Hero photograph
Wellbeing
 
Photo by Blake Wells

Wellbeing

Avonside Girls' High School —

In this challenging time, it is important to keep in mind the whakatauki, He aha te mea nui o te ao. He tāngata, he tāngata, he tāngata. What is the most important thing in the world? It is people, it is people, it is people.

This well timed school holiday break allows us to spend our time with our young people building those important connections and feelings of safety. Over the next few weeks, it is important to focus on building our at home routines, and ensuring all elements of our wellbeing are strong through those routines and connections. We know that trauma, stress and fear need to be dealt with before learning can take place, so for now leave the academic learning to one side, and come back to it when term starts again on the 15th of April. Here at Avonside we use Te Whare Tapa Whā as one model for hauora or wellbeing and this could be a good way to approach your whānau. 

Dr Mason Durie’s whare tapa whā model compares hauora to the four walls of a whare, each wall representing a different dimension: taha wairua (the spiritual side); taha hinengaro (thoughts and feelings); taha tinana (the physical side); and taha whānau (family). 

An easy task as a whānau is to make a little whare like the one above out of any craft material you have, or draw it on a sheet of paper and attach it to your wall. Then have every family member using a post it note, or just writing on it, rate how each aspect of their wellbeing is going. Then set goals, or come up with activities to support each aspect of wellbeing. 

Taha tinana – Physical well-being. 

Ideas for activities: Family walks or bike rides around the block, set up a home gym together using house hold objects as weights, do some online fitness or dance videos together, have a spa day and put on a home made face mask as a family. Make sure to stick to healthy sleep patterns. https://www.headspace.com/ has some great tools to help get to sleep. Taha hinengaro – Mental and emotional well-being. Ideas for activities: Talk about how you are feeling about the lockdown with your young people. Focus on how tough it is but that you will get through it. Model being grateful for what we have – share 3 things you are grateful for as a family each day. Point out each others strengths during the day. https://sparklers.org.nz/parenting/ has some fantastic resources to support these ideas. 

Taha whānau – Social well-being: family relationships, friendships, and other interpersonal relationships. 

Ideas for activities: Do any activity together as a family and talk while doing it – bake, cook, clean, play a board game, watch a movie. Use technology to stay connected to friends and family through social media and video calling. Make a family Tik Tok! 

Taha wairua – Spiritual well-being. 

Ideas for activities: Model using your own system of faith for support. Try some online yoga or mindfulness tools as a family. https://www.youtube.com/user/yogawithadriene/videos?app=desktop is a great starting point for yoga. 

School based resources 

If your young person is struggling with this situation, or something is making life tricky for you as a whānau, please do not hesitate to contact your daughter’s pouako or form teacher. 

Alternatively, contact her Kaitiaki or any member of our pastoral team. We are keen to help in any way we can. 

Kaitiaki 

Batten - Elaina Smith - esmith@avonside.school.nz 

Cooper - Laura Failing - lfailing@avonside.school.nz 

Mansfield - Pina Lissaman - polissaman@avonside.school.nz 

Sheppard - Robyn Armstrong - rarmstrong@avonside.school.nz 

Pastoral Team 

Head of Guidance - Nardine Schroder - nschroder@avonside.school.nz 

Counsellor - Hilary Parker - hparker@avonside.school.nz 

Counsellor - Maggie Flannagan - mflannagan@avonside.school.nz 

Māori Support - Mary Ann Waitoa - mwaitoa@avonside.school.nz 

Pasifika Support - Lecia Kiritia - lkiritia@avonside.school.nz 

Deputy Principal: Pastoral - Tanya Clegg - tclegg@avonside.school.nz 

Other Resources for Parents and Whanau 

A lot of fantastic agencies and people have created resources to help us through these challenging times. 

Nigel Latta’s Parentland site has videos and resources to remind parents that it is ok to be a ‘good enough’ parent right now. It’s about focusing on what is important – not trying to do everything. https://www.parentland.app/free-resourcesgetting-through-covid19-as-a-family 

NZIWR has talks about how to help build resilience in young people during COVID-19: https://vimeo.com/400146129

Nathan Wallis has some fantastic videos on the importance of balance at home over the next few weeks: https:// www.facebook.com/nathanwallisxfactoreducation/ 

The Ministry of Health’s website includes Top ways to look after your mental wellbeing during the Covid-19 lockdown. https://www.iamhope.org.nz/ - I AM HOPE is the youth and community focused support group run by The Key to Life Charitable Trust, started by Mike King. 

https://www.mentalhealth.org.nz/get-help/covid-19/ - tips on looking after mental health and wellbeing during COVID-19 from the Mental Health foundation 

https://depression.org.nz/covid-19/ - a website by the Health Promotion Agency to help New Zealanders recognise and understand depression and anxiety. 

Helplines for children and young people 

Youthline 0800 376633 or text 234 What’s up 0800 9428787 

Parent support 

Parent Help Line 0800 568856 

Helplines and resources for everyone 

Need to talk 1737 or text 1737 for counselling or support 

Lifeline 0800 543354 or free text 4357 for counselling and support

 Anxiety line 0800 111757 or free text 4202