Burnley primary school children enjoy a 'Gruffalo Wellbeing Welly Walk'

Whether that be going on a wellie walk, taking part in group sport activities outside or bringing nature inside by growing our own plants, children at Springfield Community Primary School in Burnley Wood now have a better understanding of why watching or being outside in nature can help calm our minds and make us feel happier and healthier.

Wellbeing lead Antonia Phipps said: "The children went on a 'Gruffalo’s Wellbeing Wellie Walk' for world mental health awareness week.

"Miss Harrison talked to the children about how we need to keep not just our bodies healthy but also our minds. She told us that she likes to go for a walk each evening it helps her feel calm.

"We put on our wellies and went on a walk around the field. We stopped and were still and silent and listened to the birds singing, the rain on our hoods, the wind in the trees.

"The children could hear different bird song and saw birds getting words from the soil, there were pigeons and blackbirds. We looked for the birds’ nests in the trees where they were taking the worms for their babies.

"We spotted different flowers growing – daisies, dandelions and daffodils. It was a wonderful walk if a little wet, but we soon dried off back in school.

"We have taken every opportunity to discuss mental health this week, including reading books around the theme and poems about different emotions.

"In the afternoons, at home time, we have listened to relaxing music and spoken about how this calms our minds and bodies. We watched an underwater scene as the theme of the week is Nature.

"We also discussed how we could get in touch with nature and decided to make some bird feeders out of a lolly pop stick, string and an apple. For our PE lesson, we chose to get active with some yoga, as this is good for our minds as well as making our bodies stronger."