Articles & Resources
Children’s Activity: What’s the feeling?
When it comes to feelings, we need to be able to recognise the differences between the different sensations that they create, as well as recognise what our unique triggers are. So, this week we have a simple activity to start the dialogue around feelings. What’s the feeling? Download the worksheet and use the emoji’s to
Do you practice gratitude?
Do you practice gratitude? Or do you label is as ‘woo woo’ Or are you still stuck on the fence? In recent years, research into the power of gratitude has identified the importance that practicing daily gratitude has on our sense of happiness and well-being. When we practice gratitude consistently, and over a duration of
Children’s Activity: Mandala Colouring Sheet
With the move into Christmas, many children can start to feel overwhelmed. Helping children to unwind and let go can support them to release stress and support regulation. Colouring has many benefits: Develops fine motor skills Supports concentration skills Develops colour recognition Strengthens handwriting skills Encourages relaxation Develops focus Creates a focus on the present
Hypoarousal versus Hyperarousal
When we experience stress, we can have two different reactions: Hyperarousal – where we feel overwhelmed by the stress Hypoarousal – where we feel numbed by the stress Any of us can become hyper or hypo aroused, however we frequently see these actions in children who are neurodiverse, such as those with autism spectrum disorder,
Children’s Activity: Make your own Gratitude Monster
Gratitude In recent years, research into the power of gratitude has identified the importance that this practice has on our sense of happiness and well-being. When we practice gratitude consistently, and over time, we can train our brain to focus on what is going well, and develop a sense of optimism. It has been found,
7 ways that we can support children in the classroom
Whilst the understanding of the concept of mental health has increased, especially since the lockdowns, there is a gap between awareness and understanding. For some, their awareness is coupled with effective strategies, whilst for others their awareness is yet to be supported with understanding of the ‘how’. We can often, also get lost in looking
Children’s Activities: Making Feelings Fingers
Feelings A step of emotional literacy development is being able to recognise what our emotions are. Many children can find it challenging to be able to recognise, identify and respond to their emotions, particularly differentiating between emotions such as disappointment, embarrassment and anger. A great first step, is to encourage children to reflect on their
Why do children with ADHD struggle socially?
ADHD Many moons ago, when I started my career with children, ADHD and ASD were two words we rarely heard. In fact, when I started my career in early years 24 years ago, most frequently, children were just described as ‘fidgety’ ‘having ants in their pants’ or in worst cases, described as being ‘naughty’. Whilst
Children’s Activity: Coping Skills Download
When we have big feelings, or uncomfortable feelings, knowing how to respond to our own needs is important. Learning what our preferred coping skills are can help us to respond to our feelings effectively. So, this week, we are sharing a downloadable coping skills sheet, so that you can start conversations with children about how
Why do other’s people’s opinions impact us?
A common issue that so many young people struggle with is that they feel that everyone is watching them. Have you ever noticed that for so many, this struggle paralyses them? Preventing them from stepping forward, doing things that they want to do, and holding them back from thriving and reaching their potential. So, why
Children’s Activity: Make your own Feelings Pebbles
We often talk about finding creative ways to talk about feelings can open new conversations. Sometimes, just sitting down can feel too confronting for some children, so activities can provide the perfect opportunity to explore what we are feeling and how it affects us. However, we also need to build on our feelings vocabulary as
Does confidence need to be loud?
Do you ever wonder if we have gotten confidence completely wrong? As I get older, I have had to continually question the concept of confidence, and how it has been sold to me as a human being, from childhood to adulthood. Let’s start with the basics, what is confidence? Confidence is described as ‘the feeling
Children’s Activity: Therapeutic Colouring Sheet
As we roll into half term, helping children to unwind and let go of their first weeks back at school can release stress and support regulation. Colouring has many benefits: Develops fine motor skills Supports concentration skills Develops colour recognition Strengthens handwriting skills Encourages relaxation Develops focus Creates a focus on the present Calms a
What’s your personal minimum expectation?
As part of my work as a therapist and coach, I have accepted that I have relinquished my life to learning. That old adage, ‘the more you learn, the more you realise you have to learn’ rings true on a daily basis. When I was a lecturer, I often said that the day I thought
Children’s Activity: My Mental Health Plan
Whilst outside factors may influence our mental health, our levels of self-esteem and resilience influence the level of impact that this may have (child dependent). Therefore, the earlier we can support children and young people to take steps to have positive action in their own well-being is an important life skill for all children. Taking
Master Masking – why children hide their feelings
What is a master masker? For those who have attended any of my training or the Level 4 Diploma in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Coaching, I often talk about children who are ‘Master Maskers’. There is often a misconception, that children SHOW us their emotions, and this can cause a conflict between home and
Children’s Activity: My Nervous System
Nervous Systems When children’s nervous systems are hypervigilant, their body and brain is not in a place to: Listen Learn Talk Express themselves Relax Sleep When we are in our sympathetic nervous system, our body and brain is alert and active, seeking out any threats in the environment as though they are TRex dinosaurs. Our
Why do children with autism get missed?
As part of my work as a therapist and coach, I spend a great deal of my work working with children and/or their parents who require autism assessment. Many children are diagnosed with autism by age 5, however, for some of these families, these assessments come after the age of 12, when many children have
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