The boys and girls in Year 1 correctly used the word ‘blue’ in discussion with me recently, when we were trying to come up with synonyms for feeling a little glum, which I thought demonstrated a really subtle and very nuanced understanding of what it feels like when things are not going quite so well.
To that end, we have been very pleased to mark the Mental Health Foundation’s National Mental Health Awareness Week at both the Pre-Prep and the Prep, under the broader banner of our current assembly theme: Bright Days. On Thursday morning, I had the pleasure of speaking to the pupils in the Pre-Prep about this, and I shall be continuing with the same in my assembly with the boys in the Prep on Monday morning.
The Mental Health Foundation has chosen community as its theme for this year’s awareness week, which struck me as rather apt. There was a great deal I could share with the children about how my own understanding of our school – as a community – supports the notion of a community-minded spirit, which in turn helps keep our mental health in good working order.
We are lucky in school, really. By virtue of being here, we are automatically part of a vibrant and uplifting community. However, like all communities, there are times when things go a little awry. Life rarely trots along in full and joyful, cartoon-like technicolour, with all of us skipping merrily through daisies humming cheerful tunes all the time. There will be ups (phew!) but there will also be some downs. That is why it felt important to share a few top tips for supporting our mental health as members of a kind and positive community. These included the importance of talking about our feelings, and quite simply of being kind, not just to others, but to ourselves as well.
Bright Days, indeed. They are, naturally, even brighter when we take care of each other.
