HEALTH & WELL BEING IN SCHOOLS—THE WHOLE CHILD (UK)

1. HEALTH & WELL BEING IN SCHOOLS—THE WHOLE CHILD (UK) Session One – The importance of health and wellbeing in educational practice

2. Healthis “a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity." Wellbeing is “the state in which an individual realises his or her own abilities, can cope with normal stresses of life, can work productively, and is able to make a contribution to his or her own community. Wellbeing involves having positive self image and esteem.”. (Definition by the World Health Organisation)

3. November 2014:

4. Key evidence: Pupils with better health and wellbeing are likely to achieve better academically.

5. Effective social and emotional competencies are associated with greater health and wellbeing, and better achievement.

6. The culture, ethos and environment of a school influences the health and wellbeing of pupils and their readiness to learn.

7. A positive association exists between academic attainment and physical activity levels of pupils.

8. Resilience! Signs of resilience and wellbeing • confidence to approach new situations and approach new people • realistic optimism • avoiding constant self-blame   • ability to set goals • positive self image and self esteem

9. True Grit test! http://www.risk-within-reason.com/2011/12/02/grit-resilience/

10. Summary • PHWB is essential for academic success • The culture of a school has a significant impact on PHWB • Developing resilience is a key element for wellbeing • Try assessing your own resilience on the True Grit scale!

11. HEALTH & WELL BEING IN SCHOOLS—THE WHOLE CHILD (UK) Session two – Ethos, Curriculum, teaching and learning to promote wellbeing

12. Piaget`s Theory • It is concerned with children, rather than all learners. • It focuses on development, rather than learning per se, so it does not address learning of information or specific behaviors. • It proposes discrete stages of development, marked by qualitative differences, rather than a gradual increase in number and complexity of behaviors, concepts, ideas, etc. How would this approach affect the culture and ethos of a school?

13. Evidence of culture and ethos • Flow theory: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzPky5Xe1-s Discuss your thoughts on what this theory means • For you • For pupils at school

14. Flow theory in school `One of the most predominant characteristics of this flow state is concentration. An involved person narrows his attention to one limited circle. Involvement goes along with strong motivation, fascination and total implication: there is no distance between person and activity, no calculation of possible benefits. Furthermore there is an openness to (relevant) stimuli and the perceptual and cognitive functioning has an intensity which is lacking in other kinds of activity. The meanings of words and ideas are felt more strongly and deeply. Further analysis reveals a manifest feeling of satisfaction and a stream of energy felt through the body. People actively seek this ‘state of flow’. ` • Young children usually find it in play. ( Dr.FerreLaevers, 2005)

15. Csikszentmihalyi has identified three conditions necessary to achieve a state of flow: • The goals are clear (i.e. design an experiment which demonstrates xyz, write a persuasive essay, paint the ceiling of the chapel) • The goals are attainable and within one's skillset and ability; and the challenge level and skill level are both high • You get clear and immediate feedback so you can adjust your course

16. So what impact does that have on our teaching? • This is why every lesson must have clear and laser-focused objectives -- not because an inspector is going to come in and ding you if they're not evident -- but because without an articulation of a clear goal, pupils can't attain flow. • This is why we need to know what our pupils know and what they can do, this is why we need to do those assessments, so we can match their skill level to an appropriately challenging task. This is why we need to design lessons and activities that are rigorous and on the upper levels of Bloom's, that ask students to argue and debate, create, and evaluate

17. And this is why we need to check students' understanding every 10 minutes and use a range of formative assessment strategies so then we can adjust course and ensure that they'll be successful with the task. • Flow should be part of our daily experience in school -- for pupils and teachers. Maybe we can't experience flow all day, every day, but maybe pupils and teachers can experience it more often than happens now.

18. Our daily bread….. Feeding Minds - The impact of food on mental health ( Mental Health Foundation, 2006) • `Anyone who has ever smoked, drank alcohol, tea or coffee or eaten chocolate knows that such products can improve one’s mood, at least a little and temporarily. What seems to be less common is an understanding that some foods can have a lasting influence on mood and mental wellbeing because of the impact they have on the structure and function of the brain.`

19. Main recommendation • The UK population and particular groups who are at increased risk of mental health problems should be provided with information about foods that promote their mental, emotional and physical well-being

20. Happiness in pretty simple….. We need • someone to love, • something to do, • something to look forward to. Rita Mae Brown

21. Summary • What we do in school is crucially important but so is how we do it • Health and wellbeing has its roots in our physical and mental state – both need addressing to promote them effectively

22. HEALTH & WELL BEING IN SCHOOLS—THE WHOLE CHILD (UK) Session Three– Staff Development to support wellbeing in school

23. Relationships!!!! Wellbeing is relational – so work with staff needs to focus on establishing very positive relationships…. How can we do that? Watch Nick Marks `Happiness Works` TED talk on the impact of happiness on productivity https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CH2ys_IgV4Y What are the key messages here? Do you agree with them…and if so, why?

24. A different type of CPD….or school list of priorities….. Martin Seligman`s Core Values for happiness….what would lessons….or staff meetings… or the School Development Plan… look like if they focused on these areas? In groups, discuss how you would use these values on the following slides throughout the school day. Where can you find opportunities to plan for them? Strengths of the Head • Creativity: thinking a little bit differently • Curiosity: wanting to find out • Love of learning: enjoying, learning new things • Open-mindedness: enjoying difference, open to different people and ideas • Wisdom: understanding what is really important in life

25. Strengths of Action • Enthusiasm: eager and full of energy, raring to go • Persistence: Sticking at things, not giving up • Courage: doing the right thing even when we feel scared l • Honesty: telling the truth, being an open, straight forward person

26. Strengths of Community • Fairness: treating everyone equally • Teamwork: pulling together, working well with others • Leadership: Helping or guiding other people to do something good and to get on well

27. Strengths of the Heart • Love: caring deeply and showing we care by thoughts, words and deeds • Kindness: Doing and saying things to make people happy • Friendship: being gentle with ourselves and loyal and kind to other people

28. Strengths of Meaning • Gratitude: being thankful for good things, saying thank you • Spirituality: thinking deeply about God, love or the meaning of life • Humour: Seeing the funny side of life and making others smile or laugh • Hope: trusting that good things will happen • Love of beauty: noticing and enjoying good or beautiful things

29. Strengths of Self-control • Forgiveness: letting go of hurt and anger and wishing other people well again • Prudence: making good choices that effect our future • Self control: controlling thoughts, emotions and actions so we live well and achieve our goals • Modesty: a true knowledge of our own strengths and weaknesses

30. Ways teachers can create and enhance positivity in a classroom • Develop a positive relationship with each pupil regardless of the pupil’s behaviour, past or present. • Engage pupils with something – anything – that is relevant, interesting and compelling. • Actively and explicitly focus on positive experiences in the pupil’s life, present and past. • Quickly work towards helping the pupil identify his or her strengths • Build a positive pupil-teacher relationship • Make pupils feel special • Provide accurate, specific and detailed feedback • Provide plenty of positive reinforcement • Cultivate hope and optimism at every opportunity

31. Now change `pupil` to `adult`… • Develop a positive relationship with each adult regardless of the adult`s’sbehaviour, past or present. • Engage adults with something – anything – that is relevant, interesting and compelling. • Actively and explicitly focus on positive experiences in the adult`s life, present and past. • Quickly work towards helping the adult identify his or her strengths • Build a positive relationship • Make adults feel special • Provide accurate, specific and detailed feedback • Provide plenty of positive reinforcement • Cultivate hope and optimism at every opportunity

32. HEALTH & WELL BEING IN SCHOOLS—THE WHOLE CHILD (UK) Session Four– Working with parents and carers, identifying needs and impact

33. Parental engagement has a large and positive impact on children’s learning. This was the single most important finding from a recent and authoritative review of the evidence.

34. Parental involvement in the form of ‘at-home good parenting’ has a significant positive effect on children’s achievement and adjustment even after all other factors shaping attainment have been taken out of the equation. In the primary age range the impact caused by different levels of parental involvement is much bigger than differences associated with variations in the quality of schools. The scale of the impact is evident across all social classes and all ethnic groups. (Desforges 2003).

35. Whole school approach Attempts by schools to engage parents in their children’s learning are unlikely to be successful if they represent a ‘bolt-on’ to mainstream activities. A parental engagement strategy, therefore, should be integrated into a whole school approach to parental engagement. And school based family and parent support activities should have the improvement of children’s learning as a clear and consistent goal.

36. Staff needs To engage effectively with parents, staff require training and coaching, particularly when working with parents whose backgrounds are very different to their own. School staff should therefore receive parental engagement training through initial teacher training or continuing professional development.

37. Parents’ needs Schools which successfully engage parents make use of a broad understanding of parental engagement, and their parental engagement strategies accord with the interpretations and values of the parents they are aimed at. Parental engagement with children’s learning is effectively supported when parents receive clear, specific and targeted information from schools.

38. Understanding parents The evidence confirms the importance of a parental needs analysis, along with understanding what parents already do with their children and how they are most likely to respond positively to attempts to engage them (further) in their children’s learning. Programmes should therefore be targeted at particular groups of parents, showing sensitivity to cultural norms and expectations, and including specific, detailed and directive advice and guidance.

39. The importance of planning Parental engagement must be planned for and embedded in a whole school or service strategy.

40. Leadership Effective leadership of parental engagement is essential to the success of programmes and strategies. A parental engagement programme should be led by a senior leader, although leadership may also be distributed in the context of a programme or cluster of schools and services working to a clear strategic direction.

41. Get your priorities right! • Be sure about what you need to focus on…. Collect the data! • http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/tta-system/family/video-series.html

42. In conclusion…..