Behaviour & Wellbeing
Behaviour - Zones of Regulation
At Annecy Catholic Primary School, we recognise the importance of promoting positive mental health and emotional wellbeing to our pupils and their families. We aim to create an open culture around the discussion of mental health and wellbeing and to empower our children be able to regulate their emotions. By implementing the Zones of Regulation curriculum we aim to teach our pupils to identify emotions in themselves and others and provide them with a bank of strategies to help regulate their emotions and improve their wellbeing.
The Zones of Regulation is a range of activities to help your child develop skills in the area of self-regulation. Self-regulation can go by many names, such as self-control, self-management and impulse control. It is defined as the best state of alertness of both the body and emotions for the specific situatiion. For example, when your child plays in a basketball game, it is beneficial to have a higher state of alertness. However, that same state would not be appropriate in the library.
Behaviour -Zones of Regulation
The Zones of Regulation is a curriculum based around the use of four colours to help children self-identify how they’re feeling and categorise it based on colour. The curriculum also helps children better understand their emotions, sensory needs and thinking patterns. The children learn different strategies to cope and manage their emotions based on which colour zone they’re in. Additionally, the Zones of Regulation helps children to recognise their own triggers, learn to read facial expressions, develop problem-solving skills, and become more attuned to how their actions affect other people.
Behaviour
There is progression across the curriculum with children in Early Years learning to identify different emotions to children in Upper Key Stage 2 discussing how our behaviour can impact upon the feelings of those around us.
Wellbeing - The Thrive Approach
We are a Thrive school.
Every child needs to feel valued, involved and appreciated. We know more now than ever before about what helps to develop healthy curious minds and happy, confident and creative children.
If children have been emotionally thrown off track, either temporarily or over longer periods, Thrive helps us understand the needs being signalled by their behaviour and gives us targeted strategies and activities to help them re-engage.
What does it take to develop healthy, happy, confident children who are ready and open to learning? Recent advances in neuroscience, attachment theory and child development have provided some of the answers to this question.
The Thrive Approach draws on insights from these fields to provide a powerful way of working with children and young people that supports optimal social and emotional development. In addition, the Approach can equip you to work in a targeted way with children and young people who may have struggled with difficult life events to help them re-engage with life and learning.
Wellbeing - The Youth Counselling Project (TYCP)
TYCP works through schools in Seaford to offer specialist counselling to students in primary and secondary education. One day a week, a counsellor from TYCP comes in to work with pupils that need that extra bit of support.
The service provides our pupils with emotional support in a safe and professional space where they can open up about their problems without shame or discrimination. By understanding their situation better, young people can see a way forward enabling them to live life with a more positivr attitude and greater self-esteem.
The service is provided at no cost to the school. However, TYCP rely on funding from applications for grants from trusts, businesses and other philanthropic organisations. Their Seaford fundraising team generates awareness and funds through events held throughout the year – please visit their website for more details.
Wellbeing - Post-covid lockdown
Returning to school following lockdown has brought about a number of challenges. To ensure your children are supported during their return to school we have set up a number of processes to ensure their mental health needs are met.
What we offer:
- Thrive Approach
- Walk and Talk
- Opportunities to discuss issues as a class
PTA
The Parent Teacher Association brings together parents, teachers and others from the school community who are interested in supporting the school, providing an opportunity for everyone to work together, with a common purpose – to organise fundraising and social events. Events organised previously include school discos, quiz nights, sponsored fun run and the annual summer BBQ. The Committee also runs a volunteer list. This is for parents who cannot commit to being a fulltime member but would be willing to help the Committee when needed i.e. to supervise school discos, help sell raffle tickets, help with teas & coffees etc. If you would like to put your name down as a volunteer, again you will need a DBS check by the school.
