Unique to SBHCs, this health care team includes school staff, who are crucial members and support students’ socio-emotional and cognitive development. Participants reported addressing these concerns in several ways, including partnering with students to raise awareness about mental health. COST attendees included school employees (e.g., administrators, teachers, counselors), who were critical in referring students and coordinating educational efforts with the Wellness Coordinator, who facilitated Wellness Center services.
Table 1. Types of Agencies Providing Mental Health Services at Each Wellness Center.
It’s also a great way to get students moving their bodies and getting some exercise. Yoga has been shown to be beneficial for mental health, as it can help reduce stress and anxiety. This is a non-verbal way for students to share how they’re doing without having to share their feelings out loud. At the beginning of class, have students choose an emoji that represents how they’re feeling. Emoji check-ins are a great way to get a quick pulse on how your students are feeling. Just bringing up the topic is a great way to get to know your students and their individual needs.
Pictured right, a rain chain visibly carries stormwater down to a bio-retention rain garden, exposing students to nature and interactive scientific exploration. Pennsylvania School Mental Health Resources Interaction with nature can play a key role in supporting academic performance in addition to overall student wellness and well-being. Research is advancing our understanding of how exposure to the natural world can improve our mental health and sharpen our cognition. According to the Harvard School of Public Health, the average student spends more than 15,000 hours in school by the time they graduate high school, second only to the amount of time spent at home. Learn more about the Second Step® family of programs for teaching human skills to K–12 students.
Online school allows parents and families greater access to their student’s education. Some students experience reduced anxiety when they can attend school from home. According to the WHO, “bullying is a leading risk factor for mental health conditions.” Studies show, however, that online education significantly reduced bullying—including cyberbullying, despite the added time spent online.2 Mental health refers to much more than simply the absence of mental health disorders or mental illness, and having good mental health support is a crucial part of the education system.
Best Wellness Tools for Students
The District seeks to ensure all of its students obtain the knowledge and skills necessary to make nutritious food selections and enjoy life-long physical activity. The District will retain records to document compliance with the requirements of this wellness policy in the District Office and/or on the District’s central computer network. The District will endeavor to share as much information as possible about its schools’ nutrition environment, including a summary of school events or activities relative to this wellness policy implementation.
More Mental Health & Wellness Resources
Unfortunately, issues like teacher turnover and teacher burnout can interrupt student learning and negatively impact students’ academic and social development. Teachers and staff entered the 2020 and 2021 school years at the precipice of a new, uncertain educational system—expected to do more with less. Add in a worldwide pandemic and the shift to remote learning—and it’s clear that teachers are struggling to keep up this school year.
- When comparing the lifecycle cost of the two materials, the decreased maintenance of LVT can make up the initial cost difference in as little as three years, saving the school significant money over time.
- Give your students the opportunity to express how they’re presently feeling with a Mental Health Check- In.
- A multi-tiered support system (MTSS) organizes intervention strategies along a continuum, starting with prevention and graduating to more intense support to match student need.
- Furthermore, for novel SBHCs providing services to community members as well as students, future research should study downstream effects on community and population health, including how these SBHCs address health and mental health disparities.
Funding remains a major challenge for districts that aim to improve student mental health support systems. By identifying the risk factors and warning signs of mental health challenges, districts can scale resources for the students who need it the most. This Virtual Wellness Center includes activities and resources to support the well-being of staff, students, and parents by promoting health and wellness.
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