Mental Health & Well-being
Breathr
Developed by the Kelty Mental Health Resource Centre and BC Children's Centre for Mindfulness, this free app provides ways to get started with mindfulness. Breathr provides opportunities for youth and young adults to try a variety of mindfulness practices, from guided meditations to simple practices that can be used anywhere. It also teaches interesting facts about the brain science behind those practices. Their goal is to show youth that mindfulness can be fun, easy to try, and that it can have noticeable benefits for their overall health and well-being. |
EASE (Everyday Anxiety Strategies for Educators)
EASE is a fabulous resource developed by the Ministry of Children and Family Development in partnership with Anxiety Canada. EASE is now available in print, home, and online formats and are a collection of free resources and lesson plans for educators to help teach strategies to address anxiety with students in grades K-12. Lessons and strategies are designed to fit into existing school routines and practices—and benefit all children. While they are written for classroom teachers, they can be adapted for use by school counsellors, administrators, and support staff. Please note: classroom teachers need to complete an EASE training course to gain access to the lesson and EASE resources. |
Go Noodle
Go Noodle is a fun and entertaining way to get kids moving. They provide hundreds of videos for movement and mindfulness in the classroom and teachers can use them for whole-class, small groups, or for individual students. Videos can be accessed on a computer or through the app. Love that this gets kids active and thinking about their physical and social emotional health. Great for elementary classrooms! |
Greater Good in Education
Greater Good in Education is a wonderful website for educators interested in integrating social emotional learning and mindfulness into their classrooms and schools. Lesson ideas and practices organized by topic, as well as online courses for educators to dive deeper...this resource is a winner for educators who want to know the science behind the actions. I also love how each practice lists which SEL competencies students are using during the practice. |
Headspace
Headspace is another great mindfulness resource. You can use the app, visit the website, or even watch their Netflix episodes. Headspace has so many great meditations, techniques, articles, music, videos, and courses. I love that you can browse by topic: meditate, sleep, move, or focus and I also like that you can select your meditation by the amount of time you have, too. |
Insight Timer
Insight Timer is my go to app for meditation and mindfulness practices. You'll get access to mindfulness practices and guided mediations that you can filer by topic, time, and even voice. My favourites are the 5 minutes or less. They are perfect for little breaks during the day and building stamina. Insight Timer also has courses, talks, events, music, and a section just for parents. A one-stop mindfulness centre for calm, relaxation, and self-care. |
Mindful
Mindful.org is a treasure trove of information and resources for those wanting to incorporate mindfulness and meditation practices into their daily lives. Whether your a newbie or an accomplished practitioner, you'll find something that suits your needs on this website. Articles, daily practices, online courses...all in one place. |
MindShift
The Mindshift CBT app (BC made, too!) is designed specifically for youth to help with worry, panic, perfectionism, social anxiety, and phobias. So many great tools with this app, including quick relief when you need an intervention here and now, coping cards, a thought journal, symptom checker, and goal setting, to name a few. You can even share your journals and belief experiments with others like school counsellors or clinicians. Love MindShift for students! |
Morning!
Morning! is a very handy app for practicing gratitude and self-reflection on a daily basis. We know that practicing gratitude can have a significant impact on our well-being and happiness and this app guides you to thinking about what you are grateful for, looking for the positive parts of your day, and ways that you can improve. The app also gives you an inspirational quote each day, daily reminders, and the ability to see your past entries. Using Morning! has become an important part of my self-care routine. |
Supporting Student Health Guide (Elementary)
The Ministry of Education and Child Care worked with educators to produce a guide for elementary teachers. The guide is meant to provide teachers with a useful starting point for teaching a variety of health education topics, including sexual health, consent, body science, mental health, and internet safety. It contains some general guidance on teaching health education topics, along with suggestions for teaching specific topics, including instructional approaches and how to respond to unexpected situations, which they can adapt to meet the needs of their students. |
Support Student Health Guide (Secondary)
The Ministry of Education and Child Care worked with educators to produce a guide for secondary teachers. The guide is meant to provide teachers with a useful starting point for teaching a variety of health education topics, including sexual health, consent, mental health, stress, and body image. It contains some general guidance on teaching health education topics, along with suggestions for teaching specific topics, including instructional approaches and how to respond to unexpected situations, which they can adapt to meet the needs of their students. |
UBC Learn Mental Health
A free, online course for anyone interested in learning more about mental health and mental illness. This 7-module course can be taken in its entirety or in sections of interests. Topics include: Mental Health Background; Stigma; Human Brain Development; Understanding Mental Health, Mental Illness & Related Issues in Young People; Treatment; Seeking Help & Providing Support; and Caring for Students & Ourselves. |
UBC Teach Mental Health Literacy
A free, online course for educators that shares the Canadian-developed, nationally and internationally-researched resource, Mental Health Curriculum Guide (The Guide). In this course, educators learn how to apply this classroom-ready, web-based, modular mental health curriculum resource, as well as develop their own mental health literacy. Educators can then use this resource designed to be delivered to regular classrooms to successfully address mental health-related curriculum outcomes designed to be delivered by classroom teachers to students aged 12 to 19. |