The Science of Children's Wellbeing: Practical Sessions to Support Children Aged 7 to 11

The Science of Children's Wellbeing: Practical Sessions to Support Children Aged 7 to 11

This essential book is packed full of comprehensive guidelines and practical resources for running wellbeing intervention sessions for children aged 7 to 11, drawing from the scientifically grounded Six Ways to Wellbeing and the DNA-V model. Each chapter focuses on one of the Six Ways to Wellbeing, six patterns of action known to correlate highly with aspects of positive mental health and wellbeing. These principles have been translated into 36 step-by-step sessions to develop children’s wellbeing and psychological flexibility and support those struggling with aspects of their mental health. The sessions can be delivered by educators with the whole class, with small groups as targeted wellbeing interventions or easily adapted to fit one-to-one contexts. The Six Ways to Wellbeing sessions include: • Be Active : Staying physically active and exercising regularly. • Self-Care : Engaging in good quality self-care behaviours. • Connect with Others : Connecting with others socially in ways that feel genuine, authentic and fulfilling. • Give to Others : Engaging in kind, thoughtful and giving behaviours toward others and the wider world. • Challenge Yourself : Encouraging learning that feels personally challenging to grow and develop new skills. • Embrace the Moment : Taking notice of the world around you and embracing and appreciating the moment. Easy to follow and requiring no previous training, this book is the ideal resource for primary school teachers and leaders, psychologists, mental health practitioners, school counsellors, SENCos, LSAs, ELSAs and learning mentors looking to support and improve children’s wellbeing within their professional roles. "This book gives you a systemic foundation. You’ll be able to support an individual child’s cognitions, affect and behaviour so they grow into flexibility. You’ll be able to build cooperative class groups that function as a team. You’ll have a solid foundation to expand the sessions with your ideas and initiatives. I am confident the opportunity within this book will reward your efforts. It gives you an evidence-informed path so that you can help children grow well, maximise their individual abilities, and be together in supportive classrooms. The way forward is together." – Louise Hayes , Clinical Psychologist, La Trobe University, Melbourne Australia "If you care deeply about promoting the wellbeing of children aged 7 – 11 years, this is most definitely the book for you. The authors write with their years of experience held lightly, but their absolute love of DNAV and psychological flexibility shining through. This joyous resource offers children and adults an insight into their discoverer, noticer and advisor skills and values. These skills are explored through embracing the evidence-informed six ways to wellbeing, which will appeal to children and adults alike! This is not just a book, but a framework to develop connectedness, wellbeing and resilience across the whole school community. I will be sharing far and wide." – Sarah Sivers , Child and Educational Psychologist, Liminal Space Psychology Service "The authors draw upon their expertise in psychology to describe the DNA-V theory in an accessible style, creating a book that is easy-to-read, engaging, and filled with examples and exercises that can be used with children across a range of ages. The activities and exercises in Chapters 2-7 are based on the latest wellbeing research, and the authors offer a clear framework for measuring progress towards values-based outcomes. Practical and effective strategies are shared that can be used by teachers, teaching assistants, learning mentors, ELSAs, psychologists… anyone who has a role in supporting the wellbeing of children and young people!" – Will Shield , Child and Educational Psychologist, Senior Lecturer and Programme Director on the Doctorate in Educational, Child and Community Psychology, University of Exeter "I have been working in school systems for more than 20 years. A great deal of my energy is spent on treating pathology and firefighting psychological distress rather than promoting psychological well-being. Imagine what it would be like if we could engineer this to be different? Well, this revolutionary book is proposing just that. And I've been breathing a sigh of relief with every chapter I read because this is the book that has been missing from my shelf for the past 20 years. The authors have managed to bring evidence based and informed practices right where we need them-- to the classroom. Teachers and educators and other frontline staff are working with children on a daily basis who are experiencing distress in their lives. They often know their students well and have both immediate access and trusting relationships. However, without effective skills, training and tools, they may not be able to treat that distress effectively. Many of these young people might not make it to the clinic for therapeutic support so it makes perfect se