The theme for Children’s Mental Health Week this year is ‘Know Yourself, Grow Yourself’, with the aim to equip and empower children to embrace self-awareness, build resilience, grow and develop. For Cumnor, this could not be more apt.
From Nursery onwards, our children build strong self-awareness. Because we know that social and emotional literacy is key to every child’s development – at school and beyond. From this, they can start to understand their own emotions, understand those of others around them and build their own identities and self-esteem.
We actively listen to our children and allow plenty of time for reflection. Our small class sizes, excellent staff to pupil ratios and highly skilled team means that we get to know every single child in our care.
We also provide dedicated support where needed including an Emotional Literacy Support Assistant (ELSA) in the Pre-Prep. Developed and supported by educational psychologists, ELSAs offer individualised support to meet the emotional needs of children, in particular if they are struggling with low self-esteem.
Feeling secure within yourself and like you belong in the school environment is crucial. If a child feels like they belong then they feel secure to learn and can thrive.
For many, they just need a helping hand to better understand and articulate how they are feeling. Focused around individual interests, ELSA support can range from one to one sessions to friendship circles or small group projects. ELSAs are highly skilled at understanding what makes a child tick and providing a safe space for children to go to.
By having an ELSA within the Pre-Prep and based within Reception, we get to know every child as an individual. We are able to support our youngest cohort to build their self-awareness and strategies for resilience. By introducing this at the start of their learning journey, we are building their sense of belonging from the outset and forming a strong foundation as learning accelerates.
Children who have been supported by our ELSA have a greater feeling of security within themselves, they are more focused and more confident.
The most important message we share is that we are all different and that’s OK, just try your best for who you are.
Find out more about our Pastoral Care and our outstanding staff.
