Head of Secondary Blog - Mental Health Workshop

The workshop looked at the teenage brain and how it functions in comparison to the adult brain and how we can help support the developmental stages whilst also recognising our limitations in dealing with young people. Parents were provided key information on teenage mental health and encouraged to reflect on situations where the interaction between parent and child can be complex even in the most trivial of situations such as encouraging them to choose to put on a coat if it is raining outside whilst making sure they are the agents in the decision. More complex scenarios were also considered and the underlying message was as adults we are required to understand what is happening in situations of choice in a child´s life without creating a conflict situation, not easy! 

At BCB we believe that the whole child is important and developing them socially, emotionally as well as academically is our commitment. In order to be successful at IGCSE and on to IBDP pupils need to be content and lead a balanced life with plenty of reflection along the way. Communication between home and school is crucial in making sure we are monitoring the well being of our pupils.

Mental health issues can affect not just school performance but home life including behavioural issues (some more obvious than others), self harm and even suicide. According to Mental Health America (www.mhanational.org), one in five children has a diagnosable mental health problem and nearly two thirds of them get little or no help in the U.S.  Parents and family members are usually the first to notice and your observations alongside that of a teacher can help to decide whether intervention is required.

We are looking forward to our first parent teacher conference for years 7, 11 and 12 on the 4^th October from 1 – 3pm in the Hall when valuable conversations will be had between teachers and parents about our pupils, your children.