Pick Wellbeing

Courage. Pride. Resilience is our schools' core values.  It  allows us to have a golden thread run through what we do for the students. The WHY behind all we do.  I am curious...  Do you know your own core values?  Below is a list of values, some of them stand out more than others  Which 3 really stand out?  Professional Excellent Loyal Daring Reliable Helpful Humble Honest Bold Adventurous Kind Knowledgeable Open-minded Resilient Courageous Self-controlled Dependable Challenge Encourages Enthusiastic Optimistic Competitive Creative Friendly Generous Inspiring Humorous Nurturing Integrity Consistent Positive Responsible Cooperative Ethical Health Collaborative Family Happiness Thoughtful Fun Self-respect Resourceful Freedom Involved Partnership Satisfaction Community Delight Transparency Quality Caring Friendship Ambitious Support Accountable Balanced Efficient Best Passionate Consistent Curious Transformation Decisive Flexible Innovative Diversity Res...

It was my turn to do our virtual assembly yesterday and this assembly worked really well. I thought it would be interesting but our students really enjoyed the interaction. I work in a Special Needs Secondary - it could work work for primary and secondary students.  This might work for your school as well.  The theory behind this assembly is that you care about the students as you know their special interest...   Here is the 'recipe': 1. Make a PowerPoint of all the interest of your students.      - Ask the teachers for a list 2. One picture per slide 3. Introduce the Assembly linking to the Value of your school, one of your school values will link to this, it should. If not, let's have a talk about your school values.       - I linked the slides to our value 'courage'      -   I also linked it to a Makaton sign for brave, it was a treat seeing the students afterwards sharing the sign with me and other teac...

14 December 2023 This last week of school is really a struggle.  Christmas Fayre... If you know... You bloody know. I like having the time with my form group but I really struggle to have them the whole day. Asking me 10 things at once, one leaving the class, one avoiding me, another angry about something and another asking me if I believe in Santa. All the while trying to create and make games, decorate random stuff and 'have fun'... Then one student saying that no-one will come into our class anyway! 😠 I did not loose my 💩 but I am thinking of letting the elf 🧝 poo on his desk for not having the Christmas spirit.  There was a very special moment in class when a student whispered to me that they still believe in Santa and they are happy that he is coming to the Fayre. That one moment made the day worth it.  I didn't think they would still believe, they are 14.  Our work allows us to carry these small things in our hearts.💗 I am looking for the these little thing...

I am reflecting on something I read... Anything that is demanded from you can be addressed by resources. If I have/had the resources I would be able to fix a problem. A few weeks ago I was off work for a few days as I could not imagine being able to teach again, I forgot that I actually like it and can do it. That feeling of total overwhelm kept me in a very rigid space. Rigid thinking, rigid ideas and very few resources to choose from. Now that I am back in the swing of it (not a full swing but I am on the swing). I can find more time to think of solutions and find myself reaching out more.  Could it be that 'simple'?  You have a demand.. be it on your time, your knowledge, your skills and the best way to address this, is to find the resources? Is this what other people do and then they get better at what they do... They don't assume they can just do it all? The get resources: they learn or connect or read or try a new way. So it's just getting better at one thing a da...

I have found that reading and listening to books brought a lot of understanding and healing.   Books can be free therapy and advice. Let's not give up on learning, but reach out to others, learn and reflect and make our lives better. One step, one book and one conversation at time! When the Adults Change, Everything Changes: Seismic Shifts in School Behaviour  Paul Dix https://amzn.to/3PXpspN I realised I needed to change the way I think, I was creating many situations in the class. Taking responsibility and control of my classes made a world of difference.  The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness & Healing in a Toxic Culture  Gabor Maté   https://amzn.to/4aTlx5f We struggle not because we are not able to cope, we struggle as the context we are in is tough. Give yourself a break and take a breath.  The Yin and Yang of Self-Compassion: Cultivating Kindness and Strength in the Face of Difficulty Kristin Neff PhD https://amzn.to/3JjoDUm  Practical ad...

13 November 2023 Diary Entry: What a day! I was ready to not be at school but I was, it was tough. I had a few fleeting moments where I thought... How can I last another 5 weeks, I needed to have a cry with a colleague, reset, refocus and carry on. I am not the only one feeling like this.  Mental health is such a delicate balance as we are the masters of our own ship but we are affected, very much so by the seas we are in... and to take this metaphor even further. We didn't choose the crew or neither did we know in what weather we would be asked to sail. Even the destination seems unknown... destination survival?! We are trained to sail, we have control of our own sleeping quarters and we have access to the captain(s). So why are we struggling? Is the ship, the seas or the SLT? I don't think there is one answer here but we need to reflect of where we are in the bigger picture. I hope to set some co-ordinates. :-)  This is my idea...  If we can build a sense of belonging ...