S1 Ep30: Simple wellbeing activities to do during Coronavirus school closures
Release Date: 03/23/2020
S1 Ep54: Wellbeing or academic success…and can we teach kindness? - Book Launch Panel 4 Part 2
For Flourishing's Sake
In the second half of the final For Flourishing's Sake book launch discussion, we discussed where the priorities should lie, between dealing with mental health and wellbeing in the context of Covid-19 and the Black Lives Matter movement, or ensuring children “catch up” academically if they have fallen behind. We also had a fascinating conversation about whether kindness can be taught, and if so, how, and ended the discussion by sharing each of our dreams for the future of education.
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S1 Ep53: Wellbeing or academic success…and can we teach kindness? - Book Launch Panel 4 Part 1
For Flourishing's Sake
In this first half of the fourh For Flourishing's Sake book launch discussion, we shared our definitions of positive education, discussed whether educating for character and wellbeing are the same thing, and whether they come at the expense of academic progress. Finally, we shared our thoughts on and examples of whether Positive Education works anywhere, in any setting, with any age group.
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S1 Ep52: A whole school approach to education for good citizenship - Book Launch Panel 3 Part 2
For Flourishing's Sake
In this second half of the third For Flourishing's Sake book launch panel discussion, the panellists share their thoughts and experiences, with examples, of elements required for a whole school approach to positive education. They particularly focus on the important role that staff training and leadership play. And finally, they share how it feels when you get it right - when it goes well - and their hopes and dreams for the future of education.
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S1 Ep51: A whole school approach to education for good citizenship - Book Launch Panel 3 Part 1
For Flourishing's Sake
In this first half of the third For Flourishing's Sake book launch panel discussion, the panellists discuss their interpretation of positive education, character education and the role of wellbeing in education, particularly in relation to educating for good citizenship and promoting inclusion, diversity and social justice.
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S1 Ep50: Practical Examples of Character and Positive Education - Book Launch Panel 2 Part 2
For Flourishing's Sake
Another chance to hear part 2 of the 2nd panel of fantastic educators during the For Flourishing's Sake book launch. Panellists discussed their interpretations of a whole school approach to character and positive education, then moved onto discussing how we “catch” character and wellbeing behaviours, before progressing to a great discussion about bringing people on board that don’t understand what we’re trying to do.
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S1 Ep49: Practical Examples of Character and Positive Education - Book Launch Panel 2 Part 1
For Flourishing's Sake
Another chance to hear a panel discussion between great educators and school leaders. In this half of the discussion, the panellists shared their definitions of positive education, character education or wellbeing in education. They quickly moved on to some concrete examples of implementation in their schools, from specific staff wellbeing initiatives and their impacts, to whole school approaches and their effects on the entire school community, including parents.
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S1 Ep48: The what and how of Positive Education - Book Launch Panel 1 Part 2
For Flourishing's Sake
Today's episode features the 2nd half of the 1st panel discussion as part of the For Flourishing's Sake book launch events. Panellists discuss putting teacher wellbeing first and sharing a language for wellbeing in schools. The role of Appreciative Inquiry processes and Action Research are also touched upon to support empowering staff and creating lasting change. Panellists also address cost, and the role of Positive Education in the context of Covid-19 and the Black Lives Matter movement.
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S1 Ep47: The what and how of Positive Education - Book Launch Panel 1 Part 1
For Flourishing's Sake
Over the coming weeks, For Flourishing's Sake will feature extended podcast episodes, where you will be able to listen to the replays of the book launch events. Today's episode is the first half of the first panel discussion.
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S1 Ep46: Positive Education - from individual happiness to the greater good
For Flourishing's Sake
Is Positive Psychology all about individualism and selfish happiness endeavours, or does it support societal flourishing and encourage us to connect with and support one another? What role do schools play in this? In this episode, I explore some of the criticisms levelled at Positive Psychology and invite you to consider the opportunity we have as educators to change the world for the better.
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S1 Ep45: Flourishing Despite Fear
For Flourishing's Sake
In this week's "For Flourishing's Sake", I share how we can flourish and thrive despite experiencing fear. Not by eliminating the fear, but by flooding our system with happy hormones from positive emotions, to counteract the negative effects of the fear. Learn to use Positive Psychology to your advantage so you can experience wellbeing even at times when you are feeling fear and uncertainty.
info_outlineSeason 1, Episode 30 (23rd March 2020)
Simple wellbeing activities to do during Coronavirus school closures
Welcome to episode 30. Wow, what a week! In the UK, we have had daily updates on drip-fed changes with about as much clarity as you would expect when attempting to scuba-dive in a muddy pond. All schools are now closed…except they’re not, because many schools are open, with staff looking after the most vulnerable children and the children of key workers. Teachers, school leaders and parents, not to mention the children themselves, are in a state of bewilderment and doing the best they can to adapt to the circumstances very quickly. This week, for example, my colleague Elizabeth Wright and I will be delivering a series of virtual workshops to groups of children and staff in six schools to support their mental health and wellbeing at this difficult time. We have worked with the Academy Trust’s leadership team to adapt the sessions we were due to deliver in person to virtual sessions instead.
Over the coming weeks and months, my main focus in this podcast will be on helping you weather this storm, supporting yours and your children’s wellbeing as we all deal with the global Coronavirus crisis, while also bringing you content to support your longer-term planning for teachers’ and children’s wellbeing once classroom teaching resumes. I am also putting together a virtual panel of education wellbeing professionals and teachers to share ideas for getting through this frightening time. The panel will go out live - hopefully in the next few days and will then be aired as a special longer-length episode of this podcast. Watch this space!
Today, though, I’d like to share two activity suggestions - a meditation activity and a gratitude activity:
- A simple meditation for younger children. If you are operating on skeleton staff in your school and you have young children there, this is a great way to calm them if they are agitated or worried. And of course you can send this to parents, too, to do with their kids at home. It’s called ‘Take Five’. You ask children to hold out one hand with their fingers splayed and with each breath, they trace each finger on one hand with one finger of the other, so as they breathe in slowly, they trace up their thumb and then trace down as they breathe back out, then up the index finger as they breathe in again and down as they breathe out again, then onto the middle finger, ring finger and little finger so they complete five slow breaths in and out.
- A simple gratitude activity. Make a poster thanking your delivery and postal workers for doing their job at this difficult time and keeping us all going, and display it outside your front door. Your children, whether at home or in school, can also do this. I put two posters up outside my door last week - you can download the files below, though I’m hardly an artistic genius, so I’m sure you or your pupils can do something far prettier than I’ve created! - and yesterday something amazing happened. The doorbell rang for a delivery. The delivery driver, who has delivered to us on a number of occasions, stood a safe distance away from our door, having left the items in our porch. He pointed at my posters and said “thank you so much for the note - can I take a photo and post it on my Instagram?” I said that of course he could, and he answered that out of all of his delivery customers, I was the only person who had thanked him. I told him I was so sorry to hear that - if it wasn’t for delivery drivers, postal workers, supermarket workers and so many other people who have to risk their health and keep going to work, we would really struggle to keep going. I was close to tears as I said this to him. He thanked me again and he left. We were both smiling. Gratitude and kindness have a wonderful effect on the mood and wellbeing of both parties. And they can have a powerful ripple effect, too! And let’s face it, we really need to be as kind to each other right now as we possibly can! I’d love to see examples of your and your children’s posters, and hear stories of reactions to these! Get in touch with me on Twitter at @FlourishingED.
View and download poster for delivery drivers
View and download poster for postal workers
Do also get in touch if you’d like to contribute content to this podcast as a guest, particularly if you’d like to share one or more activities that can help children, parents or other teachers at this difficult time.
I look forward to catching up with you next week. Until we speak again, be safe, be well and For Flourishing’s Sake, have as great a week as it’s currently possible to have!