Help children recognise their feelings and emotions
This is what some people claim. Mankind has lived for thousands of years. As generations grow, we are becoming more and more aware of the harmful effects illness and stress impact on our bodies. Our awareness of the need to take the necessary steps to achieving a healthier lifestyle and prolong our life span is also growing. The number of diseases rising around the world makes it vital that people apprehend the importance of leading and living a healthy life. They believe health is accomplished by eating healthy food and exercising, but this is only one part of the healthy living process. There is more to being healthy and achieving an overall wellness and wellbeing than just eating well and exercising. Different elements assemble the human beings overall health, these elements are referred to as “the six dimensions of health” physical, psychological, spiritual, social, intellectual, and environmental. This report will discuss and define each of the six dimensions to provide adults with an understanding of the dimensions in hope of protecting our children from illnesses and diseases, and providing them with a more stable and a better future.
Background
Why is this report needed? Explain the six dimensions of health (Donatelle, 2006) and use this to explain to the reader why wellness and wellbeing are important in early childhood education and care.
The early childhood years sets the foundation to how children view themselves, each other, and the world around them. Their character which will develop further as they grow older begins in those early years. For this reason it is vital for Early Childhood Professions to understand the six dimensions of health in order to support children’s development in achieving wellness and wellbeing.
Bronfenbrenner believed children are influenced by the ecological system, (the system of relationships that form his or her Environment) particularly the microsystem (the immediate environment, e.g. family or school)Bronfenbrenner, 1998. He mentioned that positive emotional interactions and experiences between caregivers and children are crucial for the development of social and emotional wellbeing in children.
Donatelle, 2006said “The motivation to improve quality of life within the framework of one’s own unique capabilities is crucial to achieving health and wellness”. As children’s services or early childhood settings fit into the microsystem stage of the child, it becomes imperative for us to set the building blocks for children to achieve the optimum wellness and wellbeing. Our interaction and experiences play a key role in their development, but what is wellness and wellbeing?. Donatelle, 2006identified wellness and wellbeing as follow;
Physical heath : the way we function using our bodies, how sharp our sensors are, how fit we are, the ability to catch diseases and disorders and the ability to recuperate from illness and regain health,
Intellectual health: Mentally healthy , the capacity to think with clear judgment, the ability to learn, the ability to grow from experience and the ability to make critical decisions.
Social heath: the ability to socialise and interact well with others, the ability to adjust to situations at different levels
Emotional health: the ability to recognize and express feelings appropriately, the ability to control and balance these feelings with yourself and others. The ability to feel good about yourself, love and trust.
Environmental health: the ability to appreciate the world around you and to recognise the role you play in effecting the environment.
They believe
Spiritual health: the ability to have faith, hope, and belief. The ability to connect with the world around you as one, to love and respect nature and to feel the love and pain of the world.
Discussion
Discuss each dimension of health and explain what is happening or not happening to support children’s wellness and wellbeing in your service.
Wellness is a state of optimal health that is working towards or trying to maximize the individual’s potential to achieve a vibrant state of wellbeing and enjoyment of life. This is a lifetime process of working towards enhancing your physical, intellectual, emotional, social, spiritual, and environmental wellbeing.
When we think of Wellness and Wellbeing, it is good to remember that all aspects of the six dimensions impact each other. Although every dimension is important in its self, it is the balance that gives each individual the optimum wellness and wellbeing. For example if a person focus on his/her physical health and neglects the emotional health, the physical health would deteriorate soon after. Keeping an overall balance and a holistic approach would give us a higher chance in achieving wellness and wellbeing.
Factors that affect our Wellness and wellbeing.
The individual’s attitude and behaviors.
Heredity and family history.
The influence of the people around you, positive and negative.
Health care availability.
Let’s have a closer look at each dimensions and how does the centre cater for the dimension.
Physical health;
Physical health is most visible to us and the easiest to keep an eye on. It would probably be the one dimension we pay more attention on, than any other dimension. If we eat well balanced nutritious food and exercise regularly, minimise the consumption of harmful foods such as alcohol and cigarettes, the chances of us catching diseases are reduced but not eliminated.
Good nutrition is important for child for many reasons. For one thing, proper nutrition is necessary for body growth and development. Without it the brain, nervous system, bones, teeth, muscles, eyes, heart and lungs will not grow and work as they should. Children will also learn, think, play and work with others better if they are eating right.
How can it be achieved?
Exercise least 30 minutes a day.
Eat lots of fruits, vegetables and whole grains,
Replace bad fats with healthy fats, such as those found in olive oil
Visit your dentist regularly
Seek medical attention when required
Maintain a healthy lifestyle.
Centre’s approach to physical health;
The centre aims to:
Facilitate physical development by providing activities which foster fine and gross motor skills.
Provide children with 50% of their recommended dietary intake
Provide a healthy eating environment
Provide children with healthy food habits
Provide water throughout the day
Provided children with a balance of active and quiet activities
The centre focuses on providing children with a balanced nutritious food but fails to promote and link the importance of staying active to the physical health. Very little discussion is provided about health and fitness.
Intellectual health;
Intellectual health is our ability to perceive and process information accurately and the ability learn and Interact with the world around us. To achieve an intellectually healthy life, we must have the wish to learn and to have an interest in what is going on around us. Intellectual health also involves problem solving and creativity.
How can it be achieved?
Keep your mind active with learning
Participate in creative and problem solving activities.
Read the news each day.
Paint and draw.
Build something with your hands.
Work out a crossword puzzle each day, it can help keep our brains on alert.
Centre’s approach to intellectual health;
The centre aims to:
Facilitate intellectual development by providing activities and experiences which allow children to experiment, think and question the world around them and develop their problem solving skills.
Encourage children to develop a positive attitude towards learning, responsibility, self-discipline and self-esteem.
Design activities which allow children to develop their capabilities and interests at their own pace and according to their individual need.
Social health;
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Socially healthy people engage, interact, and co-operate well with each other. That includes friends, family, co-workers and other groups. Being comfortable with oneself as well as others at different levels and maintaining relationships.
How can it be achieved?
Learn ways to relate with others.
Practice communication skills.
Try to be the kind to your friends or partner.
Be considerate and mindful of others.
Centre’s approach to Social health;
The centre aims to:
Facilitate personal and social development by group experiences with peers, friendly interactions with adults and activities which promote their sense of independence.
Develop programs which enhance children’s social and emotional skills
Emotional health;
The ability to understanding our feelings and emotions and finding vigorous ways of expressing them .Emotional wellness is one of the most important aspects of the six dimensions. It should be one of our main focus points of life in order to accomplish wellbeing. In order to be healthy or have good physical health you must have a good foundation of emotional wellness. You can notice this in your everyday life, by just noticing how having a “good day” or a “bad day” effects you physically.
How can it be achieved?
Learn to recognize your limitations.
Practice different ideas to create healthy relationships with others.
Maintain a sense of point of view.
Learn to deal with emotions such as sadness, anger, or frustration.
Centre’s approach to emotional health;
The centre aims to:
To help children recognise their feelings and emotions.
Encourage children to express feelings and emotions appropriately.
I don’t believe the centre is doing enough to cater for the emotional wellbeing in children. I think a lot more can be done to facilitate positive emotional development. (Refer to recommendation).
Environmental health;
Environmental health is to appreciate and respect the natural environment around you and do whatever you can to protect it.
How can it be achieved?
Better understanding of the environment
finding ways to minimise the waste going to the landfills such as donating clothes and donate computers and mobile phones to organisation.
Recycling
Centre’s approach to environmental health;
The centre aims to:
Promote the understanding and importance of recycling and energy saving.
Reuse material for children’s activities.
Promote environmental education in children’s everyday learning experiences
Role model the positive environmental approaches in daily routines such as reducing energy output and the use of water.
Spiritual health;
The ability to know that life is meaningful and has a purpose. Our morals, values and ethical believes guide us to making decisions and the direction to life.
How can it be achieved?
Take some time to discover your morals and believes.
Try to stick to your believes during difficult times.
Believe in yourself
Centre’s approach to spiritual health;
The centre aims to:
Families are encouraged to share their culture, language and home experiences.
Promote each child’s culture and language, and facilitate experiences whenever possible
Provide an environment that is anti bias and caters for the child’s cultural, family and linguistic diversity.
Promote equality by maximising the educational outcomes for all children, regardless of their gender, cultural backgrounds or socio-economics.
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