The subject lead for PSHE at Darwen St James is Mrs Corbally.
Wellbeing Champions
Our Academy has a team of Wellbeing Champions who work together to provide a safe, caring and nurturing environment for all staff.
Two members of the Wellbeing Champions are mental health first aiders and another staff member is a coaching mentor, with two years experience.
Our key role is to ensure that we keep staff members up to date with relevant information and be there when someone wants to talk and voice any issues they may have. As a Wellbeing Champion we are able to signpost guidance on a subject and where to find information that will support them.
Confidentiality is key to show support and that all issues discussed are handled sensitively. Putting the trust into the Wellbeing Champions is important in order to address the issues that have been raised. All information is anonymous to respect members of staff wishes.
Achievements and positive comments are given to boost staff morale, along with a staff appreciation board where staff can comment on the support or help they have been given from another member of staff that has put a smile on their face.
At Darwen St James’ we are strong believers in developing the whole child. Alongside our child centred curriculum we offer curriculum enhancements including trips, visitors, bucket list events, challenge sessions for Growth Mindset, curriculum days, Aim High Day, Inspirational speakers, sporting events and many more.
We are also proud of our Nurture time, 30 mins every week dedicated to an element of wellbeing, global citizenship or entrepreneurship. This year we are spending the autumn term looking at Global Citizenship through the use of Picture News and also throughout the year through our charity work. More information can be found by clicking our Global Citizens tab and Charities Tab. The spring term we will be doing Entrepreneurship, this will involve each group setting up their own business, each having their own roles and responsibilities. The children develop a product that they then make and sell. They have to have a business plan, a control over finance and a good sales pitch! The children love doing this and it becomes a healthy competition over the course of the term. In the Summer, when it is exams and tests and transition time, we focus on wellbeing. The children learn about the 5 ways to well-being and how they can incorporate these into their daily lives.
Through Friends of Darwen St James' being extremely hard working they raised enough money for us to turn an underused space into a fantastic nurture room for the children. The children designed it themselves and worked to a budget to get the work completed. This space is often used for small groups, wellbeing drop-ins, 1-1s with our Pupil Wellbeing team and a relaxing and calming space for children who need it.
Nursery
This half term the children have been developing their understanding of feelings and emotions. We have introduced different ways on how to cope with these feels and why we might be feeling them. One of the tasks that was used was a breathing method to calm our bodies if we are feeling angry or sad. We talked about why we might feel this way and how to resolve the issue without getting to upset or cross. The children used their finger to follow a pattern on the paper and breathe in and out slowly to regulate themselves.
Year 1
In PSHE this term, Year 1 have been thinking about Living In The Wider World. We have talked about people in our communities who help us and how to call the emergency services. We have also talked about money; how to earn money and the different needs of people in our community.
Year 2
In PSHE this term, Year 2 have been thinking about different communities we belong to and our roles and responsibilities within the community. We have also been thinking about our similarities and differences even though we all belong to the same community.
Year 3
This term Year 3 has been looking at eating healthy. Derek and his friends (Life Education Van Friends) have been to a party and it wasn’t very healthy so the children helped Derek help Kiki the kangaroo plan healthy party food. Some children decided to plan a three course meal instead! Not long after the part poor Derek became ill and so we discussed different kinds of illness’ and what we could do to keep ourselves healthy. The children also looked at how our mental health affects our decision making during mental health week, and so we looked at how saving money for a rainy day would help in keeping our minds healthy. To link in with keeping our minds healthy we then looked at our body and what our organs are and what they do. We found out some interesting facts. One fact we found was that our brain is the controller sending and receiving messages. Cool!
Year 5
In year 5 we have been looking at rights and responsibilities. We have looked at our own definitions for the words and discussed difficulties we face when trying to carry out responsibilities effectively.
For mental health week, we talked about anxiety around money. The children were very open and sensible as we discussed how anxiety might make us feel and ways to deal with it effectively. We then completed a calming activity and did some mindful colouring.
Nursery
This half term the children have been developing their understanding of their senses. We had a group discussion about what we use our eyes,nose,mouth,ears and hands for. We have also been looking at when we were younger and what we are like now. Things we needed as a baby and what we need now.
Reception
This half term the children have been discussing their bedtime routines and what they need to do before going to bed. We have also been developing how we can be helpful and caring at home and in our classroom.
Year 1
Year 1 have been learning about ‘Living In The Wider World’. We have discussed money, how to earn it and the value in saving it. We have also learned about the customs of other cultures and countries.
Year 2
In Year 2, we have been learning about money. We have been thinking about what we need money for, different ways to pay and whether we ‘want’ or ‘need’ different items. As a class, the children sorted pictures, thinking about and discussing whether we really ‘need’ something. This created an interesting and in depth conversation between the children. They also looked at different scenarios, thinking about how they would look after their money.
Year 3
In Year 3 the children have been thinking about a personal space. They had to reenact a situation where their personal space had been invaded and how they would react in order to maintain their safety. They then moved onto discussing PANTS, an acronym that teachers the children about touching and when saying no, it means no! A very serious topic of discussion that the children handled brilliantly.
Year 5
In year 5 we have been thinking about what it means to be part of a community. We talked about the different communities we belong to and what they mean to us. We spoke about being a volunteer in the community and heard from different people who volunteer and why they do it. We learnt about lots of different special people we all know!
Finally, we talked about our aspirations and what hopes and dreams we have for the future. We wrote about them and illustrated them. We have lots of different hopes like learning to drive, and owning our own businesses.
Year 6
Year 6 have been discussing body image this term. We have thought about how the media creates an idea of what a ‘perfect’ person should look like, and watched a video showing how a very pretty model is photoshopped after the photo is taken, to look even better! We then wrote on two post-its about someone else in the class: one thing we like about their personality, and one thing we like about how that person looks. When we read what people had written about us - some of us were very surprised (in a good way)!
Nursery - Two's Class
This half term the children have been getting to know another and explore their new learning environment. The children have been learning skills to share, take turns and develop skills to play alongside each other. Making relationships with Mrs Skinner, Miss Owen and playing alongside other children.
Nursery - Preschool Class
The children have been having lots of fun in Preschool, making new friends, learning our routines and joining in. We have looked and explored how Marvelous we are and discussed our likes from toys or playing games and how some of our friends like to do the same thing. We have been learning how to share and take turns when playing games in the garden and working together on a task. The children have also been introduced to the colour monster and we have discussed the feeling of happy and sad and why we might feel like this.
Reception Class
Reception has been learning about people who help us in school. We had a look at the photographs of some teachers and then we went on a tour of school, looking for the people who can help us. The children also had a visit from the dentist where we got to dress up and explore all the equipment they use. The children had a discussion on how important it is to clean our teeth any day.
Year 1
This half term Year 1 have been learning about feelings, the reasons for rules, listening and how to be a good friend. We have talked about how rules are important because they keep everyone safe and the consequences for ourselves and others if we break the rules. When we talked about how to be a good friend, the children discussed the kind things they can do for each other to improve their relationships.
Year 2
In PSHE this term we have been looking at ourselves and our relationships. We have discussed what makes a happy classroom and identifying different feelings, including what we do when someone has negative feelings. We have also looked at what makes a good friend and what bullying is.
Year 3
In Year 3 they have been looking at why we have rules and creating some funny rules for teachers. They also discussed the importance of rules. Moving on from this they discussed special people and how to maintain positive relationships. In order for them to maintain positive relationships, they looked at how problems can be solved which in turn builds special friendships and relationships.
Year 4
This half term the children have been selecting their school councillors by having an election in class. The children had group discussions and then voted. The children have also been developing their knowledge on different feelings and how this will be seen on the person or themselves. The children used the person outline to draw on and comment on these feelings.
Year 5
The children have been exploring more into emotions and what they mean and developing why we have emotions. The children created characters and created personalities that expressed their emotions. The children also took part in the school council elections to see who were going to be councillors for their year group. Group discussions took place and then everybody voted.
.png)
