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Every year Firhouse ETNS works to promote positive mental health in our school through a number of different activities as we retain our Amber Flag.
The aim of the Amber Flag is to create healthy, inclusive environments that support mental well-being. You can find out more information here. |
Thank you
to everyone who donated to our Odd Socks Day fundraiser.
We raised €469 for Pieta House!
We asked Firhouse ETNS how they support their friends wellbeing, and here's what they had to say...
Mental Health Awareness Day
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Firhouse ETNS hosted their first Mental Health Awareness Day on Thursday 22nd April.
Teachers were invited to include the following activities in their day. There was great enjoyment around the school as students got involved in guided meditation, art and reading. Students were also welcomed to respond to our question of the month and these responses are now proudly on display on our Amber Flag noticeboard. A huge thank you to all of our school community for donating to such a wonderful cause, all in the spirit of looking after our wellbeing. This money will be donated to Pieta House. |
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Students and their parents were invited to wear odd socks in aid of Pieta House, a charity that does fantastic work providing essential services such as outreach services, suicide bereavement liason and counselling
Getting out in the fresh air is great for our mental health and so all teachers took advantage of our schools recently-installed Active Walkway. This was a great hit with the students!
Being part of a community gives us all a sense of belonging and purpose. Our school community came together to create a collaborative art display for our school entrance. Each class read the story 'It's Okay to Be Different' by Todd Parr. Our teachers then facilitated chats with their classes about how our differences are okay and they make us unique. This was the inspiration for students to create an art piece of their own along with an example of something it is okay to be or have. For example: It's okay to wear glasses and it's okay to have two mums!
Reading is a great escape! Everyone got to escape into their books during DEAR time on our Mental Health Awareness Day. It was a time to calm our minds and focus on the stories.
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Movement breaks and guided meditation are a great way to take a break between lessons and re-charge our brains. This helps us to focus more and enjoy our next lesson!
Some of our classes enjoyed guided meditation outdoors on our Mental Health Awareness Day. Below are some of the meditations they followed on the day! |
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| happy_heart_mediation.pdf |
| inner_kingdom_mediation.pdf |
| beautiful_butterfly.pdf |
Promoting Our Mental Health Awareness Day
Our school's Amber Flag committee members were hard at work creating posters for our event next week. These posters can now be seen all around our school and are a great promotion for the event!
Question of the Month: February
What makes me the happiest?
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In February we had a school-wide art competition. Students were invited to create a piece of art around the theme: 'What makes me the happiest'.
The Amber Flag Committee wants to say a big WELL DONE and THANK YOU to everyone who entered. We were blown away by the talent all of the students in Firhouse ETNS had to offer! The reaction was absolutely brilliant and the winners of each category can be seen in the slides below along with a selection of entries in each category. |
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Amber Flag Art Competition Winners
Question of the Month: December
What makes me smile?
Students from Junior Infants to 6th Class responded to this question through art. See their ideas below.
Question of the Month: November
How can we look after our mental health?
Students from Junior Infants to 6th Class responded to this question through art. See their ideas below.
Growth Mindset
In Firhouse ETNS, we spent September and October focusing on growth mindset. Growth mindset is so important when we learn.
We used the Class Dojo website to watch Mojo when he learns the magic of mistakes and the power of YET.
You can find these videos and more by following this link: https://ideas.classdojo.com/b/growth-mindset
We now actively try to use positive language when we find things challenging.
Instead of saying "I can't do it" we say "I can't do it yet".
Instead of saying "This is too hard" we say "This might take some time".
Instead of saying "I give up" we say "I'll try a different strategy".
We used the Class Dojo website to watch Mojo when he learns the magic of mistakes and the power of YET.
You can find these videos and more by following this link: https://ideas.classdojo.com/b/growth-mindset
We now actively try to use positive language when we find things challenging.
Instead of saying "I can't do it" we say "I can't do it yet".
Instead of saying "This is too hard" we say "This might take some time".
Instead of saying "I give up" we say "I'll try a different strategy".
