Children
Mental health and wellbeing in our school...
After every storm, there is always a rainbow!
Children’s Mental Health Week 2021 - Express Yourself
From 1-7 February 2021 Stamfordham will take part in Children’s Mental Health Week, along with youth groups, schools and communities across the UK. This year’s theme is Express Yourself.
It’s important for children to remember that being able to express yourself is not about being the best at something or putting on a performance for others. It is about finding a way to show who you are, and how you see the world, that can help you feel good about yourself. We are therefore encouraging children (and adults) to explore the different ways we can express ourselves, and the creative ways that we can share our feelings, our thoughts and our ideas.
- One of the best ways we can keep a positive Mental Health is through exercise. It would be great to see pictures of you keeping fit this week by expressing yourself through different types of physical activities to keep your body and mind healthy:
- Monday: https://www.bbc.co.uk/teach/supermovers/pshe-super-mood-movers-fit-and-well/zqr67yc (SuperMovers)
- Tuesday: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIB2SJnBHBQ (Joe Wicks)
- Wednesday: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gVfgTw_W_JY&t=8s (Just Dance)
- Thursday: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2X1p0Yd6WAo (Spiderman workout)
- Friday: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNog54ovi8Q (Dance along)
Send your photos to your class teachers through Class Dojo for a Dojo point!
Take part in our rainbow challenge: ‘After the rain, there will be a rainbow’
Can you create a creative rainbow and send it to your class teacher?
Wellbeing activities
What does mental health and wellbeing look like at Stamfordham PS?
Our vision is to develop a school community where children can enjoy a welcoming, secure, happy and healthy environment, where all members can develop self-confidence, self-esteem, self motivation, independence, compassion, tolerance and understanding of others.
At Stamfordham Primary School we support the emotional health and wellbeing of our pupils and staff. We have a supportive and caring ethos model of respect and kindness, where each individual is valued.
At our school we know that everyone experiences life challenges that can make us vulnerable and at times, anyone may need additional emotional support. We take the view that positive mental health is everybody’s business and that we all have a role to play.
We promote a mentally healthy environment through:-
- Promoting our school values and encouraging a sense of belonging
- Promoting pupil voice and opportunities to participate in decision-making
- Celebrating academic and non-academic achievements
- Providing opportunities to develop a sense of worth through taking responsibility for themselves and others
- Providing opportunities to reflect
- Access to appropriate support that meets their needs.
Promotion of positive mental wellbeing at Stamfordham 
Our school offers pupils many opportunities to do physical and relaxing activities to promote positive well being:-
- Dinner time games to play outside
- Library open each week to borrow books to read
- Learning Projects
- Themed Days
- Charity Days
- Summer and Christmas Fairs
- Residential visits
- Educational day visits
- After school clubs
We love to celebrate success! 
The school likes to celebrate the many successes that are children achieve:-
- Twitter/Website to celebrate what is taking place.
- Displaying pupil’s work
- Achievement Award Assembly each week with Strawberry, Sport and Kindness Certificates
- Half term Simon Richards Award
- Friends Resilience Interactive Displays
- Dojo points
- Weekly school newsletter to celebrate what has taken place
Where are we with Friends Resilience?
We know that 2020 and the start of 2021 has been a strange and peculiar time for all pupils at Stamfordham. The COVID-19 pandemic has been really tough for our children (and for you at home) and that many of them (and you) were anxious about the return to a more ‘normal’ way of life. We wanted to ensure that on returning to school and our ‘new normal’, our children were supported to develop the skills needed for them to manage and prevent anxiety, and go on to become confident and thriving individuals. The children have looked forward to the weekly Friends Resilience session and have participated in various activities both at home and at school, creating a bank of new skills which they can use and rely on in different situations. We have seen such a positive response to the programme and will continue, throughout the year, to refer back to the skills we have learnt in autumn, to support children as they continue to develop confidence and self-belief.
From the children…
“Learning relaxation techniques! I have been able to work through friendship issues by using different breathing methods to calm me down and think of solutions.”
Martha from Class 4
“I have learnt how to create a coping step plan to help me with tasks I find tricky at school.” Courtney from Class 3
“I have enjoyed learning how to change my red thoughts into green thoughts and how I can use bubble breathing to feel relaxed.”
Charlie in Class 2
“How to be a kind friend and look after your friends, you can use your green thoughts too!”
Jack from Reception.
Please do continue to use FRIENDS Resilience strategies at home. To help, there is a wonderful, new ‘FRIENDS’ app which can be downloaded from the Apple App Store (it’s not available for android devices at the moment). It’s definitely worth looking at and gives lots of activities and topics for children to discuss.
Friends Resilience Strategies
Coping strategies for children
Our children's welfare is extremely important to us at Stamfordham Primary so we are working in collaboration with experts, trainers and counsellors at BeYou, a North East organisation which specialises in supporting and counselling both children and adults. They also help children with coping methods surrounding healthy relationships, puberty, sexual education, anxiety, emotional well-being, self-esteem and self-care.
Services and websites
Every Mind Matters
Public Health England’s new mental health campaign to support children and young people and their parents and carers: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/
Place2Be
https://www.place2be.org.uk/our-services/services-for-schools/mental-health-resources-for-schools/coronavirus-wellbeing-activity-ideas-for-schools/
Stop, Breathe, Think
My life- app available with a version for children and one for adults: https://my.life/
FRIENDS
Friends Resilience App found in Apple App Store. This app supports all strategies and techniques used within Stamfordham to support children with their mental health.
Please see Miss McKinney or Miss Snowball if you would like support or to talk, or any other school adult you know and are comfortable with...
Further support organisations
https://youngminds.org.uk/resources/school-resources/find-your-feet-transition-tips-for-parents/
http://www.anorexiabulimiacare.org.uk/family-and-friends/parents
https://www.autismhelp.info/primary-years
https://booksbeyondwords.co.uk/