Assistant principal Jay Warren and Mana Tangata Leadership Crew flipping the tractor tyre to raise awareness for mental health. Photo / Avina Vidyadharan
Assistant principal Jay Warren and Mana Tangata Leadership Crew flipping the tractor tyre to raise awareness for mental health. Photo / Avina Vidyadharan
By Avina Vidyadharan
A Whangārei school has come up with innovative ideas like flipping 150kg truck tyres and pancakes to better understand the correlation between teamwork and mental health.
Ruawai College celebrated carnival-style event "Flipping our Way through the Day" last week to educate and guide students about the importance of mental health.
The students, teachers and mana tangata leadership crew flipped the truck tyres 8174 times in total over the course of five hours, along with flipping 184 pancakes and 412 pages.
Painting, clay modelling, science experiments and dance were also on the list of activities for the day.
Ruawai College principal Rileen Harre said the event was designed to let the students know the school staff were beside them, walking every step of the way.
"The analogy of flipping a tyre, page or pancake is to tell the students we are there to help you to lift that burden. The concept is also about participation, so all our students are participating in everything."
Konrad Phillips (left) and Hunter Shaw flip pages of a book. Photo / Avina Vidyadharan
Harre said they were building resilience, which was also one of their core values as a school.
"It is an acknowledgement of letting our students know about the struggles that are out there and what can we do as individuals, school or community to work together.
"We want to let the students know there is help available if they require it."
Assistant principal Jay Warren added that they wanted to contextualise mental health.
"Some kids and adults aren't aware that they can ask for help or where to ask for help," Warren said.
"If someone steps up next to that person, a lot of those difficulties and challenges are made a lot easier when you can actually see the light at the end of the tunnel."
Warren pointed to the children who were smiling while flipping the tyres and said: "If you are doing something really challenging but someone is with you helping, you start to feel that the hard work can be quite enjoyable.
"It is about working together as a team."
The school was trying to match the activities with the five ways of wellbeing – connect, be active, take notice, keep learning and give, said Warren.
"We wanted to be able to set up a place where students could read, paint, dance, learn and just relax, along with creating a fun, carnival-kind of atmosphere."
The original plan was to invite the community to the event, but due to alert level 2 restrictions they had to go ahead with just the school staff and students.
From left, Hazel Honnell, Ben Watkins, and Riley Tossell flip pancakes for the carnival-styled event. Photo / Avina Vidyadharan
"Level 2 is not helping but we would have had the community here. That was the vision," Warren said.
"But that is also another lesson for these kids - when sometimes you get dealt a bad card, you still have to keep playing. Eventually, you will come through the other side successful, if you are determined to stick to your plan."
A new mental health initiative by Ministries of Health and Education titled 'Mana Ake' will launch next year to provide early mental health and wellbeing intervention for children in intermediate and primary schools.
Warren said any initiative with a genuine desire to help is appreciated.
"If we are approaching this together, it is something we can get through. I don't think we can operate isolation. When we have got a national issue, it has to need a national approach."
