Let's Connect for Children's Mental Health Week 2023

What is Children's Mental Health Week?

While we know that a lot of the resources are UK based, in 2Simple SA office we feel that raising awareness about children's mental health is just so important. It sets the stage for a happy and healthy future for kids. Mental health plays a big role in overall well-being and children who receive support and understanding for their mental health challenges will grow up to be strong and confident. This is why we decided to jump on the Children's Mental health Week band wagon this year! Let's break the stigma and give kids the help they need to succeed.

Place2Be

Children's Mental Health Week is run by children's mental health charity Place2Be, who launched the first ever Children’s Mental Health week in 2015 to shine a spotlight on the importance of children and young people’s mental health. Now in its eighth year, they hope to encourage more people than ever to get involved and spread the word. The theme this year is Let’s Connect and runs from 6th-12th February. Free primary and secondary resources are now available from Place2Be, including assembly guides, slides, group activities, fundraising ideas and more to help schools and youth groups explore what it means to Connect.

Human beings thrive in communities, and this connection is vital for our wellbeing, and our survival. When we have healthy connections – to family, friends and others – this can support our mental health and our sense of wellbeing. And when our need for rewarding social connections is not met, we can sometimes feel isolated and lonely – which can have a negative impact on our mental health.  

Let's Connect is about making meaningful connections for all, during Children's Mental Health Week - and beyond. (Place2Be)

Beyond

Beyond are a youth mental charity that exists to improve young people’s mental health in the UK. They have a wealth of resources on their website and run the UK’s only mental health festival for schools and colleges on 8th February that is free for schools to sign up to. Beyond is powered by an impassioned youth board that is determined to instil new attitudes and are the heart and soul of the charity.

How can I teach about looking after mental health in the classroom?

Purple Mash

We have worked with the charity Beyond to create a range of resources for Children’s Mental Health Week, these are open access and available to all schools to use. They include a specially written book entitled “Sticks and Screens” a story about Digital Wellbeing, there are 5 chapters perfect to use during the week and it has a range of resources to go alongside the book.

We have also produced a range of Digital Wellbeing resources that can be used over the week, you can access these via the links below:

There are a range of dedicated resources within Purple Mash that focus on Mental Health and Wellbeing, alongside the creative tools that children can use during the week that cover the theme ‘Let’s Connect’. From writing to art to music, the only limit is their own imagination. Subscribers can access these resources within our Children’s Mental Health week folder.

We have put together a free resource pack for the week, the pack features the resources linked above, alongside resources from two of our other platforms Striver and Dot Com, as well as a pack for parents on discussing Mental Health and wellbeing with their children. You can download the pack here and find out more about other products below.

Striver

Striver is our PE and wellbeing platform created with a sole purpose: to improve primary aged pupils' long-term physical and mental wellbeing. We do that by ensuring children of all abilities feel motivated and engaged, and teachers of all experience levels feel confident and in control. It includes 6 wellbeing units for each year group (3 units for reception) alongside over 400 lessons to support the teaching of PE.

Dot Com Digital

Dot Com Digital supports children’s personal, social and emotional development and helps to provide a safe space for them to develop their skills. Through Dot Com Digital, children will be given the knowledge and empowerment to make their own decisions regarding their wellbeing, health and relationships. It offers comprehensive coverage of important life skills through Dot’s real-life stories, children can learn about risks they might come across in life and how they can deal with them in a safe way.

We hope that you find these resources useful in helping your pupils to connect . If you use any of the resources mentioned we would love to hear from you on either our Twitter, Facebook or Instagram.