Three education charities from the Coram Group have joined forces to launch a free online wellbeing toolkit for primary schools designed to support children’s mental wellbeing and boost resilience.
The three charities, Coram Life Education, Coram Beanstalk and Coram Shakespeare Schools Foundation, have brought their expertise together for the first time to create a trove of activities for primary school children based on the framework of the evidence-led New Economics Foundation and NHS five steps to mental wellbeing.
The toolkit is split into five sections for each of the five ways to wellbeing:
- Connect with others
- Be active
- Take notice (mindfulness)
- Learn and create
- Give to others
This flexible pack contains resources and activities for key stages one and two that can be adapted to suit the children’s needs and the time available. There are lesson plans, age-appropriate stories and related activities for each of the five steps that will help children develop the core skills they need to navigate life and maintain positive mental health habits.
Coram Life Education, the UK’s largest PSHE education charity, offers lesson plans on inspiring pieces of writing including Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers for 3-7 year olds, and After the War by Tom Palmer for 7-11 year olds, with circle time activities and talking points.
Coram Shakespeare Schools Foundation, which produces the world’s largest youth drama festival, contributes collaborative warm up drama activities for the whole class, encouraging the children to bond and find a connection.
Coram Beanstalk, a national charity offering children one-to-one reading support, offers specially curated book lists and book chat questions designed to help children connect with characters, places, situations and each other.
Teachers can use the toolkit to support their activities during Children’s Mental Health Week (5-11 February) or delve into the resources across the academic year. This year Coram Life Education’s annual ‘Wear Your Scarf to School Day’, celebrating the values of Safety, Caring, Achievement, Resilience, Friendship, falls on 9 February with plenty of activities in the toolkit to engage children and support positive wellbeing.
Harriet Gill, managing director of Coram Life Education, said: “Last year hundreds of schools across the country joined us in showing how Coram Life Education’s SCARF resources support children’s wellbeing during Children’s Mental Health Week and throughout the year, at school and at home.
“This year we have even more to share from our education teams across Coram, offering free activities and resources linked to the theme ‘My Voice Matters’. Wear your Scarf to School Day is a chance for children to think about the way the SCARF values support them with Safety, Caring, Achievement, Resilience and Friendship, so that they develop skills for life, from an early age. We hope to hear from as many schools as possible that take part in the day or who use the toolkit at other times of the year.”