Healthy School News
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Activity on Managing Self Control
Even if you have provocation-proof self-control, you can't be in control of everything but, fortunately, a lot depends on you. Find out what you can manage and start taking control of it to become a better person. - Antonio Grasso This activity worked really well with...
Canada’s New Drinking Guidelines
Canada’s Guidance on Alcohol and Health provides evidence-based advice on alcohol to support people in making informed decisions about their health. The guidance is based on the latest research on alcohol-related risks and replaces Canada’s Low-Risk Alcohol Drinking...
Changes at Reachout Australia
Changes have been made at ReachOut, Australia. They are designed to achieve the vision of better mental health and wellbeing for all young people. This includes helping teachers as best they can. The new brand identity and site are underpinned by qualitative and...
We Need to Think the Way We Drink
Is alcohol the new cigarette? For everyone - some highlights from recent studies on alcohol use: 7 different types of cancer are associated with alcohol. Information is not being shared with consumers. A lot of the economy is based on alcohol consumption. Labels...
Sober Thought Needed on New Alcohol Guidelines
An editorial in the Times Colonist, Sober Thought Needed on Alcohol Guidelines, details reaction to the new reports released from the Ottawa-based Centre on Substance Abuse and Addiction (CCSA). The suggestion is that serious issues are raised as the new guidelines...
A Video to Watch and Love
Canadian Tire’s advertisement “Wheels” was created for the 2016 Rio Olympic Games and continued through the Paralympic Games to promote Canadian Tire’s sponsorship of both the Canadian Olympic and Paralympic teams. The ad is filled with a heart warming message that...
Forest Bathing or Forest Therapy
A form of ecotherapy is becoming a holistic discipline that is growing worldwide. Forest bathing or forest therapy has been informally practised by Indigenous peoples for millennia. The Wellness Wheel in Wellness: A Question of Balance includes self-reflection on...
Women are Rejecting Traditional Ambition
Recommended article from Elle: What Comes After Ambition? Women are in the midst of a revolutionary reckoning with our ambitions. We’re not resigning en masse—because who can afford to quit her job in this economy?!—but we are trying to figure out a new set of goals...
What makes a good life? Lessons from the longest study on happiness
Consider lessons from one of the most comprehensive longitudinal studies in history on happiness. The lives of 724 men were tracked over 75 years. So what makes a good life? How is a good life built? Is it fame and achievement? Who were the healthiest at age 50? From...
How to Steer Kids Through the Social Media Labyrinth
How to steer kids through the social-media labyrinth, written by Geoff Johnson, appeared in the Times Colonist Aug 28/22. Adult supervision is not always welcome by kids when it comes to steering them through the social media labyrinth. The Geoff Johnson article...
Using the medicine/wellness wheel
From the article Changing within to strengthen community: Gina Wilson joined the Canadian federal government 25 years ago and has steadily risen through the ranks. Ms. Wilson is currently the deputy minister of women and gender equality and youth. She is an...
A School’s Guide to Success: The 7 Cs
I was one of the authors of The Wellness Priorities Survey Project, Dec 2000. The design was completed by a team at Reynolds Secondary School, Victoria, BC, Canada. The foundation was the Wellness Wheel. The 7 Cs that lead to success in schools: Concentrating on...
The Importance of Social Connections
The Mental Health Foundation in the UK have published a report on Relationships in the 21st century: the forgotten foundation of mental health and wellbeing. From the website: People who are more socially connected to family, friends, or their community are happier,...
Characteristics of an Effective Health Education Curriculum
The US' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have described the characteristics of an effective health education curriculum according to reviews of effective programs and curricula and experts in the field of health education. These characteristics are all...
School Connectedness
The US' Center for Disease Control and Prevention has produced an excellent strategy guide: School Connectedness: Strategies for Increasing Protective Factors Among Youth (PDF). Families, schools and communities all need to work together to create an environment that...
Mindset “The Power of Yet” – believing you can improve
Carol Dweck, a renowned psychologist, researches “growth mindset” — the idea that we can grow our brain's capacity to learn and to solve problems. In this talk, she describes two ways to think about a problem that’s slightly too hard for you to solve. Are you not...
What Makes an Effective Health Education Curriculum?
CDC Healthy Schools (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - US) have published an informative report on Characteristics of an Effective Health Education Curriculum. Countries have direct contact with the major portion of young people aged 5 to 17 years during...
Adolescent Development Explained
The Office of Population Affairs offers helpful resources for parents and other adults who care for and work with adolescents: Adolescent Development Explained. Teens' lives are complex, can change quickly, and can present issues that did not exist (e.g. social media)...
Adolescence & School Health Videos from CDC
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - Adolescence and School Health Videos These videos provide valuable information about taking a school health approach. Investing in Student Health - The Importance of Partnerships - The video outlines how important...
Keep your Children Safe Online
This recently published comprehensive guide to internet safety is very useful. Founded in 2017, Pixel Privacy is a small team of privacy enthusiasts who work remotely from the US, Mexico and Australia. Their online privacy guides help hundreds of thousands of people...
Alcohol Link to Cancer
Even mild to moderate drinking poses risk of developing the disease, WHO researchers say. The findings are part of a modelling study from the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) published in the journal Lancet Oncology. ...
A lesson on fate
One's fate is in your control! INVICTUS By William Ernest Henley, 1875 Out of the night that covers me Black as the pit from pole to pole, I thank whatever gods may be For my unconquerable soul. In the fell clutch of circumstance, I have not winced nor cried aloud....
Research for Today’s Educators
Relevant research for today's educators from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Usable Knowledge makes education research accessible to teachers, education leaders, and parents. Sign up for the Usable Knowledge newsletter. In the complex world of education HGSE...
A Study: Physical Activity & Cognitive Outcomes
I recently came across an informative article, Effects of physical activity interventions on cognitive outcomes and academic performance in adolescents and young adults: A meta-analysis. The following questions are answered in the “Conclusion." There are positive...
Sleep Better, Perform Better
Alliance for a Healthier Generation offer a number of useful resources to help improve the quality of the whole family's sleep. Healthy Sleep Toolkit How Kids Can Sleep Smarter and Perform Better Strike a Healthy Balance Between Sleep & Screentime Super Sleep...
Building Resilience
I found some excellent resources on building resilience on the American Psychological Association website. We all face stresses in our lives. Resilience is a quality that we need to understand so that obstacles can be overcome. The APA provides a road map on how to...
UNESCO and WHO urge countries to make every school a health-promoting school
UNESCO and the World Health Organization have launched the Global Standards for Health-promoting Schools, a resource package for schools to improve the health and well-being of 1.9 billion school-aged children and adolescents. The closure of many schools around the...
5-Week Guide for Creating a Caring School
Alliance for a Healthier Generation offers useful 20-minute, grade specific activities to build a caring in-person or virtual classroom community. There are also resources for staff and families. Included in the 5-Week Guide for Creating a Caring School:...
Teaching Teens About Money
While many parents want to teach their kids about the stock market, there are other financial concepts for them to grasp first. Rob Carrick, Personal Finance Columnist, outlines the 5 lessons for teens about money that are more important than learning about stocks....
A resource for teens who are drinking
Alcohol Rehab Help is an informational web guide founded in 2020. The site was created to help those struggling with alcohol use disorders (AUD), substance use disorders (SUD), and/or co-occurring mental health disorders. The goal is to help individuals understand...