LETSS Wellbeing Newsletter

WELLBEING NEWSLETTER

Celebrating students’wellbeing with the school community

- Pg 6 - Lets Learn about Drugs &Alcohol Together

- Pg 7 - ProudTogether

- Pg 8 - Stand UpAwareness Week

- Pg 9 - Learning and Study Skills

- Pg 10 - Jigsaw

- Pg 11 - Poster Competitions

- Pg 12 - Chatting with our School Community

- Pg 14 -Anti-Bullying Workshop

- Pg 15 -Talk on Homelessness

- Pg 16 - Prevention is Better

- Pg 17 - GOSHH

- Pg 18 - Every Moment Counts

- Pg 19 - LIFTProgramme

- Pg 20 - My FriendsYouth

- Pg 21 - Student Council Wellbeing

- Pg 22 -TakeAction!

- Pg 23 - Ethical Education

- Pg 24 - SportsAbility Day in UL

- Pg 25 - Simon Community Fundraiser

- Pg 26 -Adapt Services

- Pg 27 - Kindness Week

- Pg 31 - Kindness Workshop

The LETSS Wellbeing Newsletter showcases and celebrates the various initiatives and events which have taken place this yearinourschool.

As a school, we place student wellbeing at the centre of all that we do in LETSS. In September 2023, our school was recognised for its efforts in promoting positive mental health and wellbeing at whole school level by being awarded it’s OneGoodSchoolStatusbyJigsaw.

As you peruse this newsletter, you will see at first hand the enormous efforts taken by staff and students to ensure that student wellbeing and positive mental health is championed across the many facets of school life in LETSS. I with to thank Catherine O’Connor and the Wellbeing team for all the work that goes into coordinating our Wellbeing Programme in school. It has been a community effort involving various subject departments, extra-curricular activities, focus groups, break time and lunchtime clubs and so much more. Well doneeveryone.

EoinShinners Principal

IN THIS ISSUE:

SPHE Activities

SPHE students worked hard in October to promote Mental Health Awareness in our school community. Storyboards, posters and information leaflets were createdandpostedallaround the school building. The messages they carry are so important for both students and staff in the care of their emotionalhealth

Amber Flag Award

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Our school received the Amber Flag in April, 2023. This initiative celebrates communities that create healthy, supportive and inclusive environments by promoting mental wellbeing. With the support of the Student Council, students throughout the school participated in various activities and competitions with the fostering of emotional wellbeing as a central theme throughout. We are proud to fly the Amber Flag for our school and look forward to continuing this valuable workinourschoolcommunity.

One Good School Award

LETSS was the recipient of Jigsaw’s One Good School Award this year. This initiative supports the mental health and wellbeing of young people by developing a shared responsibility across the whole school community. Students, Staff, Management and Parents all participated in various programmes and workshops (both online and face to face) with a view to enhancing the mental health of all members of the LETSS community. We continue our work in Mental Health Promotion this year and look forward to participating in further OGS programmesandactivities.

The Shona Project

Congratulations to the following students who were nominated by staff to be SHONA Ambassadors in our school

-Martyna Czaicka (Fifth Year)

-NellO’Grady(TransitionYear)

-RachelShannon(SixthYear)

The Shona Project is a non-profit organisation whose aimistoeducate,empowerand inspire today’s Irish girls to become tomorrow’s strong, confident, curious young women.

The Ambassador Programme supports our students as leaders who promote kindness, positivity, inclusion and resilience within the school community. Welldonegirlsand keepupthegoodwork!

TheShonaSurvivalHandbook

First Year SPHE students received the Shona Survival Handbook; a fabulous booklet packed with life hacks, advice and information to help them on their journey through SecondarySchool.

SHOPNOW

Let’s Learn About Drugs & Alcohol Together

Second Year students along with their parents & guardians attended a 2-night workshop in the school in early October with a focus on Drug & AlcoholAbuse. Let’sLearnAboutDrugs&AlcoholTogetherisaSubstance Use Education Programme run by the HSE and is an evidence-based, sustainable workshop that allows a shared experience of drug education. Theprogrammeallowsparentsandyoungpeopletolearnmoreaboutdrugs and raise alcohol awareness. Both parents and young people found the workshops to be informative and effective and we look forward to running themagainintheschoolatafuturedate.

Proud Together

Inclusion & Diversity are hugely important in our school community and this year hasseenourinvolvementintheBelongToQualityMarkProgramme.Thisinitiative provides support and accreditation to make schools safe spaces for the LGBTQI+ Community. It seeks to enhance four different areas in the school; Policy & Planning, Culture & Environment, Curriculum and Relationships. Proud Together is our newly-formed active group of students and staff who will oversee the running of various activities in the school as part of this wonderful initiative. We are all so proud of you and the amazing work you are doing in LETSS!

Stand Up Awareness Week

Stand up Awareness Week addresses bullying in secondary schools and youth services by encouraging friendship and positive understanding of LGBTI+ young people. This year LETSS celebrated the week in style. With the guidance and support of Christian & Cathríona, students organised a variety of fun and educational activities and events whichwereenjoyedbybothstaffandstudentsthroughouttheweek.

Let’shearaboutitallfrom Second Yr student, Darragh Jennings

The let’s stand up awareness week was a great success on the part of the student and teacher organizers. All of the teachers and the students alike that participated had fun.

During break time there was Pride-Themed Face Painting, Temporary Tattoos, Stickers and a Pride Quiz. From Monday to Thursday, during lunch time there was the Rainbow Cinema screening Heartstopper, with free popcorn. On Friday there was the Rainbow Bake Sale, Daily Quiz with LGBTQ+ Music. And throughout the week there was an Art Competition. Some people wrote a poem, designed a piece of artwork or painted a pictureandthethemewasPride.Allproceedsfrombakesale,facepaint,braceletsand temp tattoos went towards purchasing LGBTQI+ books for the library and a Rainbow Bench

Learning & Study Skills

All Third & Sixth Year students participated in Learning  & Study Skills Seminar in October. This workshop helps students understand how to become more effective learners giving them  the knowledge and skills required to succeed in school and in exams .It focuses on developing  a growth mindset and  building resilience and equips them with a proven study methodology.

Gaining skills and knowledge such as this will be of huge benefit to our exam students as their focus turns to assessment in the weeks and months ahead

JIGSAW

Jigsaw, the Youth Mental Health Support Service, gave a talk to all Second Year and Transition Year students about the important work they do with young people in Limerick.

They explained to the students the importance of looking after their emotional wellbeing and informed them of the different sources of help available to them both inside and outside of the school. This support is hugely important for our young people especially during difficult and challenging times

Poster Competitions

First & Second Year students participated in Poster and Slogan Competitions as part of Mental Health Awareness Month.

Prizes were awarded for the best entries. We loved the creativity on display

Chatting with Members of our School Community

Somestudentsinterviewed studentsandstaffmembersto discoverhowtheylookafter theirmentalhealth. Checkthoseinterviewsout here!

Interview with Danilo, Second Year (by Ilir & Zuzanna)

Q: How does the stress of being in school every day affect you?

A:Itrynottogetaffectedbytheproblemsofschoolingeneralwithtestsand stuff,butsometimesIcangetabitworriedaboutexamsandtests.

Q: What do you do about that stress?

A: I just realise that I have to do this test and know that I’m eventually going togotocollege,whichI’minterestedin.

Q: What issues have you encountered with friends, yourself or anyone else you know. What have you come across and what issues have you had to overcome ?

A:Thestressismostlyfromtests

Q: What about the people around you? What did they have to deal with?

A: The people around have had to deal with a couple cases of bullying and just stressabouttestsaswell.

Q: What has the school done to deal with these issues?

A:Theschoolhassuspendedthebullies.

Interview with Niamh Mulqueen (by Kayla & Ella)

Q: What is mental health in your opinion?

A: Mental health is how well people feel and how well they cope with the different challengesthatlifegivesthem

Q: Do you think mental health is important? Why?

A: I do think it’s important to have good mental health so that we can cope with hard times in life

Q: What do you do to look after your mental health?

A: I talk to friends and I exercise

Q: If someone was struggling with their mental health, how would you help them?

A: I would give them a hug and listen to them and try to help themsolvetheirproblems

Q: What causes mental health problems in your opinion?

A: Tough times in life and not knowing how to cope with these times

Interview with Dermot (by Alex, Scott & Wojciech)

Q: How do you feel about mental health

A: Well I’m a fitness instructorthis helps your mental health. Exercise helps our mental health. When you exercise it really helps yourmentalhealth!

Q: Do you think every should look after their mental health?

A: 100% - Everyone should look aftertheirmentalhealth

Q: What advice would you give to someone who is struggling with their mental health?

A: I recommend they find an activity and find something they enjoy doing!

I enjoy weight lifting and I have apassionforit

Anti-Bullying Workshops

November marked Anti-Bullying Month. Sixth Year Assistant Year Head, Michelle Costello organised Anti-Bullying talks for all First & Second Year students.

Facilitators from the organisation Bully for You spoke to the students about the reasons why someone might bully others and the effectsofbullyingonayoung person as well as useful strategies and advice for dealing with bullying. In LETSS, we have a zero-tolerance approach to any type of intimidation or threatening behaviour so we were delighted to give our students the opportunity to explore this topic further. A veryworthwhileworkshop!

Talk on Homelessness

Melissa and Roisín from the Midwest Simon Community, came to speak to First Year students about Homelessness. They are currently reading a novel about homelessness in English and as a PBL school, we're always trying to connect the classroom to the real world. The First Year students really enjoyed the talk and they were given an opportunity to ask questions at the end. A massive thank you to the Simon Community for visiting our school!

Prevention is Better

All Fifth & Sixth Year students took part in a workshoponDrugs&AlcoholinNovember.Weknow thatsubstanceabuseisahugeprobleminsocietyin general today and the aim of PIB is to keep young people and communities healthy through prevention education. The workshops were interesting and informative and the messages delivered to our students were extremely powerful. We hope such messages will stay with them as they journeyintoapromisingyetchallengingfuture

GOSHH

GOSHH(Gender,Orientation,SexualHealth,HIV)isa charitythatfocusesonthepromotionofequalityand wellbeingofallwithapositiveandrespectfulapproachto sexualorientationandgenderdiversity. During November,aspartofourStandUpcelebrations,our TransitionYearstudentsparticipatedinaneducational, interactiveworkshopfacilitatedbyGOSHH. Thestudentsfoundtheexperiencetobebothenjoyable andinformativeandwelookforwardtohostingthe Limerick-basedcharityagaininthenewyear

Every Moment Counts

Asmallgroupofstaffmembersattendedaworkshop organisedbytheUniversityofLimerickandtheAssociation ofOccupationalTherapistsofIreland.

Every Moment Counts isamentalhealthpromotion initiativedevelopedtohelpallchildrenandyouthbecome mentallyhealthyinordertosucceedatschool,athomeand inthecommunity.

Thethemeofthetrainingwasfosteringwellbeingand inclusioninschoolswithaparticularfocusontheneedsof ouryoungpeoplewithdisabilitiesandthoseatrisk. Witha focusoninterdisciplinarycollaboration,theinitiativeseeks toincorporateavarietyoftherapies(speech&language therapy,physiotherapy,occupationaltherapy)where needed,intoschoollife.Thismulti-tieredapproachto mentalhealthpromotionisahighlyeffectiveoneandwe lookforwardtoimplementingsomeofitsideasand strategiesinourschoolinthetimeahead.

LIFT Programme

Transition Year students are participating in the LIFT Programme for the second year running under the guidance of Maria, Clare and Amy. LIFT (Leading Ireland’s Future Together) is a group learning programme aimed at increasing the level of positive leadership in Ireland. Their mission is to transform our society by enabling every young person to improve their mental wellbeing, build self-leadership and develop inner strength.

As part of their training in LIFT, the Transition Years had the opportunity earlier in this term to facilitate some workshops with First Year students around the themes of Diversity and Bullying.

It is wonderful to see our Fourth Year students building the skills required to become effective leaders and to see their fellow students in the school benefit from those skills. Here’s to the leaders of the future!

My Friends Youth

A small group of staff members are currently training in the Friends Youth Programme. This is a comprehensive curriculum that equips young people with the necessary tools to overcome life’s challenges in positive ways. Once training is complete, we hope to facilitate the rollout of this course with all of our Junior students as part of our Wellbeing Programme within the school.

My Friends Youth has been proven to decrease anxiety and depression while building self-confidence, resilience and problem solving skills. We’re looking forward to the benefit and enjoyment our young people will gain from such a worthwhile programme

Student Council

Wellbeing Stewards

David Kelly, Willow Byrne, Ben Clancy and Patryk Pawlisiak have been flying the flag for Wellbeing on the StudentCounciloverthepast year. They provide a valuable link between wellbeing initiatives that are run in the school and the student body as a whole. These students were instrumental in earning the Amber Flag for our school earlier this year and we encourage them to continue their great work as Wellbeing Ambassadors in LETSS!

Take Action!

Transition Years hope to start another exciting Wellbeing Programme in the new year. Take Action! is a Youth Mental Health Programme run by Jigsaw which supports young people to develop their Mental Health Literacy, practise skills for minding their Mental Health and raise awareness of Mental Health across their school community. This promises to be a really worthwhile course!

Ethical Education

Our first year students have begun engaging with our Ethical Education Programme. Ethical Education involves exploring different worldviews and beliefs, considering ethical dilemmas and the process of ethical decision making. Students engage with issues and problems facing society and develop the skills of critical thinking, discussion and debate. Ethical Education embodies the values of an Educate Together second-level school that promotes democracy, respect and equality.

IN THIS ISSUE:

SportsAbility Day in UL

Some of our lucky students got to visit UL in November to participate in the SportsAbility Day that was organized by Limerick Sports Partnership. They had lots of fun and got to try out a variety of physical activities for all abilities, such as, cycling, rugby, tennis, rock climbing, dance and much more. Thanks to everyone involved, the students had an amazing day

IN THIS ISSUE:

Simon Community Fundraiser

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ThisChristmasourschoolworkedinsupportofThe SimonCommunitytoraisefundsandcollectessential itemsforthoseinneed.Eachyeargroupweregivena listofitemstheycouldchoosefromtodonatetoour schoolcollection. WealsoheldaChristmasJumper DayandaChristmasMarketonThursdayDecember 14thtoraisemuchneededfundsforthiscommunity. Nicetreats,hotchocolateandChristmascardswere availableforpurchaseontheday.Thisbroughta warmChristmasatmospheretothewholeschool communityanditwasfantastictoseeeveryoneget behindthecampaign.Thisfundraiserwasledbythe LCA’s,1ErneEnglishclass,TYCommunityCare classesandtheirteachers.Welldonetoeveryone involvedandthankyouforyoursupport!

IN THIS ISSUE:

ADAPT Services

ADAPT is a voluntary organisation that provides a wide range of supports to women survivors of domestic abuse and their children across Limerick City and County. In January, they visited the school to deliver the Healthy Relationships Programme to all Senior Students in the school. The work of ADAPT with young people in the community focuses on the promotion of healthy relationships which are based on equality, dignity and mutual respect. We were delighted to have ADAPT in the school to share their knowledge and expertise with our students and we look forward to running a fundraiser in the coming weeks to raise vital funds for this wonderful organization.

ADAPT Services

Wellbeing Committee

A Wellbeing Committee was formed in the school in February and this is made up of staff members and students.

We hope to work together on this committee to further promote Wellbeing across our school community and we’re looking forward to organising lots of worthwhile activities in the weeks and months ahead. The first task of the committee was to organise Kindness Week!

IN THIS ISSUE:

Kindness Week

Kindness Week was celebrated in our school in February with lots of great activities organised. Students wrote Notes of Appreciation to members of staff and the TYs were very happy to organise and deliver them

During assembly, each First Year received a handwritten note of encouragement from a Senior or Third Year student Kayla did a great job sorting out all the notes!

Kindness Week

Danilo&Ilir(2ndYr)madesomevideoclipstoshowattutortimewhile AlanDyndaputMessagesofPositivityontheTVscreensaroundthe schooleachday

TYsweregiventhechallengeofcommittingasmanyRandomActsof Kindnessaspossiblewithprizesbeinggivenforthosewhodidthemost SarahFitzgeraldwontopprizefor100RandomActsofKindnessover theweek! WelldoneSarah!

TheKindnessPolicewereoutandaboutonThursday. Whenanyonewas spottedcommittinganActofKindness,he/shewasgivenatreat! Needlesstosay,theywereverybusyontheday!

IN THIS ISSUE:

SecondYears(LIR)helpedtocreateaWallofKindnessintheschool. Thiswallcarriedmessagesofhopeandpositivityandstudentswere invitedtoaddposters,heartsandkindwordstoitastheweekwenton.

Olga and the Ukranian students created beautiful cards to send to the residents of local nursing homes. Inside they wrote letters about themselves and their lives in the Ukraine and in Ireland

IN THIS ISSUE:

PasstheGoodAroundwasanotherexcitingactivityorganisedbyOlga. KikotheKindnessKoalawaspassedaroundbetweenclassesandashe movedalong,wordsofgratitudewereaddedinheartstotheKindness Wall. EveryonereallyenjoyedthisbeautifulinitiativeofPassingthe

Kindness Workshop

Psychologist, Susan Quain delivered a workshop to all First Years during the week, talking to them about the importance of being kind to one another.