Below are Care Solace curated resources and activities you can use to promote mental health on your campus for Mental Health Awareness Month. A calendar of events and resources that correspond with the calendar are included so you have all you need in one place. You can also download Mental Health America’s toolkit for even more inspiration.
Mental Health Awareness Month Calendar
Kick-off Material
Log in (or create a Care Solace account) to access their Monthly Messaging social media graphics and captions
Conversation Starter Questions
- Why is it important to prioritize our mental health?
- How can we recognize when our mental health needs attention?
- What are some strategies we can use to maintain good mental health?
- How can we support our friends and classmates who may be struggling with their mental health?
- What role does self-care play in promoting positive mental health?
- How can we reduce the stigma surrounding mental health and encourage more open conversations about it?
- What resources are available to help us address mental health concerns in our school community?
- How can we create a culture of empathy and understanding around mental health?
- How does mental health impact our academic performance and overall well-being?
- What steps can we take to advocate for better mental health support and education in our schools and communities?
Brain Break Videos
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Strong4Life’s brain break videos is fun and engaging activities for kids to take a break from classwork, get active, and promote physical well-being. Energize your school with these awesome brain break videos and keep our brains and bodies strong! Check out the video playlist on their YouTube channel.
Short YouTube videos about Mental Health
Break the Stigma Around Children’s Mental Health
Overcoming the Stigma around Mental Illness | Michaela Mulenga | TEDxCasey
The Stigma of Mental Illness | Sam Cohen | TEDxYouth@SRDS
Fun Mindfulness Crafts
- Create a sensory box: a personalized container that allows anyone to connect with their five senses instantly when feeling emotional discomfort or overwhelmed.
- Pet Cactus Rocks: an easy and fun outdoor craft.
- Vision Board: a great way to get students thinking about future aspirations or how they feel in the moment.
Mindfulness Activities
- 5-4-3-2-1 Technique: This mindfulness technique can be used anywhere, anytime. Start with some deep breaths and begin to find 5 things you can see, 4 things you can feel, 3 things you can hear, two things you can smell, and 1 thing you can taste. Doing this can create distance from unpleasant feelings or sensations.
- Body Scan: A body scan helps to become connected to the sensations throughout your body. Start at your toes and notice what you feel, then slowly move up your body until you reach the top of your head. If this activity becomes triggering, focus on a neutral part of the body like the tip of your nose, elbows, fingertips, bellybutton, etc.
- Felt Sense Vocabulary: This vocabulary list is meant to help describe specific sensations in your body by using neutral descriptive words instead of unpleasant terms such as “stabbing” or “excruciating.” By using words from the felt sense vocabulary list, it is easier to simply observe the sensations without getting overwhelmed by them.
- Mindful Eating: Eating is often a rushed, mindless activity that provides us with just enough fuel to complete our next task. It is also often used to numb or distract us from unpleasant emotions. Alternatively, mindful eating is a process that helps us to slow down and truly enjoy the process of nourishing our bodies.
- Stretching Brain Break: Use this video to guide your school through a 4-minute brain break.
- Box Breathing or 4-7-8 Breathing: These are two breathing techniques used to activate the parasympathetic nervous system which lowers the body’s stress response. Box breathing: Inhale for a count of 4; hold for a count of 4; exhale for a count of 4; hold for a count of 4. It may help to draw your finger in the shape of a square, one line of the square for each count of 4. 4-7-8 Breathing: breathe in for 4 seconds, hold for 7, and exhale for 8 seconds.
- Insight Timer: A free app with thousands of guided meditations and talks.
Movies for Mental Health Movie Screenings
All Ages
- Inside Out (2015): This animated film explores the emotions of a young girl and how they affect her behavior.
- Wonder (2017): A heartwarming story about a boy with facial differences who attends public school for the first time and teaches his peers about acceptance and empathy.
- Soul (2020): An animated film about a jazz musician who learns about the meaning of life and what it means to have a purpose.
Middle/ High School:
- Freedom Writers (2007): A true story about a teacher who inspires her at-risk students to find hope through writing.
- Happy (2011): This documentary explores what makes people happy and how we can find happiness in our lives.
- Angst (2017): This documentary explores the topic of anxiety and how it affects people of all ages.
- The S Word (2017): This documentary explores the topic of suicide and how we can prevent it.
Staff
Resilience (2016): This documentary examines the effects of toxic stress on children and how we can help build resilience in them.
Stress Management Resources
- Change to Chill: An abundance of resources including lesson plans, guided imagery, meditations, quizzes.
- NAMI California: Provides a list of mental health resources specifically aimed at young people who are still in school. The resources include hotlines, crisis support, self-care tips, and information on mental health conditions such as anxiety and depression.
- Kids/Teens Health: Includes articles and videos on a range of topics related to mental well-being, such as stress, anxiety, depression, and self-esteem. The website also offers advice on healthy relationships, communication, and coping strategies.
- Worksheets for Kids: An abundance of worksheets to help support student mental health.
Mental Health America Toolkit
Mental Health America has an amazing toolkit for you to use to promote mental health in your school. Download the toolkit
Care Solace is a mental health care coordination service that TASA members and members of their households may use at no cost. If you feel parts of your personal or professional life need attention — especially if you’re stressed, depressed, or burned out — but don’t have time to navigate the complicated health care and insurance maze to get assistance, Care Solace can help you understand your options, call providers on your behalf, and even schedule appointments. Support is available in 200+ languages, and a dedicated Care Companion™ will help you every step of the way. Members may also use the Care Solace online tool on their own to find providers; information entered on the Care Solace tool is completely confidential and securely stored. Learn more.
