February 04, 2022 3 min read
Children's Mental Health Week is taking place on 7-13 February 2022. This year's theme is Growing Together!
Place2be are encouraging children (and adults) to consider how they have grown, and how they can help others to grow! Inspired by the activities provided by Place2be, we have created a guide of free resources designed to help children and young people explore what it means to grow together.
“Human beings change and grow– we do it all the time and in many different ways. Physical growth is easy to see as we grow from babies to children, teenagers to adults. But growing emotionally is also an important part of our development. Things that upset us when we were younger may no longer overwhelm us as we grow and learn to cope with life’s ups and downs. Challenges and set-backs can help us to grow and adapt. Trying new things can help us to move beyond our comfort zone into a new realm of possibility and potential.
However, emotional growth is often a gradual process that happens over time, and sometimes we might feel a bit ‘stuck’. At these times we are reminded of how much we need others in our lives to help us to keep growing. We need our parents and carers, our teachers, our friends and others to support us to grow, especially when things get tough. We often need others to help us to believe in ourselves, to keep going, and to try doing things a bit differently. Even when we have experienced really difficult challenges in our lives, with the right support, we can continue to grow and flourish.” Place2Be
Day 1: Look How You’ve Changed!
Read a story or poem about growing and changing, such as The Very Hungry Caterpillar (Eric Carle) or The Ugly Duckling (Hans Christian Andersen).
Day 2: Step By Step
Ask your children to consider a skill they currently have. For example, baking, riding a bike, reading, dancing, swimming, learning an instrument etc.
Encourage children to draw and write a comic, or create a simple book, describing the development of their skill over time – including when things went wrong.
Day 3: Butterfly Craft
Butterflies are known to symbolize personal growth and tremendous transformation! This adorable toilet paper roll butterfly craft is so fun and easy to make! You can get the printable template to make the wings in our new book. You can even have kids draw their own wings and make different designs. Just follow the link here for the full craft instructions.
Day 4: Time To Grow
You will need some cress seeds, and a pot to grow them in.
Day 5: Express Yourself
Some children may find it easier to write down their thoughts and feelings. Ask your children about who or what helps them when they feel upset, angry or worried.
Ask your children to write a brief sentence about what helps them to feel ok and to draw a picture of it. For example, “listening to my favourite music helps me to feel calm” or “remembering a silly joke my grandad told me makes me feel happy” etc.
These are just some suggestions provided by Place2Be, explore their page here for more information and fun ideas!