On Tuesday, May 7, Westmount Elementary School will be hosting a public evening of learning, growth, and discussion about mental health topics affecting children and youth in recognition of Mental Health Week and you’re invited to attend.
The event, “Mindful Matters,” is intended for parents, caregivers, and educators of children at the elementary school level, will feature keynote speaker Krystal Hawkins, and runs from 6:30 – 9 p.m. with doors opening at 6 p.m.
Mindful Matters is the creation of Westmount’s pre-kindergarten teacher Amanda Harper and kindergarten teacher Erika Topp, who have once again founded a much-needed project similar to their Sept. 22, 2023, Early Years Community Connections Resource Fair at the school.
“We just noticed that there’s definitely a need for more education around emotional regulation, anxiety, and other mental health issues that are facing our kids these days,” Harper explained.
“And so, we wanted to provide a free informational session that provides… tips and tricks, resources and strategies… for them or for parents, caregivers, and educators.”
Wellness Week runs from May 6 – 12 and Westmount School will be hosting two wellness days for students on May 6 – 7 during regular class hours. The focus of these workshops is student mental health and mindfulness.
For the public event on May 7, Hawkins will speak in the school’s gymnasium from 6:30 until 7 p.m. for a half-hour opening presentation.
Following Hawkins’ presentation, guests will have a pool of eight topics to choose from in a series of breakout sessions distributed across the school. Each guest will have time to attend only three sessions, but they’ll have the option to choose any three they want.
These breakout sessions will cover emotional regulation, addictions, screen time, depression and anxiety, cyber bullying, and more important topics on the theme of mental wellness.
A member of the Moose Jaw Police Service is scheduled to deliver a presentation on cyber bullying and another about online predators; another guest speaker will cover addictions including social media and screen time; as well, one speaker will give tips on how to raise resilient children who can accept loss, failure, and then pick themselves right back up.
Keynote speaker Hawkins is a part-time consultant with the Prairie South School Division (PSSD) and runs her own private psychology practice at Family Hope Counselling and Training Centre Inc. In her upcoming presentation, she’ll discuss emotional regulation strategies based on different age categories and stages of child development.
The upcoming event is made possible by River Street Promotions. As the educational program falls under the category of mental health and wellness, River Street Promotions has agreed to utilize funds from its ongoing mental health and wellness grant after Topp and Harper reached out for support.
The goal of the mental health and wellness grant, as stated earlier by the PSSD Superintendent of Learning Amanda Olson, is to “put as many tools in our students’ toolboxes related to mental wellness as we can.”
The Westmount School Community Council then agreed to match the grant thereby providing Topp and Harper with a suitable budget to run the educational event.
Free childcare will be available, and refreshments will be served along with a chance to win several great door prizes. Childcare will take place in the pre-kindergarten classroom and will be in a supervised open play environment.
If you have any questions or concerns, contact Amanda Harper at Harper.Amanda@PrairieSouth.ca or Erika Topp at Topp.Erika@PrairieSouth.ca.
There is no charge and advanced registration is not required to attend.
Westmount Elementary School is located at 1100 Currie Crescent and can be reached at 306-694-5999.
