I do a lot of reflection about what kids who shine is. As we’re emerging, one thing is coming clearer, we’re about helping parents and teachers have conversations with our kids that count.
If it’s cold and raining outside, we put our kids in warm clothes and gumboots. It keeps them warm and dry. We’re looking after their physical well-being. We talk to our kids about crossing the road safely and eating the right foods. Kids Who Shine helps us talk to our kids about the things that are happening on the inside. They are conversations that matter, conversations that are core to our inner health and well-being, conversations that count.
Our activity books and freebies provide an opportunity for our kids to learn strategies to help them flourish. Psychology has long been about bringing us from negative/deficit to neutral, whereas, Positive Psychology is about helping us flourish. It’s about focusing on what’s working, building on that, and working to enhance our lives, every day. I think that is positively deviant. We want help your family live on the side of well-being, every day.
Many of our freebies (and the activities in our books) can be adapted into daily or weekly family traditions that will help build the well-being of your kids, as well as, your family (or class). For example, focusing on strengths lifts your energy (both yours and your kids), increases happiness, help you connect better with each other, improves performance at school and helps you understand each other at a deeper level.
All our activity books and freebies link back to one or more of these themes:
- Strengths
- Mindfulness
- Building Hope
- Resilience
- Growth Mindset
- Mindfulness
- Kindness and Gratitude
- Creativity and Curiosity
- Emotional Intelligence
- Hope, Grit and Willpower
- Zest
We choose them because we think they are as important as putting on your gumboots, eating healthily and crossing the road safely. They are activities that drive conversations and actions that count. They help our kids build their well-being and help the world to be a better place.
I could go on (and on, and on, and on) with the negative news on the statistics of mental illness. We know it’s dire. At Kids Who Shine, we choose positive action that will help enhance the lives of the amazing kids in your life. We want to help you all focus on what is working, and what will help you in the future. We focus on the thing’s science tells us that help build well-being, resilience, performance and prepare your kids for what the future holds. That's what we're about, helping your kids shine from the inside out, so they can be their best selves in the hard times and the good times.
*Note, if suspect a child in your care has mental health issues, please see the appropriate practitioner to help them.