European Network of Health Promoting Schools ‘A healthy schools approach to promoting emotional health and well-being in

1. Dr. Annette Lyons Adviser for PSHE and Citizenship Devon Learning and Development Partnership, UK 16th – 17th April 2010Sunrise Beach Hotel, Protaras, Cyprus European Network of Health Promoting Schools‘A healthy schools approach to promoting emotional health and well-being including reducing bullying’ 1

2. To consider what emotional health and well-being is To explore why we teach children about the social and emotional aspects of learning, and what are social, emotional and behavioural skills? To consider how we promote social, emotional and behavioural skills within a whole school framework Actions back in school To become familiar with resources to promote emotional health and well-being in the primary school Workshop objectives: 2

3. Why teach children about the social and emotional aspects of learning, and what are social, emotional and behavioural skills? self-awareness managing feelings motivation empathy social skills Activity 1: 3

4. 5 broad social and emotional aspects of learning – Self awareness Self-awareness enables children to have some understanding of themselves. They know how they learn, how they relate to others, what they are thinking and what they are feeling. They use this understanding to organise themselves and plan their learning. Managing feelings In managing feelings, children use a range of strategies to recognise and accept their feelings. They can use this to regulate their learning and behaviour – for example managing anxiety or anger, or demonstrating resilience in the face of difficulty. What is emotional health and well-being?... … 4

5. Motivation Motivation enables learners to take an active and enthusiastic part in learning. Intrinsically motivated learners recognise and derive pleasure from learning. Motivation enables learners to set themselves goals and work towards them, to focus and concentrate on learning, to persist when learning is difficult and to develop independence, resourcefulness and personal organisation. Empathy Being able to empathise involves understanding others; anticipating and predicting their likely thoughts, feelings and perceptions. It involves seeing things from another’s point of view and modifying one’s own response, if appropriate, in the light of this understanding. Social skills Social skills enable children to relate to others, take an active part in a group, communicate with different audiences, negotiate, resolve differences and support the learning of others. 5

6. be effective and successful learners; make and sustain friendships; deal with and resolve conflict effectively and fairly; solve problems with others or by themselves; manage strong feelings such as frustration, anger and anxiety; be able to promote calm and optimistic states that promote the achievement of goals; recover from setbacks and persist in the face of difficulties; work and play cooperatively; compete fairly and win and lose with dignity and respect for competitors; recognise and stand up for their rights and the rights of others; understand and value the differences and commonalities between people, respecting the right of others to have beliefs and values different from their own. Children will be motivated and equipped to: 6

7. greater educational and work success; improvements in behaviour; increased inclusion; improved learning; greater social cohesion. Students who are anxious, angry or depressed don’t learn; people who are in these states do not take in information efficiently or deal with it well… when emotions overwhelm concentration, what is being swamped is the mental capacity cognitive scientists call ‘working memory’, the ability to hold in mind all information relevant to the task at hand. Goleman, D. Emotional Intelligence (New York: Bantam Books, 1995) Research on the benefits of developing children’s social and emotional and behavioural skills 7

8. How do we promote the development of social, emotional and behavioural skills? Think about all the ways your school currently helps your children to develop the knowledge, skills and understanding. Write your examples on sticky notes. Planned teaching; School and classroom ethos and organisation – conditions of learning Whole-school initiatives Supporting children with difficulties ACTIVITY 2: 8

9. Whole school framework Quality teaching of social, emotional and behavioural skills to all children Effective whole school policies and frameworks for promoting emotional health and well-being Small group intervention for children who need additional help in developing skills, and for their families Individual intervention 9

10. a high profile and value placed upon the outcomes at every level of school practice; a shared understanding that it is the responsibility of the whole-school community to promote and foster social, emotional and behavioural skills and PSHE; a taught curriculum which is structured, progressive and which enables skills to be revisited and developed at different chronological ages; a cross-curricular approach that reinforces the knowledge, skills and understanding taught through the explicit curriculum plan; an emotionally safe and positive environment which is consistent with the taught curriculum; school-wide sharing of aims, language and agreed strategies, e.g. for calming down, conflict resolution, problem-solving and for talking about and managing feelings; a structured and progressive whole-staff training programme which develops skills and provides the experiences and information that lead to confidence in supporting children’s social and emotional learning; a parental-involvement programme. To be successful, effective social, emotional and behavioural skills development requires: 10

11. senior management commitment to the principles and understanding of the implications; school systems which make sure that all individuals feel valued and listened to; positive relationships in the school or setting: adult–child, child–child, adult–adult; teacher insight and knowledge into the emotional factors that affect learning; clear and consistently implemented policies on behaviour, bullying, race equality and inclusion; high professional standards; skilful teaching which arouses pupil interest and motivates; proactive work with parents; the active involvement of children themselves. Factors that research has identified as essential for success 11

12. What are our needs and priorities regarding the development of social, emotional and behavioural skills (taking into consideration the unique character of our school or setting and local geographic area)? What is the current state of social, emotional and behavioural skills development and how is it being achieved? What is working well for us in this area? What are the gaps in current practice? How is progress ensured (and assessed) in this area? How can we ensure that subject coordinators are involved in planning? How can we ensure that children understand the purpose of work to develop their social, emotional and behavioural skills and are involved in planning? How will we involve parents/carers in our plans? What sources of support will we draw on? What initial and ongoing training will be necessary? What resources might we need? How will we reflect all this in our School Development or Improvement Plan BACK IN SCHOOL – Planning the curriculum: issues to consider… … 12

13. A focus on ‘new beginnings’ and belonging ACTIVITY 3: 13

14. ACTIVITY 3: Instructions: Select a piece of jigsaw paper – arrowside facing you Place the paper on the table with the arrow pointing away from you – turn the paper over sideways On the paper using pen, pencils, colours etc include the following information: Your name Interests/hobbies you have Somewhere you like to go Any personal information about you that you are happy to share with people in the group and other people in the room You can DRAW / WRITE, it is up to you. It is NOT an art exercise When you have finished fit your jigsaw pieces together and stick down on the flip chart paper Take it in turns to talk about your picture 14

15. Did the group work well? Did people have specific roles in the group? What helped you work well? What got in the way of you working well? How could we work better in this group next time? How did we work as a group? 15

16. HEADON resources… … Empathy Board Body Board and Emotions Pack School Scenario Board 16

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18. Reviewing resources for promoting emotional health and well-being in the primary school… • In your group, review the resources/activities you have been allocated and consider the following: • What resource is it from? • What is the focus of the activity? • What age group is it for? • Does it involve individual, group or class work? • What is your view of the lesson? • What teaching strategies are involved? • Write down 1 positive thing that the group liked about the resource that you can share with everyone later 18

19. Thank youIf you have any queries please do contact meannette.lyons@devon.gov.uk 19