l Inspiration for resources to buy with your hard-earned PTA cash! £250* FROM PTA Hot
Improving children’s mental health
Be the Jellyfish is a programme that gives educational professionals the skills and confidence to support the social and emotional wellbeing of pupils. Created by experienced primary school teachers Lucy Cree and Sarah Brogden, it comprises a set of lessons that follow a sequence of nurturing and creative activities. Elizabeth Coster, SENCO, St Peter’s Catholic School, East Grinstead, West Sussex (204 pupils): ‘Be the Jellyfish was first used at our school three years ago, in a class that had a challenging dynamic. We introduced relaxation time after play times and found that the programme’s techniques, especially the massage, had a very positive impact on the children, calming them and preparing
them for learning. We then decided to introduce it throughout the school with the aim of improving the mental health of all students. Be the Jellyfish gives the children time for calm reflection and allows them to develop a greater sense of self and creativity. We use the programme in a number
of ways. It is used across the whole school in classrooms for around 30 minutes once a week, as part of our personal, social and emotional development. It has been used in groups for targeting children with particular needs and is also used 1-1 by our school learning mentor. We believe this programme is
effective for pupils of all ages and we use it from Reception right through to Year 6. We might focus on different
areas of the programme if a class has particular needs and personalise the programme by picking out the most appropriate areas to work 1-1 with a child. We have found that using this programme can very quickly improve the feeling and atmosphere of a classroom. It supports and develops peer relationships and can help children begin to understand some of the very difficult mental health issues that they may be dealing with. Our students love creating and
designing their own jellyfish and they really enjoy learning relaxation techniques and massage, as well as boosting their own and others’
self-esteem with affirmations.’ l For more information, visit
bethejellyfish.com.
pta.co.uk SPRING 2019 53
*The programme costs from £250 for the video training and resource pack. A personal 2-hour training session and resource pack costs from £500.
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