Week 1: Introduction to School Closure

Week 2: Mindfulness

Mindfulness is focusing on what is happening in the present - RIGHT NOW. I’ve heard that depression comes from focusing on the past and anxiety comes from focusing on the future. I teach students, “The past is history, the future is a mystery, so focus on the present.” Activities that help us focus on the present are called grounding activities. I teach students that when they have negative thoughts, they need to tell those thoughts “You’re grounded!” Those thoughts must stay away because they were grounded to a quiet room in their brain! 

Week 3: Connection

Week 4: Manage Anxiety

Worry. Anxiety. Stress. Let’s talk about it, shall we? We all have different triggers. What causes anxiety in one person can actually calm another person. For example, introverts versus extroverts. Travelers versus homebodies. Long to-do lists versus boredom. This pandemic seems to have set off all the triggers! It is a universal pandemic that targets everyone in many different ways. When an event triggers anxiety, our Emotional Brain (amygdala) overpowers our Thinking Brain (frontal lobe). This makes it difficult to calm down, but there are strategies we can use to bring our Thinking Brain back into action. 

  • Create a Worry Box. Decorate a small box, such as a tissue or shoe box. Each night before bed, your child can write down each of their worries on a piece of paper. Then they put the papers in the box. The next day, take the notes out of the box and see if your child still has the worry. If they do, place them back in the box; if they don’t, have them rip up the paper and throw it away. WHY DO I LOVE THIS TOOL? The act of decorating and creating the box shows children that they have ownership and control over their thoughts and feelings. The ritual of writing the worries down helps them acknowledge and address those feelings. The disposing of the worries helps symbolize their release of those problematic emotions.
  • ​Set Worry Time each day. This is a time for your child to talk to you about their worries. Your job is to listen and validate. Ten minutes is a good amount of time. This could even be time for you and your child to review their worries in the Worry Box.
  • Complete the Circle of Control Chart. This is part of Habit 1: Be Proactive. Much of anxiety is irrational - it is worrying about things we cannot control. However, some things we can control. 
    • For example, in the Circle of No Control children could write, “Coronavirus pandemic,” “Can’t go to school,” “Miss playing with friends at school.”
    • In the Circle of Control, children could write, “Wash my hands”, “Choose which homework to do first,” and “Google Hangout and FaceTime friends.”  

Activities

Week 5: Homeschool Help

  • Create a Wellness Corner at home. This is a safe place for your child to go to self-regulate. It should be quiet and comfortable. My office contains a Wellness Corner for students to use at school when they feel overwhelmed. They set a sand timer for 10 minutes. Sensory toys and other coping tools should be placed in the corner for students to help themselves calm down. Some examples include: koosh balls, stress balls, play-doh, legos, mandala coloring pages and colored pencils, pin art, expanding spheres, weighted blanket, noise-canceling headphones, and glitter bottles.
  • Make a Homeschool Plan using a Homeschool Daily Planner. Making a plan is therapeutic. It organizes our thoughts and gives us purpose. You can even schedule brain breaks into homework time! Maybe take a 5 minute break every 15 minutes or a 10 minute break every 30 minutes. Let your children decide what coping skill to use during their break: walk around the block, color, play with play-doh, throw a ball, get a healthy snack, listen to music, go to the Wellness Corner, etc. You could use this Coping Skills Checklist for ideas. 
  • Track progress with a Homework Rewards Chart. The days easily become monotonous. We all need something to look forward to. Let your children put a sticker on each day they complete their schoolwork, and then choose a reward once they have reached a certain number of days! Some reward ideas are: a dollar store toy, making cookies, family bike ride, playing games with mom, homemade ice cream sundaes, run through the sprinklers, make a new craft, etc. Your children will know what motivates them! 

​Activities

Week 6: The Frustration Triangle

Life is hard. Frustration is what we feel when things don't go the way we want them to. During this coronavirus pandemic, many of us feel frustrated! There is a process we can use to help our children - and help ourselves - feel better and control our frustration. It is called the Frustration Triangle and is taught in one of my favorite children's books: Zach Gets Frustrated. You can watch me read the book in the YouTube video and meet my son Zach! 
Name It. Say why you are frustrated.   
Tame It. Use chills skills to help your mind and body relax.
Reframe It. Look at the problem in a new way.

You can use the attached worksheets to learn new chill skills and complete your own Frustration Triangle!

Activities

Week 7: Self-Care

Self-care is everything we do for our physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Some may argue that self-care is selfish. It's not. We cannot give to others what we don't have ourselves. We are more resilient and able to handle life's stress when we are feeling our best both physically and emotionally. We can be the best version of ourselves for the people around us. By modeling healthy self-care practices for our children, we are teaching them to value their minds and their bodies. 

I taught our students about self-care early in the school year when I encouraged them to Take a SELFIE. This isn't a selfie we take on our phone. This is happiness selfie! I've shared this in a previous video, but it's important enough to share again. 

How to Take a Happiness SELFIE:
​
S - Sleep
E - Exercise
L- Light (sunlight)
F - Fun
I - Interact
E - Eat Well

I also attached some fun self-care reflection activities your children can complete! It lists a variety of coping skills they can select to evaluate how well they are doing at self-care, as well as set self-care goals. There is a digital PowerPoint version and a printable PDF version. Thank you! 

Activities