Today I was delighted to be invited to the launch of the second report of Unicef's research project 'Changing the Future - Experiencing Adolescence in Contemporary Ireland' which is titled 'Mental Health'
The young people invloved in the research and the launch at The Base in Ballyfermot spoke about mental health issues with remarkable ease, intelligence and confidence which really highlights the work that Unicef has done in their community at The Base. The presentation highlighted the experiences of young people and the serious challenges they face, many of which are without help.
How would the same research find young people with learning difficulties? As they often have been monitored throughout their lives by the Enable Ireland and then the HSE, are young people that have learning difficulties who then experience additional problems with their mental health adressed differently? Are their difficulties highlighted earlier? Would their mental health difficulty always be associated with their diagnosis?
This is assuming that the young person with learning difficulties can express their feelings, and discuss verbally how they perceive their lives and mental health.....
Is was evidant today that although young people are at high risk of developing problems with their mental health, they are becoming a generation of change. Change in our attitude towards mental health problems - Change in how young people approach issues that affect them - Change in openness.
When I'm talking about behaviour management and communication skills with young children, I often ask parents to visualise their 5 year old child at the age of 16, illustrating the way in which we parent and teach our young children now, can give them skills to cope as young adults.
So I'm seeing the value in the work we do with young children who have learning difficulties now - as a contribution towards their coping skills later on in life.
Making a programme such as 'How Are You?' acccessible now to young children through schools, we are sowing the seeds for a positive future for children with learning difficulties - offering opportunities to learn how to express emotions, identify teasing and bullying, learn about their bodies and cope with anger. We will hopefully ensure that young children with special needs grow up knowing how to voice their feelings and identify problems.
'How Are You?' is a CD-ROM for children aged 4 years upwards. It identifies: Feelings, Our Bodies, Social Scenarios, Anger, Pain and has video explanations as well as games to play. The programme comes complete with printable resources. The link is: http://www.hometrain.ie/howareyou/
Today I gave the 'How Are You?' programme to the Minister for Children, Francis Fitzgerald, let's hope we'll see it used throughout schools in Ireland.
Well done Unicef and the young people of Ballyfermot on a great day today!
Claire.
The young people invloved in the research and the launch at The Base in Ballyfermot spoke about mental health issues with remarkable ease, intelligence and confidence which really highlights the work that Unicef has done in their community at The Base. The presentation highlighted the experiences of young people and the serious challenges they face, many of which are without help.
How would the same research find young people with learning difficulties? As they often have been monitored throughout their lives by the Enable Ireland and then the HSE, are young people that have learning difficulties who then experience additional problems with their mental health adressed differently? Are their difficulties highlighted earlier? Would their mental health difficulty always be associated with their diagnosis?
This is assuming that the young person with learning difficulties can express their feelings, and discuss verbally how they perceive their lives and mental health.....
Is was evidant today that although young people are at high risk of developing problems with their mental health, they are becoming a generation of change. Change in our attitude towards mental health problems - Change in how young people approach issues that affect them - Change in openness.
When I'm talking about behaviour management and communication skills with young children, I often ask parents to visualise their 5 year old child at the age of 16, illustrating the way in which we parent and teach our young children now, can give them skills to cope as young adults.
So I'm seeing the value in the work we do with young children who have learning difficulties now - as a contribution towards their coping skills later on in life.
Making a programme such as 'How Are You?' acccessible now to young children through schools, we are sowing the seeds for a positive future for children with learning difficulties - offering opportunities to learn how to express emotions, identify teasing and bullying, learn about their bodies and cope with anger. We will hopefully ensure that young children with special needs grow up knowing how to voice their feelings and identify problems.
'How Are You?' is a CD-ROM for children aged 4 years upwards. It identifies: Feelings, Our Bodies, Social Scenarios, Anger, Pain and has video explanations as well as games to play. The programme comes complete with printable resources. The link is: http://www.hometrain.ie/howareyou/
Today I gave the 'How Are You?' programme to the Minister for Children, Francis Fitzgerald, let's hope we'll see it used throughout schools in Ireland.
Well done Unicef and the young people of Ballyfermot on a great day today!
Claire.
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