Friday 5th February 2021
Outside the Box A newsletter helping the Box Hill School community stay together, stay informed and stay happy.
“Great Minds Don’t Think Alike”
Friendly February We hope that you enjoyed the first 2021 volume of Outside the Box and found the resources that we shared with you useful. We are going to continue to publish the newsletter fortnightly, but you will also find pastoral updates in the Headmaster’s Newsletter that runs on alternate Fridays to this publication.
Daily Wellbeing Tasks Take time today to be with family – play board games, eat together and talk Do something active –get your heart pumping Be creative and make something Say some kind words to others today Be attentive to the present – breathe, eat, exercise mindfully
Just over a month has passed since our students returned to ‘remote’ School and all our students have engaged incredibly well and should be proud of all that they have achieved. This term has not been easy, but the adaptability and resilience of our students and staff alike, are a credit to the School and the wider community. Despite not being here in the physical, we are still very much the School community, just in the cloud! This volume of Outside the Box includes a number of new resources to help with e-Safety as well as focusing on the fantastic work that has been undertaken this week as part of Children’s Mental Health Week. A lot of work has been done over this half term to focus on positive mental health and wellbeing. We have also been working on breaking down the stigmas that fall around conversations about mental health. The Anna Freud Centre also do a lot of work with this too. The message is clear, we all have mental health, and it is just as important as our physical health, so we must ensure that we do things to help look after it every day.
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Wellbeing So much has been happening over the last two weeks here at Box Hill School. There has been a big focus on positive mental health and wellbeing for our students. Through our PSHEE curriculum the students have been exploring lots of ways of supporting their mental health. We have also engaged with Children’s Mental Health Week in numerous ways including participating in Inside Out Day. Inside Out Day aims to raise awareness amongst children of the huge importance of being kind and mindful of others as no one knows how someone else is feeling. On that day, many in the School community were wearing an item of clothing inside out as a reminder that how someone else looks on the outside doesn’t necessarily reflect how they are truly feeling on the inside. We were also fortunate that students in Year 10 were invited to attend a fantastic presentation by The Mix all about ‘Being Mentally Well Online’. The session challenged our students to weigh up the pros and cons of this online world in which we now live. When the talk was complete, we had the time to discuss the ideas raised and were grateful for the input from the Headmaster, who had joined us for the talk as well. Many interesting points were raised about the way that social media constantly monitoring things that we search and do, ultimately creating an ‘echo chamber’, highlighting the importance of looking at all aspects of the argument, while being aware that others will have differing opinions. There was also an afternoon session for many students in years 10 to 13 which was run by a charity called REACH, Resilience, Ethnicity, and Adolescent Mental Health, which is a research study that has an aim to understand the best ways to promote good mental health among young people from all backgrounds. The talk focused on students understanding the meaning of resilience and coping with change during this current time. The presenters who ran the talk, gave our students some good coping mechanisms, and also highlighted the wealth of support that is out there for young people, many of which is mentioned throughout the rest of the newsletter.
Small acts of kindness are so incredibly important currently and our message regarding this has been consistent to students over the last few weeks. We have heard lovely anecdotes from our students about the small acts that they have done at home to help and check in on loved ones. Another event that we also got involved with during this week was Time to Talk Day 2021, a day designed to break down the stigma around conversations to do with mental health. We all have mental health and it is very important that as the younger generations grow up that there is no stigma attached to conversations about how they are feeling or coping at any given time. Time to Talk Day reminds us that small acts can equate to big steps along the road to positive mental health. Staff were encouraged to join a virtual Afternoon Tea and students were encouraged to reach out to friends and family to start those small conversations. Even if this did not happen on Time to Talk day itself, it does not stop it happening this weekend and beyond.
3 Place2Be launched Children’s Mental Health Week this year, with the theme of Express Yourself. An important skill in working with our own mental health is allowing ourselves to express how we are feeling at any given time. Being creative is a good way for our young people to express how they are feeling and, especially at this time, can give them an opportunity for some screen free time. Place2Be have provided some simple ways that you can encourage your child to express themselves at this time.
Following the move to remote learning, we immediately changed the focus of PSHEE lessons to help students think about the things that they could do to help promote positive mental health within their lives. The NHS are also focusing more and more on topics of positive mental health and the idea that ‘every mind matters’. There is a wealth of advice for parents and carers on looking after children’s mental health and self-care videos for young people here: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters There are many charities out there to support young people and their families, both through this pandemic as well as during normal times. We understand that the pandemic has increased levels of anxieties for people and so we are aiming to signpost avenues of support at this time. It is not only charities that are providing support either, Barclay’s Life Skills are also providing resources to help families at this time. https://barclayslifeskills.com/families/?utm_source=Website&utm_medium=Listing&ut m_campaign=Edukit_FamilySupport&utm_content=hs_te
4 A lot of work has been done in recent years to remove the stigma around conversations to do with mental health. The Anna Freud Centre bases its work around the fact that we all have mental health, and we need to focus on how we maintain good mental health, and where we can turn for support when our mental health is not so good. They have some useful advice and guidance for parents or carers who are supporting a young person who is experiencing poor mental health or wellbeing https://www.annafreud.org/parents-and-carers/ CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) have provided 8 ways in which to help children that are struggling with lockdown as below:
With all that is happening during the pandemic, it is not surprising that our young people are anxious. They are dealing with uncertainty, likely to be feeling socially isolated, managing remote learning, worrying about the impact of all this on the health of those that they love and their own futures. And they are also dealing with the changes in brain chemistry that happen during their teenage years. All of this means that it’s important to talk to them about what’s happening. In addition to the steps above: •
Encourage them to maintain their social links – relationships with their peers are really important to them. It is part of the brain’s development. Please encourage them to stay in touch with friends and classmates.
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Help to counter social media misinformation by discussing data and information from the government website and reputable media sources. The World Health Organisation also has a mythbusters section as part of its covid 19 information for the public https://www.who.int/
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Share the positive tools that you use to manage your anxiety. YoungMinds have useful tools to use if your children are anxious about coronavirus https://youngminds.org.uk/blog/what-to-do-if-you-re-anxious-aboutcoronavirus/ whilst Mind have a coronavirus hub to provide support for young people https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/for-children-and-youngpeople/coronavirus/
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If your child is in an exam year group, they may be anxious about exactly what will be happening at the usual exam time. Uncertainty can lead to confusion, worry and anxiety. Please reassure them when more guidance comes from the School about how grades will be awarded, you’ll share this with them as soon as you have it. You could also check that they understand the information you’ve received so far, to address any concerns. We encourage you to attend the webinar arranged on Wednesday 10 th February when we will share information about public examinations.
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If your child has a higher level of anxiety encourage them to use techniques such as controlled breathing, mindfulness or counting, ordering and sorting tasks. YoungMinds also have very good information for parents https://youngminds.org.uk/find-help/for-parents/ alongside a telephone helpline that can be accessed by phone, email and webchat.
Sources of support for children and young people It is okay not to be okay, we all need to talk at times. For those difficult times there is a wealth of information and support out there for both young people and their families, parents, and carers. If your child would like to speak with someone confidentially, there are helplines and websites specifically for them. Information on some of these sources of support is below: Organisation
Contact details
ChildLine
Call 0800 1111 for free from 9am to 3.30pm or have an online chat with a counsellor.
Confidential telephone counselling service for any child with a problem.
https://www.childline.org.uk/ Kooth Online mental wellbeing support for children from 10 years upwards. The Mix Free confidential telephone helpline and online service that aims to find young people the best help, whatever the problem.
Includes online chat with the Kooth team. https://www.kooth.com/ Includes a free helpline 0808 808 4994, one to one chat, a crisis messenger and wellbeing resources. www.themix.org.uk/
It’s a place to go if you’re struggling to Free, confidential support via text, available cope and you need in the UK to text 24/7, free on all major mobile networks, for with a trained crisis volunteer who’ll provide active listening and anyone in crisis anytime, anywhere. collaborative problem-solving immediate help. Text 85258. Shout
YoungMinds A charity dedicated to children’s mental health.
Winston’s Wish A bereavement charity that offers help for those supporting a bereaved child
Parents' helpline 0808 802 5544 www.youngminds.org.uk
Freephone National Helpline 08088 020 021 www.winstonswish.org/
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e-safety With the majority of young people now learning from home, they will be spending more time online doing their school work, playing games or socialising. Technology is hugely valuable for education, as well as a way to keep in touch with friends and family. However it’s important we all consider how we can help keep young people safer online during this lockdown, and always. Here’s some information from CEOP about what your child may enjoy online and what you can do to help keep them safer: Steps you can take to help keep your child safer online Parental controls: Parental controls have been designed to help you manage your child's online activities. There are various types, some of which are free but others which can be bought. However, nothing is totally fool proof so they shouldn't replace the need for you to support and advise your child using the internet. For more information and step by step instructions on setting up parental controls, visit Parental Controls & Privacy Settings Guides - Internet Matters. Have an ongoing conversation: Continue to talk about the apps, games and sites they like to use, and what they like and don’t like and any concerns about being online. Discuss with them when to unfollow, block or report. For help starting this conversation, read having a conversation with your child. Be non-judgemental: Explain that you would never blame them for anything that might happen online, and you will always give them calm, loving support. Make sure they know where to go for support: Remind your child they can always speak to you or an adult they trust if anything happens online that makes them feel worried or upset. For a breakdown of report services, visit: Supporting your child with reporting unwanted content online Make sure they know about NCA CEOP: Young people can report a concern about grooming or sexual abuse to NCA CEOP at https://www.ceop.police.uk/safety-centre/ and get support from a specialist Child Protection Advisor. Talk about how their online actions can affect others: If your child is engaging with peers online, remind them to consider how someone else might feel before they post or share something. If they are considering sharing a photo/video of somebody else, they should always ask permission first. Tell them about Thinkuknow: Our websites provide open and honest guidance for young people on friends, relationships and the internet, covering topics like dealing with pressure; consent; and getting support when you’re worried. Visit our website for 11-13's or our website for 14+ for age appropriate information. Direct your child to age appropriate information about relationships and sex: It’s natural for young people to start exploring their sexual feelings online and adolescents are more inclined to take risks. It’s important to understand this and to talk to your child in a positive, encouraging, and safe way. Thinkuknow, Brook, The Mix and Childline all provide age appropriate information about relationships and sex that you can signpost your child to.
Useful Links www.internetmatters.org – A one-stop shop for all things “e-safety”, aimed at parents. Bookmark this website! www.childnet.com – Hugely useful and engaging website aimed more at young people themselves. www.ceop.police.uk – A Government-funded, Police website focused on illegal online behaviours such as cyber-bullying and grooming.
7 With an ever evolving list of apps and games that our children can access, it is more important than ever that we can access clear information about what they are using. The NSPCC has worked in collaboration with O2 to create Net Aware, a website to help parents access information about apps, games and social media sites that are being used by young people on a daily basis. For each of the sites, Net Ware have created a parent and carer guide as follows: • Official age rating • Kids use this to… • Our safety ratings • Safety features • Privacy and locations • Reporting and blocking • Content • How to keep your child safe • Sign ups for updates As a school we are also sent wider updates around the safety of certain apps and we would suggest that you look at the following links on TikTok and Avakin Life (a 3D virtual world game) as well: https://www.net-aware.org.uk/networks/tiktok/ https://www.smartgensociety.org/resources/parents/avakin-life Childnet also provide a wealth of resources and advice to help parents engage in conversations with their children about keeping safe online. https://www.childnet.com/parents-and-carers NSPCC Online Safety: https://www.nspcc.org.uk/keeping-children-safe/online-safety/
Podcasts For the Mental Health Foundation ‘prevention is at the heart’ of what they do. Their vision is ‘good mental health for all’ and it’s their mission to help people understand, protect and sustain their mental health. Their website provides a brilliant array of resources to help with this and they also produce some very good wellbeing podcasts as well. What is Mindfulness? This week’s podcast is all about mindfulness. It is narrated by Dr Jonty Heaversedge, with contributions from mindfulness expert Dr Mark Williams and Kathy, who practices the technique. https://soundcloud.com/mentalhealthfoundation/what-is-mindfulness Please find the link to the Mental Health Foundation web page below as well. https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/
Contacts Sue Salmon, Deputy Head Pastoral
Susan.Salmon@boxhillschool.com
Claire McCarthy, Assistant Head Pastoral
Claire.McCarthy@boxhillschool.com
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BOX HILL SCHOOL ‘HOLD STILL’ Photo Competition 2021
We have continued to run our lockdown ‘Hold Still’ Photo Competition over the last couple of weeks. It has been lovely to hear from students who have shared what their lockdown life looks like. For many photography is a good way to destress and help improve their mental health and wellbeing so we hope that this friendly competition can continue when we return after half term. The entries this week have included:
Final thoughts for activities that include no screen time (from a fantastic resource provided by Happy Space, a preventive wellbeing charity that collaborated with Beyond to create a wellbeing guidbook to support children’s mental health)…
9 Answers to Quizzes in the last edition of Outside the Box
Where in School would you find the places below?
Credit: Mr Coates
Burmester Allotment
Sports Fields from the Netball Court
Sunset over the quad
Dalewood in a puddle
Did you recognize the Apps?
1. Snapchat 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
Instagram Facebook Tik Tok Pinterest Twitter Discord LinkedIn Twitch Monkey
Further Information about these Apps that has been taken from the NSPCC and O2 collaboration ‘Net-Aware’: Name Snapchat
What is it? Photo sharing and messaging app. Can be used to play, be creative, learn and connect with friends Photo sharing app. Can be used to be creative, learn and connect with friends
Social media site that allows you to connect with friends. Can be used to play, be creative, learn and connect with others.
What children dislike about it? It shares your location unless you use ‘ghost mode’. People can screenshot images that you share. You can be messaged by people you do not know. People you do not know can comment on your posts, message you and follow you. Sometimes images shared can be upsetting or inappropriate. People write mean or bullying messages on posts. Large amounts of adverts and spam posts that you cannot control. Can see inappropriate or upsetting images or pages that are shared. Could receive
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Tik Tok
Platform that allows you to create, share and discover 60second videos. Can be used to play, to be creative and to connect with people.
Interactive pinboard used for sharing creative ideas. Can be used to learn, be creative and connect with people.
Social media site to share tweets – only 280 characters long so small bits of information. Can be used to learn and to connect with others. Is a voice and text chat app that is popular with gamers. Can be used to learn but primarily used to connect.
Discord
Twitch
It is a live streaming site that is popular with gamers. Can be used to play, learn, and connect with others.
Monkey
Social chatting app that uses live streaming to randomly connect you to other users.
friend requests or messages from people they do not know. Need to make sure the TikTok settings are as private as possible. Ensure that videos are only shared with friends that they know, or they are shared very publicly. Content can be upsetting or inappropriate. Can come across inappropriate content, such as nudity, especially as this can be easily searched for. There are lots of adverts and also has been suggested that people send mean messages about images that you pin. Can see inappropriate content, depending on who you follow, it can be used to bully people and it is also difficult to know what is true in the information being shared. Different servers have different rules – some of these allow inappropriate behaviours and content. You can connect with people you do not know easily. Some can be mean, rude, or sexual. There are lots of ways to communicate. There are lots of adverts that you cannot avoid, lots of people say rude things in their videos and it is hard to censor what is being watched by young people as it is all live. Very few safety features and as a result, children can be open to inappropriate content and contact with adults that they do not know.