The Hyphen journey is organic and bespoke
1 - Getting to know each other
We always start with a conversation - a chat between Holly and a parent over the phone, or a scheduled meeting with several family members and our team.
We want to know more about your situation, what you are looking for, and most importantly what it is that makes your teen’s heart sing.
Then, at the pace that suits your teen, we have a series of interactions to help us all establish whether Hyphen is a good fit for your teen and vice versa. This can involve:
visits to our site after teens have gone home
home visits
one-on-ones with our team members to discuss interests
joining the programme for a few hours to get a feel for a regular day
and even trialling out a full day.
Good fit is essential and we are happy to take time over this.
2 - Confirming enrolment
When we are all confident that your family and Hyphen are a good match, we finalise the nitty gritty. This includes:
Confirming start date, and where relevant any variations on full-time.
Confirming payment structure - typically this involves a 25% deposit up front and then weekly-monthly payments. For those experiencing financial hardship, parents email us their case for the board to consider.
Collecting crucial contact, health, sensory and schooling information.
Signing the enrolment agreement.
Parents and teens get access to a Programme Record for the teen - a live shared document which captures a teen’s goals, to do list, what they did each day, strategies for how they learn and work best that we have discovered, photos and more.
3 - Settling in and exploring
There is no fanfare when our teens start with us. They simply slot in to a usual day, which they are familiar with after their visits. This low key approach dials down any anxiety. Teens immediately start working on something - anything - schoolwork, a building project, a creative project. As they do so, we continue building on getting to know teens - learning about what tasks and situations bring out their best and worst, finding out more about what motivates them and what they lean towards when they have freedom to choose, and identifying how much they can manage in a week and what impacts on that. We also expose them to some different experiences - outings, guests, discussions - and introduce ideas for next steps to build on their interests - resources, people from their field of interest, or opportunities - to expand possibilities for them.
4 - The fuzzy plan
While the timing differs for each teen, priorities generally begin to become clearer after about a month.
For some teens, life or personal skills emerge as the main focus. While they may be working on schoolwork or developing professional skills for a future career, these activities often serve as a vehicle for building practical skills, confidence, or self-regulation.
For other teens who are more ready for adulthood and independence, academic or professional knowledge and skills are front and centre. Their time at Hyphen is focused on equipping themselves with the knowledge, skills and experience they need to move towards a career.
The careers our teens want to pursue do not always have a clear or traditional pathway. In these cases, forging a pathway can become a key part of their work at Hyphen, particularly for young people interested in freelance or self-directed work.
Once a Fuzzy Plan begins to emerge, we will often meet with parents to discuss where we have got to and make sure everyone is on the same page.
What gets done at Hyphen
Academics
When our teens want or need to engage in studies in order to meet their future goals, we enrol them in Te Kura Correspondence School, Crimson Academy or other online learning institutes. We support them in-person to engage and achieve in their online studies - helping with motivation and organisation. We also advocate for teens and help them navigate educational systems.
Preparing for life
Cooking, driving licenses, enrolling to vote, cleaning, budgeting, taking public transport, navigating the health system - we tackle these and more. Our teens leave with a toolkit of practical skills and experiences that prepares them for living independently. We also foster attitudes that enable them to be a useful human and a contributing citizen. We expose them to real world experiences.
Getting work ready
Whether they are keen to follow the university path, train in a trade, become a freelancer, be an entrepreneur or get a job and work their way up - we help teens take next steps. We provide bespoke opportunities to visit workplaces, get work experiences and apply for jobs. We support them to and build professional networks and portfolios and technical skills. We help them plan and enrol in tertiary studies.
Personal skills
Friendships are key to a teen’s existence. Our small group environment enables teens to develop satisfying and strong relationships with others, without pressure. Our teens eat, work, play and grow alongside each other. They support each other to work through challenges, and celebrate wins together. Teens also learn to work closely with adults outside their family, and interact with a diverse range of people.
5 - Consolidation and progress
Once we start taking action on a teen’s Fuzzy Plan, the magic starts. Teen’s interests become more refined and specific. Or sometimes they change completely to an unexpected direction - a teen who wanted to be a nature photographer, suddenly finds they don’t enjoy photography when it needs to be commercialised and realise they want to keep it a hobby, while at the same time reviving a forgotten passion for biology and politics once they discover that environmental policy is a career pathway. This is also where we can experiment with different strategies for how a teen learns and works best - what works for one person doesn’t always work for another and knowing how our teens can work with their temperament, motivation and wiring can be transformative for teens and parents alike.
6 - Planning next steps
Once a teen’s plan has become clearer, and we have seen how much progress they can make within 6 months, it’s time for the teen, their family and our team to get together to discuss what happens next.
Many of our teens continue to work with us beyond 6 months - until they start at university, finish a project, get a job, or are ready to take their next step independently. Sometimes, they might switch to part-time to make room for a new opportunity they’ve taken up, while still having Hyphen as a place to return to for support, connection and guidance.
For some, six months is enough to give them the confidence, skills and direction they need to move on. For others, their journey takes longer. There is no set pathway or timeline - we work with each teen and their family to figure out what makes sense for them and what will best support their next step.
Previous graduates have for example gone on to do an internship with Crescendo Trust, study at Auckland University and Victoria University, start their own high-end nail art business, attend SAE Creative Media Institute, and getting workplace experience at Lloyd Stevenson Boat Builders through MAST Academy.