This article has been brought to you by Slough Borough Council's Early Years Advisory Teacher, Karen Loft, for the attention of all Early Years and Childcare Practitioners.
How does Children’s Mental Health Week link with literacy?
"We’ve long known that a love of reading and writing can help children flourish at school and go on to succeed at work and other ventures in life. But we now know that reading and writing for enjoyment can also play a vital role in helping children lead happy and healthy lives. Our research team has explored and identified links between children's literacy engagement and their wellbeing, displaying how both reading and writing supported children's mental wellbeing. Key findings include:
- Children who are the most engaged with literacy are three times more likely to have higher levels of mental wellbeing than children who are the least engaged (39.4% vs 11.8%).
- Children who are the least engaged with literacy are twice as likely to have low levels of mental wellbeing than their peers who are the most engaged (37.4% vs 15%).
Our research on children and young people’s writing during the lockdown in 2020 showed that 2 in 5 children said writing made them feel better, either because they wrote creatively to escape the difficult circumstances of the pandemic or because they wrote to process their feelings. Furthermore, our 2022 Writing Report found that writing continues to support children and young people’s mental wellbeing, with 1 in 3 (32.8%) children and young people saying that writing helps them relax."
Access the full article here: Children's Mental Health Week 2024 - theme My Voice Matters | National Literacy Trust
For the main website: Children's Mental Health Week 2024 - theme My Voice Matters | National Literacy Trust
Charlie Mackesy
We've partnered with Penguin Random House UK and Charlie Mackesy to create KS1/P2-3 and KS2/P4-P7 cross-curricular literacy and PSHE resources to help you mark Children's Mental Health Week.
Please follow the link for the resources: Children's Mental Health Week 2024 - Charlie Mackesy | National Literacy Trust