The Wellness Coach, author Jason Rhodes, teaches Worthing pupils mindful techniques as part of programme supporting positive mental health

Staff welcomed Jason to Springfield Infant School and Nursery, where he read his book Imagine Eating Lemons to the children and led workshops on mindfulness activities, including breathing techniques, recognising feelings and sensations of anxiety, and retraining the brain to respond more positively to worries.

Becky Wycherley, headteacher, said: "It was rewarding to have Jason join us to add to the many things we do to support our children in these difficult times.”

The school has a dedicated sensory room, offering a calming environment where the children feel safe. Resources include a Colour Monster Scheme to help the children describe their feelings when they cannot find the words, a Worry/Chat Monster for the children to post the worries they want to talk to an adult about, and an Octopus to signal when a child needs extra support.

Since the Covid lockdowns, the school has focused support on social skills, play and other skills the children missed out on, with one-to-one learning support from a designated mentor and four trained mental health 'first aiders' on hand.

Mrs Wycherley added: "Thank you to Jason for giving up his time to share the book and some useful mindfulness activities. The children were thrilled to have an opportunity to buy the book and have it personalised and signed by the author."

The school’s wide-ranging mental health programme includes weekly yoga sessions with Wishing Tree Yoga, while circle time and register time give children the space and skills to understand feelings.

Lessons are often accompanied by calming music and a healthy connection with nature and exercise is encouraged through outdoor learning and the Springfield Stride, a daily run to get the endorphins firing.

One recent sporting success saw three teams from years one and two return victorious after taking part in a New Age Kurling tournament with other schools in the area.

Mrs Wycherley said: "It was a pleasure to watch our young teams play with precision and enthusiasm and even better to win.”

The children had practised rolling the Kurling stone to get it as close to the centre of the target as possible and said 'it was good fun, especially knocking the other stones'.

The Springfield children won individual medals and a trophy for the school to display. PE teacher Mrs Sarah Kingston said they demonstrated great hand-eye co-ordination and gross motor skills.