Bedminster Youth Club
Children’s Mental Health Week and LGBT History Month
February brings relief. Mostly from January and the really dark days, as the nights have started to get just that little bit longer. I hope that you are able to find some of that relief.
It is also a month of activism. On mental health and on LGBT issues. I would recommend taking some time to find out a bit more about these two very worthwhile week and month long campaigns.
Here is the assembly video, it is pretty self explanatory. EXPRESS YOURSELF is the theme and I think it would be a great opportunity to get going on some activities that make you feel good!
It’s about finding about who you are and how you see the world. I know I have written about mental health issues before and some of those organisations are mentioned in the following link.
Also check out Place2be. This is their page that shows many of the mental health services available to under 18s.
Back on Place2b there’s a nice little video showing you how to “Draw you feelings”. Yes, it is possible and the benefits, seem quite clear.
You might be surprised to learnt that I have been doing some Yoga. I don’t think I’m very good at it, but I really enjoy the process of getting up, preparing the mat, focusing on the activity and nothing else and learning about breathing. It has really helped me during the week, as my other job can be quite stressful (ensuring that we get 4 tonnes of surplus food per week to almost 600 families!).
It is also LGBT+ History Month in February. Details can be found here.
There are some great resources including a fascinating wall chart, presented as part of the Voices and Visibility campaign.
The month sets out to “promote equality and diversity for the benefit of the public.” and there are some interesting stories along the way. Here is a little clip about the late Maya Angelou, poet and writer and civil rights activist (amongst other things). Anyway, she believed that being a student was a lifelong experience. She considered herself a student at the age of 82!
Sorry everyone, learning doesn’t end in year 11 or 13. For some people that is when it begins!
And Still I Rise is arguably her most famous poem.
Hopefully some inspiration for the dark days of winter. It is getting brighter slowly. People are getting the vaccine and things are beginning to slowly change. Lots of luck with your online learning and for those of you who are going into school. See you soon,
Simon
