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 […]
Children’s Activity: Therapeutic Colouring Sheet Read More »
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
Children’s Activity: My Mental Health Plan Read More »
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
Children’s Activity: My Nervous System Read More »
Self-Belief Self-belief means that we have the ability to recognise our abilities, and capabilities to achieve and move forward with our goals and plans. When we have healthy self-belief we recognise our positive qualities, are able to read situations and identify what we are able to achieve. As well as being able to set ourselves
Children’s Activity: Self-Belief Balloons Read More »
When supporting children with mental health needs, being aware of their personal needs, including triggers, distraction and regulation techniques, as well as applying these consistently is key to proving exceptional support which allows children to thrive. Creating personalised plans, which explore these needs with the child and their parents, and key carers allows us to
Children’s Activity: Create a Personal Needs Plan Read More »
Feelings So often, children struggle to explain how they feel because, they either: Do not have the vocabulary for the feeling They have the vocabulary, but do not understand what it means Therefore, spending time exploring feelings, to consider: Their names The way they affect our bodies The thoughts that they are associated with The
Children’s Activity: Emotions Flash Cards Read More »
Something a little different today. Those who follow regularly, will know that I have a sidekick, a therapy dog called Brian, who works with me in my therapy practice. Today is Brian’s 7th Birthday. On his first birthday, we launched the Adventures of Brian, a children’s book collection to support children with their thoughts, worries
Children’s Activity: Brian’s Birthday Colouring Read More »
Back to School As we prepare for the return to school, everyone’s mind is in different places. For some, they cannot wait to get back and see their friends, for others, they feel the summer needs to be 12 weeks (not 6), for others there is excited apprehension as they prepare for transitions, unsure about
Children’s Activity: Back to School Planner Read More »
Many children and young people can find the concept of problem solving difficult. Therefore, supporting them to find strategies to work through problems and possible solutions is beneficial to their cognitive development. Problem Solving This downloadable problem solving sheet, allows us to utilise questions and exploration to discover possible options for problems. Download here
Children’s Activity: Problem Solving Read More »
Talking about feelings does not need to be boring. In fact, when we can normalise it, and create emotional conversations on a daily basis we open children up to feeling more comfortable to talk. So, we are sharing this simple feelings game, where you can explore memories of feelings. Tell me about: Download it here
Children’s Activity: Tell me about….. Read More »
