Smiling Mind Generation
I’m someone working with children in an education setting.
How can I get involved?
As a person working with children to build new understanding and learn new skills, you are uniquely positioned to support children to learn key mental fitness skills through Social and Emotional Learning (SEL).
SEL is recognised as an effective preventative approach for building children’s ability to succeed and thrive. Incorporating SEL into the classroom and other learning environments helps children build critical life skills to boost overall mental health and wellbeing.
We’ll regularly add resources to this page, so bookmark it and check back each month.
These resources support you to learn about mental fitness and health and explore the evidence and expertise underpinning our tools and programs. You’ll find information about how you can support yourself and the children in your life to build the skills to thrive.
These resources will guide you to try out the key skills that support your own and the children in your lives’ mental fitness and mental health. You’ll find practical activities, guided meditations, programs, and tools to use yourself and to share with the children in your life.
These resources allow you to share information with other people who you think will benefit from accessing the resources and tools aligned to the Smiling Mind Generation. You’ll find resources to share with others who are also supporting children.
Start exploring resources
Bring mindfulness into the classroom
There’s a lot of misconceptions about mindfulness. Mindfulness is the practice of focusing attention on the current moment, with an attitude of non-judgemental acceptance and curiosity. Schools are a great environment for children to develop these skills. Explore the evidence for mindfulness in schools.
Self-care exercises for educators
Throughout the pandemic, educators were one of Australia’s most impacted frontline workers. The added pressure took a toll on educators and children alike and many are still navigating the impact. Try a teacher's self-care activities to support your own mental wellbeing at work and at home.
SEL content for students to learn at home
Share the Resilient Families Program with your school community. Developed by psychologists, it’s led by evidence and created to fit into everyday family life. The program supports kids to develop social and emotional skills with their family. We’ve made it easy to include in your school communications.
Overcoming SEL barriers in the classroom
Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) is part of the national curriculum. Research shows us that implementing SEL in the classroom can promote positive mental health and also improve academic outcomes. Read about some of the common barriers to implementing SEL and how to overcome them.
Bring SEL into your classroom, stress-free
Smiling Mind’s Primary Classroom Curriculum offers teachers 120 pre-planned lessons and printable activities, across 20 social and emotional learning (SEL) topics for Years 1 to 6. It is the most comprehensive, plug and play option to bring SEL into the classroom. Explore a lesson from the program.
Support students to build friendships
The Resilient Families Program supports kids to develop social and emotional skills with the support of their family. Developed by psychologists, it’s led by evidence and created to fit into everyday life. Explore how to recognise and develop healthy friendships in this audio story, with the children you teach.
Mindfulness posters for the classroom
When the classroom is alive with energy and you students need a little grounding, these bright Smiling Mind posters are a great tool. They serve as colourful prompts for students to engage in mindful practices, like attention, calm and open-mindedness, when it's time to focus.
Create impact on whole school wellbeing
When it comes to supporting student wellbeing, the biggest impact is made when the whole school is involved and passionate about creating a positive culture. Learn about one Australian school who have used the Smiling Mind Schools Program to implement SEL at each layer of the school.
Cooperation for stronger connections
Making friends in the playground isn't always easy, and children who struggle with this can feel lonely. In this interactive activity, children will learn about the important social skill of cooperation, helping them practise and understand key skills to build strong friendships at school.
A moment of calm for your students' day
This short meditation takes studens on an adventure to relaxation, helping them bring awareness to the sensations in their body to reach a calm, mindful state. The perfect activity to help with transitions through the day or as a brain beak between classes. Try it out and share with other educators!
A holistic education for wellbeing
Primary school teacher, Cass Furst, has seen the mental health challenges children are experiencing first-hand—and been confronted with the impact of wellbeing and SEL being deprioritised in classrooms. In her article, Cass shares these experiences and her tips for boosting wellbeing in the classroom.
Wellbeing check-in worksheets for class
A big part of developing emotional literacy comes from checking-in on ourselves, identifying our emotions and monitoring our mental wellbeing. Primary school teacher and Smiling Mind Generation ambassador, Cass Furst, has created these worksheets for students to check-in with themselves.
Informal SEL tips for your classroom
Incorporating SEL in the classroom can be a daunting task—especially on top of a jam-packed curriculum. These 4 tips from primary school teacher, Cass Furst, are easy and informal ways to keep social and emotional learning at the front of students' minds no matter how busy the school day is.
Your guide to managing student anxiety
To effectively support an anxious student, it’s important to understand what anxiety actually is. In this article, learn the signs and symptoms of anxiety and discover research-backed classroom accommodations to support every student to thrive socially and academically at school.
How to help students connect in class
Teachers play an important role in helping students find belonging in the classroom. Learning how to socialise with different personalities is a key part of social and emotional learning. In this article, Smiling Mind's psychologist offers a complete guide on how to help students connect.
Switch off for a good night's sleep
Educators carry a lot of responsibility during the day, and it's important to be able to switch off in order to properly recover—mentally and physically. This sleep meditation guides you to breathe deeply—like rolling waves—letting your nervous system know that it's time to calm down. Ready to have a great sleep?
Reconnect with your purpose in teaching
When we get stressed, we often start to lose sight of our 'why'. As a teacher, you likely feel a strong purpose to your vocation, and that sense of purpose is actually a great way to proactively beat burnout. Reconnect with the passion that drives you to support young minds with these Smiling Mind-approved tips.
