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Each week, we feature 'The Wellbeing Bookshelf' - a spotlight on one key resource to support your family. Whether it is a book, a podcast, or a helpful website, we will hand-pick tools that offer insight, practical advice, comfort, and inspiration.
Check out this week's recommendation, along with news on upcoming wellbeing events.
The Wellbeing Bookshelf
The Wellbeing Bookshelf
This Week’s Recommendation: Slow Down by Rachel Williams
This Week’s Recommendation: Slow Down by Rachel Williams
In our busy lives, it is easy to miss the small miracles happening right under our noses. This beautifully illustrated book features 50 nature stories - like a bee pollinating a flower or a dewdrop forming on a leaf - and encourages children to pause and observe. It is the perfect companion for a trip to the park or a quiet afternoon in the garden.
If you enjoy this, look out for more from Rachel Williams: Her other titles, such as 'Patience' and 'Slow Down and Sleep', are equally wonderful for helping children develop the skill of mindfulness and the courage to be still in a fast-paced world.
Half-Term Wellbeing: Gardening at Chiswick House
Half-Term Wellbeing: Gardening at Chiswick House
For families looking to spend time outdoors this half-term, Chiswick House and Gardens is hosting a 'Gardening Together' volunteering afternoon on Wednesday 18th February, 1.30-3.30pm.
This free session offers a practical way to support family wellbeing through fresh air and physical activity. Families will work alongside the Gardens team on essential conservation tasks to support the local environment. such as building habitat stacks, creating dead hedges, or sowing seeds in the Kitchen Garden.
Please note that for safety reasons, participating children must be aged 7 or over.
To register, visit: https://chiswickhouseandgardens.org.uk/event/gardening-together-february-half-term/
Connecting with Nature: More than just a walk
Connecting with Nature: More than just a walk
As the Woodland Trust highlights, the natural world is a brilliant subject for curious young minds. Engaging with nature doesn't just get us outdoors; it builds confidence, enhances self-esteem, and encourages new ways of thinking.
This half-term, why not try one of these activities:
1. Become a 'Signs of Spring' expert: Use the Woodland Trust's 'spotting lists' (see links below) to identify the first snowdrops or hazel catkins. Learning the parts of a tree or the secrets of seed dispersal helps children feel like experts in their environment.
2. Discover a new word together: Nature has its own special vocabulary. Why not research these together on your walk?
Petrichor: The earthy smell produced when rain falls on dry soil.
Pareidolia: The tendency to see faces or patterns in nature (like a 'face' in the bark of a tree or a 'shape' in a cloud). This is a fantastic way to celebrate how our individual brains see the world differently!
The Wellbeing Connection: By focusing on these small details, children practice mindfulness without even realising it. Whether you are building a habitat stack at the Chiswick House Gardening Session or spotting 'faces' in the trees at the park, you are giving your brain a rest from the fast pace of term time.
Resources from the Woodland Trust:
Printable ID tools and 'Spotting Lists' to help pupils recognise common British wildlife, from trees and flowers to birds and butterflies. Our favourite is the 'First Signs of Spring' - see below.
Resources and quizzes will help you make exciting discoveries! Explore the parts of a tree, learn the secrets of seed dispersal, and find out why trees are essential for life on Earth.
‘Helping children with…’ Webinars for parents 2025/26
‘Helping children with…’ Webinars for parents 2025/26
Achieving for Children’s Mental Health Support Teams are delivering a series of webinars for parents of primary-aged children. The ‘Helping Children with …’ series of webinars will cover a range of common difficulties experienced by children and will aim to share evidence-based strategies to help parents and carers support their children with these difficulties. Below is a list of webinars on offer over the coming months.
Self esteem
Self esteem
In this webinar we will explore what self-esteem is, how low self-esteem can develop and be maintained, and will introduce some practical techniques to support you to improve your child’s low self-esteem.
Tuesday 10th February, 6pm
Transition to Secondary
Transition to Secondary
In this webinar we will explore the main worries children may experience when moving from primary to secondary school. We will help parents/carers think about the different ways to help to support and get their children prepared for the transition.
Thursday 7th May, 9am or Tuesday 19th May, 6pm
All Webinars are 60 minutes long, with 15 minutes at the end for questions and answers.
Parents and carers can sign up to the webinars here.
Information from the Mental Health Support Team (MHST): Making a Self Referral
Information from the Mental Health Support Team (MHST): Making a Self Referral
Who are we?
Who are we?
The Mental Health Support Team (MHST) is a schools-based service, supporting children, young people and parents’
emotional wellbeing in a range of ways.
Who do we support?
Who do we support?
We work with children and young people, from the age of
5 to 18, who experience difficulties with their emotional wellbeing and mental health. These can be common for lots of young people and might include sadness, feeling low, anxiety or low self-esteem.
In primary schools, we also offer parents individual guided self-help sessions based on cognitive behaviour therapy principles, either around supporting their child to manage anxiety, or behaviour that challenges.
Whole school approach to mental health and wellbeing
Whole school approach to mental health and wellbeing
In addition, we support schools and families with:
In addition, we support schools and families with:
● parent webinars on a range of topics
● coffee mornings based at your child’s school
● staff workshops and support
● group work, assemblies and workshops to promote
emotional wellbeing
To self-refer, please follow the link below to complete a short online form:
Mental Health Support - Self Referral - Achieving for Children
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