Healthy Minds Week – May 6 to 10, 2024
May 6, 2024 Division Activity
Healthy Minds Week is dedicated to promoting mental health and wellness within our school communities. The aim is to combat stigma, raise awareness about resources, and recognize efforts promoting mental well-being. This year, our focus is on life promotion and suicide prevention, acknowledging the high risk of suicide among Manitoba children and youth. The theme, You are Not Alone, emphasizes support for students, families, caregivers, and staff. Throughout the week, we’ll spotlight available resources and encourage participation in free online suicide prevention START training to equip anyone aged 15 and over with crucial skills. Join us in fostering a supportive environment for our school communities. For more information and registration, visit livingworks.net.
During Healthy Minds Week, each day will feature a focus on wellness, offering resources, materials, and strategies, along with a highlighted Resource of the Day. Additionally, in alignment with Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and 2 Spirit Awareness Week, we’ve incorporated resources to support activities and awareness for this important occasion.
On May 9, WSD staff and caregivers are encouraged to attend an evening dedicated to delving into the complex issue of self-harm among children and adolescents. This event aims to raise awareness of mental health challenges and explore methods for supporting young individuals facing these issues. For more information please contact Healthy Minds Specialist, Fiona England at fengland@wsd1.org and to register please visit https://www.kidthink.ca/resource-fair.
May 6
Healthy Minds Tip: Mindful Monday
Today’s Healthy Minds tip is MINDFULNESS. Mindfulness is a way of breathing and staying in the moment that can help your mind and body feel super healthy. Mindfulness can help us at all times, but especially when we are feeling worried or over-whelmed.
Smudging is an Indigenous tradition that is inclusive for all people to participate. This practice of Smudging cleanses negativity, allowing people to slow down and become mindful and centered. It is a time to remember, connect, and be grounded in the event, task, or purpose at hand. Smudging also allows people to let go of negative feelings and thoughts by fostering feelings of being calm and safe. More information on Smudging.
Try mindfulness by getting someone to read the following and try to follow along as best you can. It is okay if it’s tricky at first and your mind wanders – mindfulness takes lots of practice!
Today we are going to focus on our breathing. As we begin, close your eyes, and take a deep breath in through your nose and out through your mouth. As you continue breathing, focus on the way your breath feels coming in and out of your body. Is it cold or warm? Shallow or deep? Next, focus on your chest. Can you feel it rise and fall as you breathe? Try to imagine what your breath might look like coming in and out of your body. Now, gently move your focus to your belly. Notice it rising and falling as you breathe. Can you feel your breath filling your belly? Now focus on your breathing as a whole. Do you notice anything you did not notice before? When you are finished, take a deep breath in through your nose and out through your mouth and slowly open your eyes. Notice how your body and mind feel after taking these moments to practice being mindful.
May 7
Healthy Minds Tip: Thankful Tuesday
It’s Thankful Tuesday! Today’s Healthy Minds tip is GRATITUDE. Gratitude is just a fancy word for being thankful. Being grateful (or thank-ful) is important because it keeps our minds healthy, helps us better understand other people, makes us feel happy, and even helps us sleep better. It is important for us to show gratitude to ourselves and to others. Here are some ideas to practice being grateful.
- Gratitude Alphabet: Think of something to be thankful for from each letter of the alpha-bet. Example: A can be for AIR, B can be for BEST FRIEND, C can be for COOKIES!
- Gratitude Collage: Cut out pictures from magazines and newspapers and make a collage of all the things that you are thankful for and then share this with someone.
- Gratitude Jar: Get an empty jar or container, some pieces of paper and some markers or pens. Get everyone in your house to write down one thing that they are grateful for. At the end of the day pull out a gratitude note and read it to every-one. Do this daily or a few times a week and you will have lots of great ideas to pull from at any time!
- Gratitude Art: Make a gratitude drawing or put up a big piece of paper in your house and get everyone to write/draw things they are grateful for. Another idea is to trace your hand and write down some-thing you are thankful for on each finger. Put all the hands on a drawn tree trunk and you have your very own gratitude tree.
- Gratitude Walk: Go for a walk and pay attention to all the things you are grateful for.
- Go around the table with your loved ones and talk about three different things you are thankful for from the day! Take turns and try to come up with different things!
- Gift giving from an Indigenous perspective is a valued and important gesture seen as a sincere way to show gratitude and give thanks. Giving a gift enforces reciprocity, a key component in building relationships and demonstrating trust in Indigenous culture. Gift something thoughtful to family, friends, or other special people to let them know how grateful you are to have them in your life or to thank them for something they did for you!
May 8
Healthy Minds Tip: Wellness Wednesday
Healthy Minds Tip: Sleep & Exercise Today’s healthy minds tip is SLEEP AND EXERCISE. It is really important for both your body health and your mind health to take care of your body by being active and getting enough sleep at night. Your mind needs sleep so that your brain can remember things you have learned, help you pay attention and solve problems and be creative! Your body needs sleep so that your muscles, bones, and skin can grow, and your body can stay healthy and fight sickness. Some tips for getting a good sleep are:
- Try to go to bed around the same time every night.
- Get lots of movement and exercise in during the day.
- Try not to drink pop or sugary treats before bed because these things can make us stay awake!
- Try not to use technology or watch TV/videos at least 30 minutes before bedtime.
- Have a bedtime routine that makes you feel good and feel sleepy. Maybe try taking a bath before bed or reading/listening to your favourite story or some nice relaxing music.
It is also important that we take care of our minds and bodies by being active! Try to get at least 30 minutes of movement a day. This can look like dancing, doing yoga, playing tag, or going for a nature walk. Check out this cool nature scavenger hunt walk that you can do while getting outside and staying healthy.
May 9
Healthy Minds Tip: Thoughtful Thursday
Today’s healthy minds tip is THOUGHTFULNESS. Re-search indicates that doing things for others increases our happiness, health, and sense of well-being. There are countless simple ways to help others at home and in the community. Try doing a random act of kindness for someone else. Some other ideas are: hold the door open for someone; tell your teacher why they do a great job; offer to help around the house; or send a quick note to someone to say thanks or tell them how important they are to you. Smile and be friendly. All these small acts increase our connections, help us feel happy, and make the world a better place. Generosity and sharing are important aspects in Indigenous culture. Sharing when someone is in need shows that you are thinking of them. Eating together and sharing food, ideas, and words are Indigenous ways of being, healing, and thinking. All of these small acts increase our connections, help us to feel happy, and make the world a better place.
May 10
Healthy Minds Tip: Friendship Friday
Connection is a basic human need like eating, drinking water, and sleeping. Today’s Healthy Minds tip is about FRIENDSHIP AND CONNECTION. Connecting, sharing our thoughts and feelings, and helping others all support our well-being. It is especially important to continue to connect with others given our current circumstances. One way to focus on connection is to be a good friend. Offer to help a friend; invite someone new to play with you at recess; give a compliment to a friend; make some art with a friend; or ask someone new about their day. Take a break from screen time and truly connect with someone by talking to or playing with them. Storytelling is a powerful way of building connection and sharing information. Indigenous people used oral storytelling to teach lessons and pass on important traditions, customs, and to build relationships!