Well- Being Projects in Secondary

Lorna Conroy, Vice Principal Student Welfare

As one of our core values at Bangkok Patana, supporting well-being is something we are wholeheartedly committed to. The connection between well-being and learning is well understood, but more importantly, the ability to support their own well-being will benefit students throughout their lives. A current Patana student may one day find themselves in a high-stress situation. They may be about to present to a large audience, face an intimidating interview panel, or navigate personal challenges while supporting a loved one. Helping students develop the skills to manage their own well-being, and to support others, is a vital life skill and essential to living a happy and fulfilled life.  

In the Secondary School, all students follow a well-being curriculum, delivered on Friday mornings. In addition, students in Years 7, 8, 9 and 10 also take part in the Well-Being Toolkit, a programme designed to help them develop the skills and strategies needed to support their own well-being.  

As part of the Toolkit this year, all students completed a wellbeing project. When students joined Year 7, their first year in the Secondary School, they were placed in tutor groups with peers they may not have met before. The focus of their project was to build a sense of belonging and community by exploring their differences and similarities. The outcome was a tutor group display celebrating diversity and unity. Feedback was very positive, with most students giving the project four out of five stars overall, and five out of five when asked whether it helped them get to know other members of their tutor group (7J survey). The final displays were imaginative and a genuine celebration of diversity and unity.  

7J Display 

Year 9 and 10 have been completing their projects this term. Year 9 were tasked with researching ‘just-one-thing’ that would help with either their physical or mental well-being. They had to research, provide credible evidence and present their findings. The choices were wide ranging including the benefits of eating watermelon, the importance of sleep, digital detox and the antioxidant content of berries. Feedback from the students highlights the positive outcomes of the project.  

Student Quotes from 9H: 

“I enjoyed taking time to research different sources on different lifestyle choices we can make and how they positively and negatively impact our physical and mental well-being. Researching is a great way for students like us to self discover new ideas and changes we can make in our daily lives.” – Budh 

 “Creating my ‘Just One Thing’ poster on mindfulness meditation was something I really enjoyed. It gave me the chance to learn how being present and aware can help calm the mind and reduce stress. I liked exploring the simple practice of focusing on the breath and how it can make a big difference in everyday life. Putting the poster together also allowed me to be creative and share a peaceful message in a way that felt meaningful.” – Ken 

 “I enjoyed that we had complete freedom over the posters we created, so I was able to creatively design it just how I envisioned it inside my head. Something I learnt from this project was just how many vitamins and antioxidants berries provide. I found this especially interesting as I always eat some kind of berry every day, so it was cool to learn more about the health benefits of something that’s already part of my routine.” – Zoe 

 “I really enjoyed getting more insight on how research is done, looking through research papers and finding credible sources expanded my knowledge and aided my future skills in writing factual papers. I also got a better understanding on a topic I previously perceived as straight-forward. Overall, I found the process of making a ‘just one thing’ poster much more engaging and interesting than I initially expected.” – Melody 

“I quite enjoyed the research element of the project. Personally, I focused on the topic of sleep and its effects. With the information that I learnt while researching this project I managed to improve my daily amount of sleep to a much healthier level” – Lukas 

 By the time students reach Year 10, and are in the mists of adolescence, talking with them about feelings, emotions and well-being is often challenging. So, their project was designed to be fun, interactive and a ‘low stakes’ way for them to discuss their emotions. So, we brought out the play dough – there’s nothing like play dough to get a bunch of 15-year-olds engaged! The Blob Project, as it’s known, challenged them to think about themselves, their unique characteristics and what is important to them. Firstly, they created a blob figure to represent their unique set of characteristics and to identify what is important to them as individuals. Following this, they were then given a range of scenarios and had to think and model how their ‘blob’ would feel, react, and manage their emotions. This got them talking, and I really enjoyed seeing their creations.  

Year 10 Blob Project Creations