Why Mental Health at Bright Teach in Sussex?
Image: International Students House
A Collaborative Approach to Learning
Mental health affects everyone. With good mental health young people are able to cope because they will have a level of resilience to manage the difficult times. However, there may be days when their resilience will be stretched beyond what they feel you can manage. Their mental health requires as much attention as their physical health.
At Bright Teach in Sussex, we validate and support each student, and this will include thinking about their mental health. This is because we understand that mental health and being able to learn go hand in hand.
The intersection between mental health and education
Being a parent is, well, tough! It’s a cliche to say it but parenting can feel like a lonely, and at times emotionally exhausting process. Children often show their parents their most challenging sides, and present a smiley face to the rest of the world. They learn how to mask their true feelings and arrive home ready to explode!
Parenting a neurodiverse child can come with even greater challenges for parents. The unpredictability of navigating your child’s emotions can also trigger strong emotional responses in you, the parent too.
How do you go from a feeling of despair, from “nothing is going well,” to “it’s ok, things are going to work out.” How can you as a parent start to trust in your child’s innate drive to learn, when they seem as if they have disengaged.
At Bright Teach in Sussex, we know that to be a successful learner, you need to have the confidence to try new things. Many children and young people arrive at Bright Teach with high levels of anxiety and stress related to their learning. They may have had negative past experiences of learning that have impacted their confidence.
The first goal at Bright Teach is for our tutors to spend time getting to know your young person. This may involve playing games or doing a range of creative activities based on their interests. The intention is for the “getting to know you” sessions to be fun. Once a rapport is developed, the young person may start to feel safe and valued.
Building resilience through communication
Our tutors are not just skilled in their subject areas; they understand that all behaviour is communication. If a student appears uninterested, staring into space or looking at the floor, they might be trying to say that I am struggling to connect to the material, or the pace is too fast or too slow. They may be trying to say, I don’t understand the content. Our tutors know how important it is to check in with the young person to try to understand any barriers to learning. They will problem solve together with the student to find the best way forward.
Communication is essential and will help to get each student back on track. It will also let the young person know the tutor is genuinely interested in getting to know them, helping to build their trust and emotional resilience.
Emotion regulation
Does your child struggle to regulate their emotions, one minute they appear calm and happy, the next minute exploding and hurling items randomly across the room?
We understand that learning to regulate your emotions lies at the heart of all learning.
When the emotions are regulated, a student can be calm and able to think before acting. When emotionally regulated, they can make positive choices, which includes knowing when they need to ask for a break. They are able to recognise what they feel when, and what they need in order to calm down if feeling overwhelmed.
At Bright Teach we understand that learning activates the social emotional part of our brain. A whole range of emotions are activated when we learn; from curiosity, wonder, joy, to frustration. This can translate in the body as a racing heart (joy) to nail biting nerves (anxiety). Every student will manage their emotions in different ways. This is why we pride ourselves on getting to know our students. If a student is becoming overwhelmed, our tutors will allow space for reflection. They will support each student to get to know their own learning limits, including when they need to take a break. At Bright teach, the bespoke learning environment that our tutors offer encourages the student to build self-awareness, a critical skill when it comes to education.
Bespoke education and a lifelong love of learning
Every child will have both strengths and challenges. When the environment is nurturing and the learning is bespoke to the child’s needs, progress is made. No matter the pace of progress, each young person’s learning journey is unique, and the tutor will share in their delight as well as their struggles.
Working with a 1:1 tutor from Bright Teach will help your young person reach their academic goals and develop a lifelong love of learning. For many young people, a personalised education plan provides the flexibility to grow as a learner, and it will also develop their confidence which will help them thrive.
Interested to learn more?
Why not get in touch…
Email us at: send@brightteach.com
