School Programs
FAQs
Children’s Healing Studio Ltd. offers a variety of workshops that support children’s mental health. We offer workshops for child care centres, private schools, and Public/Catholic school boards across the GTA. Workshops can be offered during the lunch break or after school as an extra-curricular activity, registered for by parents. Or they can be offered in class, during school hours and funded by the school.
Alternatively, teachers and educators can be trained by Dr. Elena Merenda to implement the programs within their own classrooms. Each program requires a full day of training.
Dr. Elena Merenda also offers Parent Engagement Workshops. Details described below.
Fees:
Parent Engagement Fee: $400 for two hours
Teacher Training Fee: $2,000/program (for one full day)
School Workshop Fees: Prices range from $350-$2,000 and are dependent on the program and number of children.
Travel fees may also apply depending on the distance
Please email info@childrenshealingstudio.ca to customize an offering that meets the needs of your school community.
Confidently You
This is a 4-week program that fosters children’s self-esteem. It is offered for groups of children in preschool-grade 8.
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Program Description
It is so important for children to have a positive sense of self. Confidence and self-love create healthy foundations for children’s development and overall well-being. Children learn by exploring their environments, trying new things, taking risks, and interacting with others. In order to do all of this, children require confidence and self-love. They need to believe that they are competent enough to take risks, they are important enough to belong to a group of peers, and they are resilient enough to bounce back from unexpected challenges.
Program Goals:
Children will develop a positive self-concept through identifying their values, attitudes, and beliefs.
Children will build self-esteem by identifying and sharing personal strengths and interests.
Children will learn to identify and express their feelings.
Children will develop a positive self-image and acceptance of physical attributes.
Children will demonstrate confidence engaging in groups.
Children will develop effective communication skills to solve conflicts and build relationships.
Children will practice gratitude.
Each class, the children will make a tool that supports their self-identity and self-esteem.
Please email us at info@childrenshealingstudio.ca about fees and registration
Resiliently You
Resilience is an important part of healing, and it’s something we assume children develop naturally- but it is not. Resilience requires the right tools, experiences and people to develop. That’s why I created this program as a healing tool at Children’s Healing Studio Ltd.
This is a 4-week program that supports children in building resilience. It is offered for groups of children in preschool-grade 5.
Program Description:
In the most simplest form, resilience can be defined as the ability to bounce back from difficult experiences in life. Resilience is an essential component of children’s development in order to support their overall well-being. From a very young age and all throughout life, children will experience challenges including great big losses and changes. Although difficult, this is a normal part of life. As a result, it is important to equip children with the knowledge and skills they need to move through these experiences with little to no traumatic impact.
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Program Goals:
Children will learn to identify and express their feelings.
Children will learn to identify their stressors and demonstrate effective coping skills when faced with a difficult life experience.
Children will identify and practice helpful coping strategies.
Children will understand their locus of control. Specifically they will identify things and situations they can control and those they cannot.
Children will practice developing goals and expressing their hopes and dreams.
Children will identify their support system and the people in those systems.
Children will practice positive affirmations and problem solving, both of which will support them during difficult times.
Each week the children will learn or create a coping tool or technique to help them with emotional expression and to cope with worries.
Please email us at info@childrenshealingstudio.ca about fees and registration
Mindfully You
Mindfulness can be described to children as slowing down, being present in the current moment, and being aware of our actions and how they impact ourselves and others. Mindfulness requires the right tools, experiences and modeling to develop. That’s why I created this program as an emotional development tool at Children’s Healing Studio Ltd.
This is a 4-week program that supports children in practicing mindfulness. It is offered for groups of children in preschool-grade 5.
Program Description:
In the most simplest form, mindfulness can be defined as a simple technique that encourages children to pay attention to the present moment in an accepting and nonjudgmental manner. Mindfulness teaches children to listen into their own bodies, become aware of their emotions and behaviours, and learn to be mindful of how their thoughts and emotions translate into behaviours that may have positive or negative impacts on themselves and others. Mindfulness has become an essential component of children’s development in order to decrease anxiety, promote happiness, and build relationships.
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Program Goals
Children will learn to identify and verbally express their feelings.
Children will learn to use mindfulness as a tool for identifying their triggers that lead to difficult behaviours.
Children will identify and practice helpful mindfulness strategies to use during challenging experiences.
Children will learn how to use mindfulness as a tool for understanding their actions and how those actions impact themselves and others.
Children will practice developing strategies for managing their behaviour.
Children will practice positive affirmations and problem solving, both of which will support them during difficult times.
Each week the children will learn or create a mindfulness tool or technique to help them with being present and aware of themselves and their surroundings. This in turn, will support them in managing challenging behaviours.
Mindfulness Classes
Through storytelling, art, and body movement, Dr. Elena Merenda teaches children how to calm their bodies and mind, to be aware of their emotions and self-expression, and to verbally communicate how they feel and what they need from others.Â
Each class is designed based on the need of the group. They can be scheduled as individual workshops, or they can be designed into a weekly program with goals set in collaboration between Dr. Merenda and the classroom teacher.
Parent Engagement Offering for 2023-2024 School Year
The presentation to parents will include a discussion around mental health, emotional expression, and coping mechanisms that children can use at home and at school when their emotions become too big and too difficult to carry. The presentation will include tools children can use for themselves wherever they go and parents will receive ideas to use at home.
I will provide some examples for how children express emotions through behaviours and actions, accompanied by interactive examples for how to calm their minds and bodies.