The toolkit is aimed at building children’s resilience, self-esteem and kindness and includes practical resources such as lesson ideas for smaller class sizes and to use outdoors.
Suitable for the early year and key stages 1 and 2, it also offers ideas for parents to help prepare their children for a return to school.
The resources are from Coram Life Education’s online SCARF programme, which promotes the values of safety, caring, achievement, resilience and friendship.
The toolkit provides any teacher who signs up for it with six weeks of lesson and assembly resources from SCARF, focusing each week on a different SCARF value and ending with a celebration week.
It includes teacher guidance and support, including how to develop a safe space for children to discuss their worries about Covid-19, and how to respond to those concerns.
Lesson plans and assembly resources include activities, films, games, songs and stories, adaptable for smaller class sizes and to be used outdoors, building understanding of the situation – for example, “why our classroom has changed” and “how to keep each other safe”.
There are also suggested book titles to accompany each of the SCARF values for classroom or home reading.
Harriet Gill, managing director of Coram Life Education said: “We know that this is a hugely challenging and anxious time for children, families and teachers, and it is more important than ever that we put children’s mental health and wellbeing at the forefront of their return to school. Our toolkit saves teachers time and gives children the space to process change, adjust to new routines and re-build relationships.”
- For more details, visit www.coramlifeeducation.org.uk/back-to-school-with-...