Well, well, well!!
What a fantastic day we had last Friday!
Our first Wellbeing Day was well planned, well executed and well received by everyone in our school community!
There was a real buzz about the school and when I spoke to the children during my lunch duty, they could articulate the activities they enjoyed and remembered the session it related to as well, so the outcomes were noticeable too! A huge THANK YOU to our teaching staff for their carefully planned sessions (and their improvisation too!) which enabled the children to recognise the Five Ways to Wellbeing.
Here's a few of the highlights:
CONNECT
Walking around the school I found Reception creating the longest paper chain I had ever seen, all contributing and connecting their links together. Year 1 were unusually quiet but I soon saw they were playing Chinese whispers and connecting through speaking and listening skills! Class 3S were making collaborative pieces of art - as the music stopped, they moved to another drawing and added their own details to evolve it. Mrs Monteith was having fun taking photos of group tableaus as the children posed for a photos such as being on a roller coaster and sitting in a car wash!
LEARN
Mrs Forth gave the upper school a fantastic opportunity to learn some British Sign Language and the children practised hard in communicating with their peers. Mdme. Tatton gave the children a unique experience learning about sticks and what different marks and details mean. They used their senses to broaden their understanding and will probably never look at a stick in the same way again! In the Science room, Mrs Byrne and Class 6Y were learning about the vast number of different geckos there are all with very intricate detailing - they loved learning and drawing these fascinating creatures.
BE ACTIVE
It amazes me how much fun you can get by throwing balls around in the hope of hitting something - or someone! Mr Phillips set up a fortress and facilitated a dodge-ball battle in the hall with some year groups, which the children loved! The corridor became a bowling alley for Years 5 and 6 where they polished their skills and cheered each other on with Mrs Byrne.
TAKE NOTICE
This way of wellbeing was approached very differently between the year groups which gave a fantastic variety of experiences. Reception and Class 1S were found wandering around school on a colour walk - taking notice of the variety and prevalence on their colour chart and Class 3S enjoyed Minecraft Yoga by following Jaime from Cosmic Kids online.
Mrs Webb fed back about her sessions, " 'Notice' was the area I worked on with the children in Years 5 and 6. This gave them time to stop, giving them space to notice small things. We discussed birdsong, sunsets , breathing and beautiful views, about allowing ourselves time for awe and wonder.
"In class they practised noticing skills with mindful colouring, playing Guess Who and Articulate and describing items small objects hidden in a bag without seeing them. All of this was to develop their sense of noticing the finer detail."
GIVE
Giving came in different ways and for different reasons - Class 2W made promises over this Lenten period, Class 3S gave compliments and words of affirmation to their class mates and 4M made origami tulips to give to someone special.
Mrs Yates also shared her experiences, "I had the pleasure to deliver sessions on the 'give' aspect of well being to Years 5 and 6. We discussed all the different things we can give to others and the benefits this has not only on the receiver but the giver too. The children produced little notes of thanks or inspirational quotes to give to others. Some chose to be personal in their giving and others chose to be generic and anonymous. The kind and loving atmosphere this created was palpable. The children were so original and thoughtful in their words, which were so moving and heartfelt.
"There was a very genuine sense of love and empathy in these sessions which all the children benefited from. I felt privileged to be part of it."
I hope you have been able to gain some insight into our day. I was very encouraged by the engagement of the children and their abilities to understand and reflect on their own lives. Each child collected stickers during the day and then created an action plan in one or more of the Ways of Wellbeing where they could make changes for the better. We are all looking forward to another Wellbeing Day next year already!
Sam Stapleton
Head of Wellbeing
