Having been a Primary School Teacher for 18 years and seeing the results of the pandemic and now a war on our children ensuring we promote positive mental health and their wellbeing is vital. Forming healthy daily habits is very rewarding and our downloadable PDF 'Daily Happiness Journal' will help with this.
We have carefully created our daily journal to include elements that as a teacher and Mental Health First Aider we have researched and have shown have an impact positively on our children:
* The chance for a child to review how they have mainly felt that day helps them consider feelings closely. This also can be very powerful if you notice your child is always choosing a negative emotion on a certain day each week. What is making them feel scared on a Wednesday etc?
* Thinking about a positive thing that has happened to them is helping to form a positive mindset and ensure the child can think of at least one happy thing from the day. Concentrate on this and think about how they can build on it. If you complete this journal at bedtime it also means the child goes to sleep thinking of a positive and happy element of the day.
* Asking the child to consider someone who has made them happy helps identify key people in their lives who make a good impact and show those they trust. These individuals should be celebrated and time spent with them encouraged.
*Mindfulness can be very powerful and a chance for your child to reflect on the day. When you firstly begin your 2 minutes of silence it may feel odd but you and your child will soon immerse it into your daily routine. Simply being together in silence and then discussing their thoughts will help draw out any worries or concerns.
*In our tick list we have chosen three things which have been proven to aid with positive mental health in children. Did they help someone today? We actually feel happy when we feel needed and also doing good things breeds happiness! Have they been outside? Alongside sleeping well, eating healthily and drinking water, being outside and in the fresh air has been proven to help our children feel less stress, improves attention, puts them in a better mood and helps with cooperation. Have they solved a problem today? Problem solving helps greatly to build resilience and the chance to rethink and consider things in a different way.
*Is it a 5 star rainbow day? By colouring in the rainbow to represent how many 'bars' they will rate the day shows us how productive and happy your child views that day. This can aid greatly with discussion about any worries and things they would like to change. It also highlights positive elements that should be encouraged to repeat and build on.
Our 'Daily Happiness Journal' is a downloadable PDF meaning you can print as many times as you like at home. We have 2 versions- a bright and cheerful one and this one which is black and white for using less printing ink.