ELSA (Emotional Literacy Support Assistant)
Welcome to our school ELSA page.
We are pleased to be able to share information with parents about Emotional Literacy Support (ELSA) on the school website. The school's approach to emotional literacy support as a fundamental basis for education of the whole child is something we are extremely proud to offer.
On this page we aim to post ideas and helpful advice on how you can help your child; for example in areas such as empathy, self esteem and anxiety management. Parents and carers will be able to find out about recommended books which may be useful and links to other websites for some self-help at home.
Our school ELSA is:
Mrs Howells-Davies
Mrs HD can be contacted via the school office.
What is ELSA?
An ELSA in a school is an Emotional Literacy Support Assistant. ELSAs are specialists with a wealth of experience of working with children and young people. ELSAs are trained and regularly supervised by Educational Psychologists.
It is really important to understand that ELSAs SUPPORT NOT FIX.
ELSA Relationship
ELSAs are warm, kind and caring people who want to support children and young people so they feel happy and comfortable in school, and to reach their potential socially, emotionally and academically. They understand the barriers to learning that some children and young people might have and can help them with this.
They can support the children and young person’s emotional development and help them cope with life’s challenges. ELSAs will also help children and young people to find solutions to problems they might have.
An ELSA is not there to fix problems but to help them find their own solutions and offer that important support to a child or young person.
Relationships are key in helping children and young people to feel safe and nurtured. ELSA is about creating that relationships and provide a reflective space for the child or young person.
What areas does an ELSA help with?
- Loss and bereavement
- Emotional Literacy
- Self-esteem
- Social Skills
- Friendship issues
- Relationships
- Managing strong feelings
- Anxiety and worries
- Bullying
- Conflict
- Emotional Regulation
- Growth Mindset
- Social and therapeutic stories
- Problem solving
How are children or Young People referred for ELSA?
- Class teacher referral
- Parent referral through school
- Sendco referral
- Outside agency referral
How long should an ELSA Intervention last?
ELSA intervention should be a short-term focus intervention with clear aims. An intervention will usually be for half a term to a full term in length.
ELSA Reactive Support
Sometimes things happen in life such as a death, divorce, illness, hospital stay, and so on. An ELSA can help the child or young person reactively which means they can support them immediately when things like this happen. Through a strong relationship with the ELSA, the child or young person can feel safe and cared for and know that someone is there for them. Reactive support is very much about active listening. It is child or young person led and there aren’t any targets.
Supporting your child at home
Here we can sign-post you to some of the different websites online which offer help and advice to parents.
Do you have an anxious child?
Follow the links below for some useful guidance on helping your child overcome anxieties:
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/stress-better/2016/03/49-phrases-to-calm-an-anxious-child/
Recommended self-help anxiety books: Click the pictures to purchase the text on Amazon.
What to Do When You Worry Too Much ( A kids guide to overcoming anxiety) by Dawn Huebner is an interactive self-help book designed to guide 6-12 year olds and their parents through the cognitive-behavioral techniques most often used in the treatment of generalised anxiety. Engaging, encouraging, and easy to follow, this book educates, motivates, and empowers children to work towards change. We have used this book at school and have found it a very useful tool.
Separation Anxiety
Is your child having issues with separating from you at drop-off for school or other activities?
Self-esteem
Is your child having problems with self esteem? Try following this link which gives some useful advice to parents:
Anger management
Help with those 'hot feelings' - click these links for tips and information for parents/guardians about managing anger in children:
http://www.scholastic.com/parents/resources/article/praise-discipline/anger-management-children
Recommended books for anger management: Click the pictures to purchase the text on Amazon.
An anger management story for children written by Lori Lite. Children relate to the angry octopus in this story as the sea child shows him how to take a deep breath, calm down, and manage his anger. Children love to unwind and relax with this fun exercise known as progressive muscular relaxation. This effective stress and anger management technique focuses awareness on various muscle groups and breath to create a complete resting of the mind and body. This is a great little story to help children understand that they are in control of their emotions. It focuses on the ownership of feelings and emotions and taking command of the situation. We use this book in ELSA sessions and is fun and very effective!
This book uses CBT at its core to help younger children understand their angry feelings and make the necessary changes to regulate their emotions. The book was written by Luke Baker, a former ELSA. The book is about The Red family and their youngest member Rory. Rory Red is very angry all of the time. He wants to change but is told by both parents that ‘It is just who you are.’ Rory wants to change and one day meets a new friend Yasmine Yellow. Yasmine shows him the way and helps him to understand how he can change.
The book leads the child through the different stages of anger such as triggers: ‘someone being mean to him’, ‘when he can’t go out to play because it is raining’, ‘when he isn’t allowed his dessert’. It takes the child through the physical effects of anger such as breathing heavier, his heart beating harder and faster. It also looks at Rory’s thoughts such as: ‘hit them!’ ‘break something!’ ‘say bad words!’. Yasmine helps him by suggesting different calming techniques to help him cope with his anger.
Delightful, simple illustrations that children will love. The language is simple and easy to understand. This book would be perfect for EYFS and KS1, (possibly even Lower KS2).
*Note: It must be appreciated that change cannot necessarily be achieved rapidly and is dependent upon the context and complexity of the presenting issues. For children with complex or long-term needs it is unrealistic to expect ELSA intervention to resolve all their difficulties, however support will be designed to target specific aspects of a child's need. Training and development of the school ELSA is an ongoing process and wisdom is required to recognise when issues are beyond the level of expertise that could reasonably be expected of an ELSA. We work closely with other agencies including CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service), TAMHS (Targeted Mental Health Service) and Surrey Young Carers when we require additional advice or guidance on how best to support pupils in school.
Park Mead Primary School, Park Drive, Cranleigh, Surrey, GU6 7HB
01483 274315
info@park-mead.surrey.sch.uk
