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n support of overall wellness for all, Killeen ISD Guidance and Counseling is working with campuses to bring a higher awareness of mental health to students and staff.
On Wednesday, Director of Guidance Shannon Lumar and Coordinator for Mental Health and Wellness Sherce Hampton joined a group of area counselors to host a day of wellness awareness at Maxdale Elementary School.
Fifth grade students cycled through a classroom where visiting counselors provided four stations with a variety of exercises designed to get them talking about their thoughts and feelings and how they handle challenges in their lives.
“We’ve been trying to make a presence about mental health and wellness and how it encompasses serving the whole person not only with students, but with staff,” said Lumar.
“We want to decrease that stigma that comes with mental health and illnesses and teach students and staff how to use strategies and take steps for their physical and mental health and connecting the two.”
In a separate classroom, students learned from KISD School Nutrition leaders how to prepare a tasty, healthy snack that is low cost and doesn’t require cooking.
They also learned basic nutrition to stay healthy, including fruit and vegetables and whole grains and minimizing sugar and sodium.
After going through all five stations, fifth-grader Phoenix Suarez remembered each leader by name and praised the lessons they shared.
In one group, he said, students bonded over the different video games they play. In another, he said, they talked about how they feel and played a game of “would you rather.” In another group, students drew and described pictures.
One strategy he said he learned about was how to cope when a younger sibling is getting on his nerves.
It was the session with School Nutrition that seemed to draw Suarez’s attention the most.
“I liked the chef,” he said. “I liked the food he showed us. He said if you eat food like this you won’t get as hungry later on. I like eating salad and always wondered about different vegetables.”
Simultaneously, teachers throughout the campus took advantage of a counselor to learn about self-care plans and how to identify and deal with trauma.
While KISD’s social emotional curriculum addresses the wellness points and the district provides information to staff, it is helpful to present it more directly.
“We feel like when we make it more personal in small groups and 1-on-1, it helps,” she said.
Wellness Wednesday began at Maxdale Elementary at a relatively small school focused on the grade level preparing to move on to middle school. Plans are in place to expand to other schools over time.
