • Liaise with teachers and parents
  • Develop individual intervention strategies with
    his/her teacher
  • There to support students when emotional about parental
    absenteeism and safety concerns while deployed
  • Make appropriate referrals
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OUR COMMUNITY

Defence School Mentor (DSM)

Support to Parents

  • Readily available and accessible for any parent concerns;
  • Following up on parent concerns;
  • Assist with ADF specific challenges;
  • Regular parent emails, keeping them up to date with what is happening in the school and Defence community.

Support to Teachers

  • Available to discuss student concerns and devote time to addressing them;
  • Available to assist with lifestyle specific disruptions to students’ academic program and well-being;
  • Available to provide targeted support to students;
  • Available to provide targeted interventions to support student needs.
OUR COMMUNITY

Activities

Recess and lunchtime activities include:

  • Student biographies
  • Regular skipping sessions
  • Dodgeball
  • Mothers’ Day activities
  • Model building
  • Board games
  • Colouring and drawing
  • WA rock creation
  • Fathers’ Day activities
  • Pizza lunches
  • Defence club breakfast
  • Arts and craft activities
  • Ball games
  • Anzac Day and Remembrance Day activities