Amber Flag

Two of the Amber Flag Committee teachers are delighted to announce that we have now completed our Nurture Group Training with the view to setting up a Nurture Group in the school in the coming years. 

Amber Flag Year end.

As the school year is drawing to an end and we are compiling our Amber Flag application we are reflecting on all our achievements. We have successfully achieved all our goals and are delighted to say that we are well on our way to being a more mindful school. We the Amber Flag committee would like to thank all the pupils, teachers and parents who help us achieve all our goals. Here are some phots of how we achieved our goals.

Thank you 

The Amber Flag comittee would like to extend a huge THANK YOU to the Pope John Paul school community for their generous contributions to our first ever Crazy Hair Day fundraiser. We raised a grand total of €1,283,05 between online and in school collections. 
 

We are extremely appreciative of all the hard work that went on behind the scenes by parents and children to create Crazy Hair styles as well as the committee members and individual classes who created posters to advertise the day. 
 

The funds we raised have been sent directly to Pieta House who were extremely grateful for our large donation. There was a great atmosphere around the school which lifted everyone’s spirits. It is great to see the success of the initiatives in our first year with many more to fun days to come. We look forward to a representative from Pieta House visiting our school and to present the cheque. Keep an eye on our page to see more. 
 

In the meantime  here are some more photos from our fundraiser. 
 

The Amber Flag committee. 

Amber Flag 

Well done to everyone who attended our second Amber Flag meeting now  that we have our committee up and running. This week our reps were given two tasks to complete:

1. Design a poster to advertise our “ Crazy Hair Day “ fundraiser on January 28th 2022.

2. Brainstorm with their class 3 things they would like to see in our school to improve well-being for the pupils. 
 

We look forward to hearing all the ideas the different classes come up with. Keep an eye on this page for next weeks updates.

The Amber Flag team. 

What is the Amber Flag?

The Amber Flag initiative is an initiative run by Pieta House which recognises the individual efforts of primary and secondary schools, youth reach, third level institutions, community groups, clubs and companies to create healthy, inclusive environments that support mental wellbeing.

Minsters Jan O’Sullivan and Kathleen Lynch have recently launched Well-Being in Primary Schools- Guidelines for Mental Health Promotion. This joint collaboration between the Department of Education and Skills and the Health Service Executive, aims to promote positive mental health and wellbeing in primary schools. It is recognised in these guidelines that positive mental health and wellbeing enables young people to lead fulfilling lives and is vitally important to their holistic development.

In order to promote positive mental health and wellbeing in PJP 11  Malahide, we have decided to take part in the Amber Flag Initiative. Successful completion of the Amber Flag initiative involves the whole school community coming together in order to create a safe, positive and healthy attitude towards our general physical and mental health and well-being.

In order to successfully  implement the Amber Flag initiative we will require help from the whole school community  to endorse positive mental health and wellbeing. If any parents are willing to share their skills and talents with us in terms of music, meditation, mindfulness, fitness, healthy eating, art, etc. please get in touch.

We will be documenting all of our hard work on this page where you will see all of the wonderful wellbeing work that is being completed in our school.

Our Goals for this year

1. To set up the first Amber Flag committee in PJP made up of students and teachers.

2. To create Amber Flag notice boards in the school, promoting positive mental health strategies.

3. To send a survey to the school community to acknowledge what we as a school are doing for Mental health and wellbeing and what steps we would like to take in the future to promote wellbeing.

4. To hold a fundraising event for Pieta House and a Wellbeing Week to promote positive mental health in our school.

5. To successfully implement one staff and one pupil lead initiative this year.

The children that make up our Amber Flag committee will be called our “Amber Ambassadors” it will be their job to attend meeting each month and assist the school community in implementing initiatives.

Our Amber Ambassadors include:

Ellen Dailly

Dylan Hysaj

Gloria Fallon

Abbie Roche

Oisin O’Rourke

Claudia Mazankova

Darragh Haverty  

Patrick McCarthy

Matthew Mc Carthy

Ruairi O Gorman

Charlie Reddy

Blake Corcoran 

Joseph Fallon

Anna Duggan 

Juliette Dunne

Ronan Brady

Sophie cam

Éabha Flynn

Mayra Bhasin

Laura Kelleher

Gabriel Okoye

Malinda Mc Donnelled 

Our staff representatives include:

Ms Burke

Ms O Donnellan

Ms Clinton

This week, 5th and 6th classes have been learning about self-talk.  We all talk to ourselves in our minds all of the time.  This is how we organise, reason, plan and interact with others.  However, when this self-talk becomes negative, this can affect our lives in negative ways.  We may not be able to focus and concentrate as well in school because these thoughts are making us feel bad.  We may tend to argue with others without thinking it through and even become angry quite quickly.  

So one way we can combat this, is to recognise the thought as a 'red' thought and change it to a 'blue' thought.

Examples:

I can't do this    -    I can do this

I'm stupid         -    I am smart.  I can name my talents

I give up           -    I can try again

What 'red' thoughts do you have and how can you change them to 'blue' thoughts?

We can also add in a positive affirmation.  This can help to calm and refocus the mind.

Examples:  'I am calm.'  'I am ok.'  'I am confident.'  'I am loved.'

MIND JARS!

This week the children in 5th and 6th classes are making mind jars....a mind jar is filled with water, glitter and sequins and represents the mind.  When we shake the jar it mirrors a busy mind and as we watch the contents of the jar settle, we can breathe and settle with it.  The children can make their own mind jar at home....all you need is a jar or bottle (with a secure lid), sequins and glitter!  A great resource for when we have a busy, angry or worried mind.