Emotional Literacy Support Assistant
We want the children and young people in our school to have the best possible emotional health and wellbeing and to build social and emotional resilience. We believe that their school years are key to developing these skills.
Emotional wellbeing isn’t about feeling happy all the time, but rather being able to enjoy and participate in life and have the resilience and skills to deal with the problems that life presents from time to time.
Pupils need education to include how to understand and look after their mental health as well as looking after our physical health. Teachers are also feeling the pressure to meet pupil attainment targets causing extra pressure and increasing stress levels as a result.
Referrals to specialist mental health services have nearly doubled and as a result NHS Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) are overwhelmed. There needs to be a greater focus on prevention through early identification and intervention within our schools.
Over the course of their education children spend over 7,800 hours at school. With such a huge amount of time spent in the classrooms, schools provide an ideal environment for promoting good emotional wellbeing and identifying early behaviour changes and sign of anxiety or stress. Wellbeing provisions in school can also lead to reductions in negative classroom behaviours and bullying.
I have undertaken a 6 day Emotional Literacy Support Project developed over two terms. Following the training I have to attend a local supervision group facilitated by educational psychologist on a regular basis to maintain my status.
My role is to help children recognise, understand and manage their emotions using and applying different strategies and techniques to help young people manage and understand their own emotional needs and wellbeing.
I have been a Teaching Assistant for 20 years and a HLTA for the last 13 years working in a primary school in York. My role in my previous post before taking up my role at Howden Junior School in autumn 2018 was mainly pastoral, behaviour and attendance support. I have a wealth of experience of working with young people from Early Years right through to Year 6 and have a committed passion that all children have a right to learn, even when face with challenges. I have worked with a variety of different children and parents over the years and it has had a positive effect on their learning.
The key areas I will be supporting are:
- To strengthen social and emotional resilience
- To promote emotional health and wellbeing especially for vulnerable groups
- Self Esteem/Active listening and communication skills
- Anger Management
- Social Skills/Autistic spectrum difficulties
- Friendship skills
- Loss and Bereavement and family break-up
- Conflicts within families
The aim of my role is to act promptly, professionally and confidentially to any concerns, identify the needs, and builds a good relationship with the children referred to me. I feel this will help the child cope better within the learning environment by enabling them to manage their own coping strategies as well as interact more successfully and to give them a greater self-awareness. I would like to be on hand to offer support to vulnerable children, offer advice and support to parents and the class teacher.
Most adults working in school will have experienced the impact that negative behaviour can have in the classroom. Children who come into class feeling angry or upset find it more difficult to concentrate and work to the best of their ability. If they are unable to deal effectively with those uncomfortable feelings, arguments are more likely to occur with their peers, parents and with the staff. The result is often a classroom where less learning is taking place and a negative atmosphere. In contrast, children who are able to recognise and effectively manage their feelings are more likely to remember information, learn, problem solve and relate to others.
If you feel you would like to meet with me to discuss anything at all please do not hesitate to contact myself or the school for further information.
Kind regards
Mrs K Barber, Wellbeing Manager