Rights Links: Article 24 – Health and Health Services; Article 29 – Goals of Education; Article 19 - Protection from Violence, Abuse and Neglect; Article 16 - Right to Privacy
Emotion Coaching
"Helping children and young people to understand the diffrent emotions they experience, why they occur and how to handle them." Gottman, 1996
We are an Emotion Coaching organisation at Lighthorne Heath Primary School, and all staff have been trained in using this approach, by Dr. Louise Gilbert. Members of the senior leadership team are trained Emotion Coaching Practitioners.
Emotion Coaching is based on the principle that nurturing and emotionally supportive relationships provide optimal contexts for the promotion of children's outcomes and resilience.
Rooted in the research of American Psychologist, John Gottman, Emotion Coaching uses moments of heightened emotion and the resulting dysregulated behaviout to guide and teach the child about more effective responses. Staff at Lighthorne Heath use empathetic engagement to verbally acknowledge and validate the child's emotional state, promoting a sense of security and feeling 'felt'. This activates changes in the child's neurological system and allows the child to calm down , physiologically and psychologically. Inappropriate behaviours are not condoned in Emotion Coaching and when the child is calmer, incidents are discussed in a more rational and productive manner. Moves are made to problem-solve and engage in solution-focused strategies. Through repetitive, consistent and empathetic Emotion Coaching, the ability of a child to regulate their emotions is promoted.
Mental Health First Aiders
Our team of Mental Health First Aiders are trained to spot the signs of mental health issues in our young people, families and colleagues; offer first aid; and guide them towards the support they need. Our Mental Health First Aiders listen, reassure and respond, even in a crisis. In doing so, our school community is a safe and supportive environment for all of our stakeholders. Please click on the link below to see who our trained Mental Health First Aiders are:
Counselling
A dedicated counsellor works at Lighthorne Heath for one day a week. Counselling can help pupils to deal more effectively with day-to-day challenges to learning, as well as support them through specific emotional difficulties. Providing targeted and developmentally appropriate support at the right time is likely to enhance a child's resilience and build greater self-esteem and confidence.
Our counsellor, , establishes strong relationships with children to support their emotional wellbeing and good mental health. She enables good communication and effective collaboration with all stakeholders (pupils, parents and school staff), and serves as a valuable advocate for our children.
Drawing and Talking
Drawing and Talking is a short-term therapeutic intervention for children, which supports children's emotional well-being. Drawing enables children to express in a safe visual form any worries or preoccupations that they may not be able to talk about. Over time, with an empathetic, trained practitioner giving the child attention and talking to them in a gentle, thoughtful and supportive way, the child can create a story through the pictures which helps the child to find resolution and enables them to move on.
LEGO® Brick Clubs
LEGO® Brick Clubs provide a structured, engaging and practical approach to supporting pupils’ social communication, emotional development and positive relationships through collaborative LEGO® building activities.
Within Brick Club sessions, pupils work together in a small group, taking on defined roles and sharing responsibility for completing LEGO® builds. The structured approach provides opportunities for children to develop important skills including communication, turn-taking, listening, cooperation, joint attention, problem-solving, negotiation and managing frustration.
The practical and highly motivating nature of LEGO® helps pupils to engage in social interaction in a way that can feel less demanding than direct conversation. Through building together, children are encouraged to express their ideas, listen to the perspectives of others, resolve difficulties collaboratively and experience success as part of a team.
Brick Clubs provide a safe, supportive and non-judgemental environment in which pupils can practise and develop these skills with appropriate adult facilitation. They can be particularly beneficial for pupils who experience difficulties with social communication, confidence, friendships, emotional regulation or working collaboratively with others. Over time, the aim is for pupils to transfer the skills developed through Brick Club into their relationships, classroom learning and wider school life.