ELSA

Together we can make a difference

ELSA is a nationally recognised mark of certification for school staff who have undergone specific training with an Educational Psychologist, leading them to begin practising as an accredited Emotional Literacy Support Assistant.

Here at High View, we have qualified ELSA Teaching Assistants who work across the school to deliver ELSA and SEND support.  

Our ELSA programme is delivered as a series of bespoke sessions designed to be enjoyable, creative and engaging - tailored completely to the needs of individual children and young people. We offer support with the understanding of and development of coping skills for:

• Emotional awareness
• Anger management
• Self-esteem
• Social and communication skills
• Friendship skills
• Loss and bereavement

Children will receive regular weekly ELSA sessions focused on their current area of need and are likely to craft, play games, read, write, draw, chat, role-play and puppet-show their way to a greater understanding of themselves as multi-faceted,  wonderfully resilient individuals with the capacity to explore and control their responses to challenges and adversity.

Work is generally undertaken one-to-one, but small group work is used to support the development of social skills.

We use our Nurture Rooms, which provide a modern, calm and quiet oasis away from the main school classrooms. This creates a truly tranquil environment in which children and young people can feel safe and whole-heartedly listened to, away from any other outside distraction.

As a school we recognise that children have the best chance to thrive and learn more effectively when their emotional needs are met; offering ELSA intervention is an intrinsic part of our dedication to help all of our pupils believe and achieve.

Every child is different and will respond to grief in their own way.

Children, unlike adults who stay with their grief, often jump in and out of their grief – this is called ‘puddle jumping’. It means at first they may be upset about their loss, but then appear to be fine for a period of time, before becoming upset again, and so on. This can be very confusing for children. They will need time and understanding to help them to process their loss. 

This ‘puddle jumping’ is a natural way to protect themselves from being overwhelmed by powerful feelings. As children get older it becomes harder and teenagers may spend extended periods of time in one feeling or another.

Here at High View,  our qualified Teaching Assistants have also received specialist 'Grieving Puddles' training so they can fully support our children when experiencing loss. 

To learn more about our ELSA provision or to ask any further questions, please get in touch with Mrs Sabine Anker via the school office.