Mental Health and Wellbeing
Below are links to resources that can be used to support children and families during the school closure. The focus is on supporting children’s mental health. This list has been developed by The Senior Education Psychologist for Torbay (Paul Williams).
For younger children, the resources offered are simple explanations about Coronavirus as well as practical things to do during school or preschool closure. For older children and young people, we have included more resources to support mental health and well-being.
Further resources (updated 12.06.20)
Supporting children in EYFS:
Supporting children in KS1:
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Stress Busters from Save The Children. Save The Children have produced six simple activities for relaxation at home. A nicely illustrated resource for younger (and not so young) children
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'The Little Elf who missed his Birthday Party' Therapeutic stories to help children explore feelings relating to a return to school during the coronavirus pandemic
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'The Little Elf and the Flowers of Hope and Bravery' A story about some strong feelings a young person might have around the coronavirus pandemic
Supporting children in KS2:
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Stress Busters from Save The Children. Save The Children have produced six simple activities for relaxation at home. A nicely illustrated resource for younger (and not so young) children
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The emotion wheel The Anna Freud Centre has produced another excellent resource, as part of their 'Mentally Healthy Schools' initiative called 'The Emotion Wheel' it allows children express their current feelings. It can be downloaded from their website
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Guided Meditation - Mood Cafe The National Health Service in Fife has created a lovely story about a cat which also includes a guided meditation to help young people relax.
Support for Parents and Carers:
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Seven techniques for helping kids keep calm-CBeebies Simple relaxation and mindfulness activities to do with your children and help them learn to calm down when they feel stressed and anxious.
Further resources (updated 17.04.20)
Supporting Children in EYFS:
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Breathe, Think, Do with Sesame A CBT based app which uses a Sesame Street character to help teach children skills such as problem solving and self-control for App Store.
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Breathe, Think, Do with Sesame A CBT based app which uses a Sesame Street character to help teach children skills such as problem solving and self-control for Google Play.
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Hey, Duggee-Earn your Stay at Home Badge Children self-isolating/social distancing can fill in a stay-at-home chart that can be downloaded from this website
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Sesame Street Webpage Sesame Street has also produced a whole webpage of excellent resources , including advice about talking to children about COVID 19, resources, videos and games to support parents at home with their children
Supporting Children in KS1:
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The Scared Gang Have to Stay at Home The Scared Gang Have to Stay At Home book explains social isolation for young children and suggests how handwashing can prevent the spread of COVID 19. The book can be downloaded for free at this address
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#COVIBOOK A short, colourful downloadable book to support children under the age of seven about COVID 19. It allows families to discuss the emotions arising out of the pandemic. Downloadable for free at this address
Supporting Children in KS2:
Coronavirus - A book for children. A fantastic resource with superb illustrations, information and answers to tricky questions.
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Children's Guide to Coronavirus The UK's Children's Commissioner has produced a great interactive PDF document about coronavirus. Although only 19 pages long it contains information about dealing with worries around coronavirus, where children can get more information and how to deal with worry. It also contains links to free resources such as Minecraft, Audible free books and free classes.
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Calm Zone Produced by Childline. The Calm Zone offers advice about coping with emotions during the pandemic.
Support for Parents and Carers:
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Good Thinking Website Good Thinking website for adults looking for resources to support their own mental health and wellbeing.
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Anna Freud information and advice • The Anna Freud organisation has a dedicated website page giving advice for parents and carers about how to support their families during the coronavirus pandemic. The page has several links to documents mentioned elsewhere on this resource list, as well as comprehensive answers to commonly asked questions.
Mental Health and Wellbeing Resources: (Posted 24.03.20)
Supporting children in EYFS:
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Social story PDF A social story (PDF) from ELSA support. This is an excellent resource for younger children, or those with additional needs, about Coronavirus using a social stories format.
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Twinkl resources for EYFS A variety of downloadable resources from Twinkl. Twinkl has advice for schools and early years settings, as well as home learning packs for the EYFS. Twinkl is allowing free downloads for many of their Coronavirus related products, including home learning packs. You will need to set up an account which is free to do.
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Twinkl interactive timetable template A timetable to aid with structuring during school closures for younger children
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CBeebies staying calm activities CBeebies have put together some techniques for parents to support younger children to stay calm and positive.
Supporting children in KS1:
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Downloadable Hand-washing poster A poster that can be printed out about handwashing. Young children need to have a sense of control over the virus. Handwashing, not only promotes defence against the infection but also enhances children’s mental well-being.
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Social Story (PDF) A social story for slightly older children, which was designed for children with autism, you will need to register on the website, which is free to do.
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YouTube Video - Coronavirus and personal hygiene. A video explaining Coronavirus for children in Key Stage 1 - the emphasis is on information and personal hygiene.
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Twinkl - Home learning pack for KS1 As mentioned above, Twinkl has produced a range of home learning pack for when schools are closed, and this pack is aimed at children in year two and also contains useful advice for parents on how to deliver the lesson material.
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Podcast - Peace Out Peace Out, Short stories that help children calm down and relax.
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CBeebies - Staying calm activities CBeebies have put together some techniques for parents to support younger children to stay calm and positive.
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Class Dojo - Emotional Wellbeing and management for children Class Dojo. A YouTube channel dedicated to supporting children with emotional wellbeing and managing emotions. The videos are engaging and cover a variety of areas to support children.
Supporting children in KS2:
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YouTube video - Brain Pop This is an excellent clip for primary aged children, explaining the virus and how to stay healthy.
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Twinkl - News about the Coronavirus Powerpoints Two free Twinkl resources, the first is a daily news PowerPoint explaining school closure around the coronavirus and looks at children’s emotional reaction to this. The second is a PowerPoint to support children in key stage 2 who may be upset and anxious about content in the news.
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App - Chill Panda Chill Panda is an app that helps children learn to relax and manage their worries. The app suggests simple tasks to suit your state of mind, such as breathing techniques and light exercise. It can be downloaded from the App Store for free.
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YouTube - Class Dojo - Supporting Children's emotional Wellbeing Class Dojo. A YouTube channel dedicated to supporting children with emotional wellbeing and managing emotions. The videos are engaging and cover a variety of areas to support children.
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GoNoodle - Website and App GoNoodle offer a wide selection of interactive videos, lessons and activities to support children’s emotional wellbeing.
Support for Parents when discussing Coronavirus, mental health or wellbeing with children:
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BBC - Parents advice A BBC news page with advice for parents with some useful information about supporting children’s mental health.
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Young Minds - How to support children's anxiety around Covid-19 Young Minds have also produced resources for parents that support children’s anxiety with Coronavirus