How are you feeling about going back to school?

This experience will have been different for every student, teacher and parent. Some will be happy, others traumatised and everything in between. We can’t assume how anyone feels. How do we deal with all of this?

Phychologist Dr Helen Street, chair of Positive Schools, suggests we ask 4 questions similar to these. Make sure EVERY person has a chance to answer each one in their own way- speaking, drawing, one to one or in the group. They must feel they belong and have an equal voice : 1. What felt different for you learning at home? 2. What did you enjoy? 3. What did you miss? 4. What would you like to do differently back at school?

It’s very healthy to TALK about and experience your FEELINGS. Use Circle Time, so everyone has a chance to speak. ALL feelings are good, it’s what we do with them that can make a difference. If we let them CONTROL us, that’s where we can be in trouble! YOU need to CONTROL your feelings so you don’t hurt either yourself or others, and so you can feel happier. We need to all build strategies to control our feelings. (See some helpful posters below)

Controlling your feelings by SELF SOOTHING

What helps YOU clam down? Everyone is different. Modeling Self Soothing gives the best example that it works, do some together: e.g. Deep breathing, drinking water, reading, walking, running, playing outside, painting, cooking, eating (not too much!!), listening to music, singing, dancing, playing sport, watching a movie, mediation, mindfulness, games, jokes, laughing, lying down, resting, sunshine, swimming, a bath, the gym, exercises, yoga, writing, drawing, puzzles, jigsaws, climbing, sitting under or in a tree, the park, a playground, talking to a friend or helper, pets, animals, fishing, lego, IT, robotics, etc.

Mindfulness or Meditation

Always helps to ground and centre us, and has much research to show it works. There are many resources such as Smiling Mind, that can be used.

Routine

PREDICTION = SAFETY Have a schedule up each day so there are no surprises, and if the schedule changes, let the students know in advance if possible. After all the disruptions, routine is comfort.

Gratitude

There are ALWAYS things to be grateful for. Focusing on the things that go right can help to increase mood. Do this in a written, spoken, in your mind or pictorial way. Try and do it every day until the next holidays to get them into the habit. Have a gratitude board in the staff room, tell students to ask their parents what they are grateful for.

Discover Strengths

Use strength cards and discussions, or questionnaires, to discover each others strengths – both physical and emotional. Talk about how you could use your strengths to help others. Make Strength posters, display them. We ALL have strengths we can share to make the world a better place.

Exercise every day

Get the students and yourself moving, both in the classroom, or work area and outside. Dance, sing, do brain gym, PE, a ‘Play is the Way’ game, Simon says, etc. have frequent breaks if students are not settled.

Relationship and Empathy

Get to know your students all over again, things will have changed. Some will have improved, some will have regressed – in either learning and /or behaviour. Relationship is VERY important, every person wants to belong, this goes for staff as well. Empathy is relationship building.

Posters that may help:

The post Getting back to School appeared first on Be Positive Program.

By Barb Bellesini

This Resilience Program has been tried, adapted and tested over 6 years for 5-9 year olds, and can easily be adapted for HOME SCHOOLING, as well as for older students. It covers every Social and Emotional Learning area, and provides coping strategies, which are good for both children and adults. The underlying focus is always RESILIENCE. The Workbook can be used with or without the Lesson Plans. It would also be beneficial for every child and adult to begin a Gratitude Journal, listing or talking about 3 good things that have happened to them that day. Happiness and anxiety can be reduced by doing this.

Each page has an ‘At Home’ section on the bottom of the page, so you know what the lesson is focused on e.g. At Home: We have talked about different feelings, talk about the ones they have drawn and any others they understand. Every feeling is OK, it’s how we deal with them that counts. How do you deal with feelings?

Feedback: We have been using some of your resources this year to support our Positive Education Program. We have nothing but great feedback to give you! We have enjoyed the continuation of the lessons ….. they understood each concept and they have enjoyed .. singing songs to support different ideas. Templestowe

To order go to https://www.bepositiveprogram.com.au/product/junior-workbook/ for the hard copy book $10 plus postage, or https://www.bepositiveprogram.com.au/product/ebook-junior-workbook/ for the eBook $25. Lesson Plans, posters and a Gratitude Journal is also available from the website.

If you have any trouble, please send me an email to order at: bepositiveprogram@gmail.com

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By Barb Bellesini

During Harmony Week we also celebrate Happiness Day. Happiness is just what we need to concentrate on at the moment. We can all make someone happy by doing random, or planned, Acts of Kindness. The table below gives many suggestions of ways we can do this. ANY Act of Kindness, makes both the receiver and giver happier.

TRY SOME OF THESE AND BE HAPPY

The post INTERNATIONAL HAPPINESS DAY appeared first on Be Positive Program.

By Barb Bellesini

Anxiety and fear is all around us as we face this Pandemic of Carona Virus. We DO have a choice about how it effects our state of mind and our health. And there are strategies that CAN help.

Research from 2009 swine Flu showed fear of the disease was significantly related to parents’ fear. Journal of Anxiety Disorders Vol 25, Issue 3 p 444-449

Just doing a few simple things can help to calm your whole body. Below is a diagram of many of the ‘signs’ your body gives you if you are under stress, scared, anxious or over emotional. Recognise them and find ways to ‘self soothe’ to calm yourself. Read, walk, run, listen to music, listen to a Mindfulness session, lie down, cook, think of happy things in your life, plan ahead …

Deep Breathing is the first thing I always suggest as research shows it it calms your system. Try having a Panic Attack when you are deep breathing – they say it is impossible!!

Teach a number of methods – Practise SLOW and STEADY breathing using Bubbles blowers; a pinwheel; water and straw; Breathe in for a count of 3, hold for 3 and breathe out for 3; Breath normally but count breaths backwards from 100 (20 or 10) count each breath ; All of these make you concentrate on your breathe NOT your problem!!

Last suggestion for this post is to do as many ACTS OF KINDNESS as you can! Look around, brain storm ideas that you can do in your school or neighbourhood to help others. This makes BOTH yourself and the other person feel happier.

What are you and your family going to do to help yourselves and each other??

The post ANXIETY and how to manage it appeared first on Be Positive Program.

 Cool Text: Logo and Button Generator – Create Your Own Logo

GET TO KNOW YOUR NEIGHBOURS THIS HARMONY DAY

This year on Harmony Day why not talk about getting to know your neighbours, workmates and classmates better?? Everyone from 1-101 can do this at their own level. Ask questions about how they are the same and different:

• things they like
• things they do
• their talents
• family
• holidays
• houses
• favourite movies
• friends
• hobbies etc.

Even though we may look different on the outside, on the inside we are ALL THE SAME.

So we should treat each other equally. Treat others as you would like to be treated.

You have to BE a good friend to MAKE a good friend.

                                                                                           Kassi Isaac drawing Qld

The post Harmony Day 21st March appeared first on Be Positive Program.

  Problem Solving Toolboxes 

                                       by Barb Bellesini

The post Problem Solving Toolboxes appeared first on Be Positive Program.

This powerful anti-bullying video was put together by students who had been bullied. I suggest it is good for students from 11-19.

Their message is ‘Stand up. Stand together. Don’t be a bystander.’

The sound track is ‘Fix It’ by Coldplay.

Never be a Bystander, you can always help in some way. Just saying ‘Stop!’ can make a difference. Help if you can, but don’t put yourself in danger. Get someone else to help if you can’t, report it to teachers, adults or police if needed.

See the Post below for some other ways to help Dis-empower Bullies.

Ways to ‘Dis-empower’ a Bully

ePoster Don’t be a Bystander

The post Anti- Bullying Learning and Teaching resource (ALTER) video appeared first on Be Positive Program.

 by Barb Bellesini

We do the right thing,  because it’s the best thing to do.

This is from a Wilson McCaskill Poster from his Play is the Way program Life Raft  see : https://playistheway.com.au/

IT TAKES GREAT STRENGTH TO BE SENSIBLE

These are suggestions from the Seniors on ways we can do this:

How many of these do you do??

Consider others

Listen to everyone

Respect other’s work and property

Practise makes perfect

Be compassionate

No talking at the wrong times

Think about others- respect, kindness, listening, being nice

We should follow instructions

Stay confident

Don’t be encouraged by people doing the wrong thing

Let everyone have their say

Stand up for others

Help and include others

Have self-respect and respect others

Think before you act

Believe in yourself

Be resilient and be yourself

Trust yourself

Work co-operatively with others

Be positive at hard times

Control yourself

Think of things positively and meditate

Make time and be patient

Don’t say things about others when you don’t know the full story

Recover from mistakes and learn from them

Be strong in mind

Be fair with everyone, even if you are cross!

Stay calm when you are upset

Try hard even when things are frustrating or difficult

Co-operate with new and different people

Don’t do things you will regret, walk away

Encourage everyone

Believe in yourself, even if you don’t think it’s possible

Treat people how you want to be treated

Be strong and have goals

Think before you speak

 IT TAKES GREAT STRENGTH TO BE SENSIBLE –

HOW STRONG ARE YOU??

Control your Feelings

The post It Takes Great Strength to be Sensible appeared first on Be Positive Program.

by Barb Bellesini

After 5 months of toiling and trying, never giving up and making little and big bits of progress, following my own advice, positive thinking and Growth Mindset, I engaged a professional to help me finish setting up my BE POSITIVE PROGRAM Website and Shop. A BIG shout out and THANK YOU to Brad Swartz the director of ‘Seven 18 IT’ for a fabulous job. Please look him up if you need anything ‘IT’ done!!

So now it is SALE time! Go to the products page, order anything over $20 and receive a 10% discount on your CART TOTAL. Use the COUPON OPENINGSALE to get your 10% Discount. That is on top of discounts when ordering 10+ of the same Poster, 20+ Workbooks or the Gratitude & Setting Goals Journals, 4+ Lesson Plans and there are also other value ‘Packages.’

All items come in both hard copy and eBook or ePoster. 

Hard copies are available in Australia only with a Flat Rate of $9.95 postage and handling and any order over $200 has free postage.

ePosters and eBooks are the option for any other country at the moment.

Have fun browsing, and while you are there you might want to read a few of the Posts. The last one was on SELF TALK or Fixed Mindset /Growth Mindset. With many more to come.

Posters are suitable for ages 2-102 and already being used in many classrooms from Prep /Pre-Primary to Year 12 in Australia, in a Psychologist and Osteopath’s waiting rooms, (one in England), and in individual homes. Any country that speaks English can use them!!

Tell teachers, psychologists, doctors, friends, families about this Be Positive Education Program that has been developed, tried and tested in Australian schools for over 8 years so far.

The currently available Lesson Plans are most suitable for to 4-8 year olds, but by late 2018 other Lesson Plans for up to 14 years will be ready, with Blackline Masters as well. Check some samples on the Lesson Plans page.

With RESILIENCE, HARD WORK, a GROWTH MINDSET /  POSITIVE SELF TALK, GOAL SETTING, TAKING LITTLE STEPS, CONTROLLING MY EMOTIONS, MINDFULNESS etc. I have  made it this far! There is more to come!

Control your Feelings

Junior Workbook

ePoster Set

Package 2

The post Opening Sale on Products appeared first on Be Positive Program.

Each Class has been talking about Harmony Day. We have looked at what ‘Every Face has a Place’ (KidsMatter slogan) means, as well as revisiting Anti Bullying. The seniors and middles made posters, juniors coloured Mandalas and the preps drew themselves playing kindly with their friends. 

Every person should feel they belong and are safe.

Every Face Has A Place

Everyone can be themselves

No Bossing

Play with everyone

Ugly, short, doesn’t matter

There is a peaceful place for everyone

Everyone has a right to be in this world- treat everyone equally

Everyone has their own talents to share

Everyone belongs and is welcome

Be friendly and kind

Don’t exclude

Take chances

Include everyone

Everyone counts

Everywhere you go everyone is happy

We are all equal

We are free

We have the right to do things

Be yourself

Leave no one out

Everyone can be happy wherever they go

Everyone has a place where they can be happy

You should be able to fit in anywhere

Everyone has a chance to have a say

There’s always a way to be happy

Someone will always love you

Even if you are from a different country you belong

We are all the same

Every face should be seen

Everywhere you go you’ll belong

Everyone should feel safe

We are all humans, no matter what you look like

HARMONY DAY / ANTI BULLYING DAY

How will YOU make a difference on Harmony Day and every day?

The post Harmony Day- Every Face has a Place appeared first on Be Positive Program.