A new school year poses challenges for students of all ages as they deal with change, uncertainty and having to adapt to new routines and relationships.

For students in the international sector, especially, these challenges can be greater again as they find themselves in an unfamiliar country, far removed from other family or unsure of when or where they may move next.

It’s important, then, that we pause to consider these unique challenges and how we can support our students in the coming months. Returning to school involves getting back into so many routines.

How about, as teachers, we ensure that looking after mental health becomes one of those routines?

How schools can support mental health 

Here are some practical ways to do just that and make wellbeing and mental health a key focus.

1. Talk, talk, talk

Provide opportunities for group discussions, role play, anonymous notes in an “ask it basket”, a silent debate or random chats in the playground about the unique difficulties we face within international communities.

Even something as simple as acknowledging that you are sad that you could not visit your family this summer might spark a conversation that prompts students to open up. Normalising talking about these issues is key.

2. Ask questions

If you are concerned about a specific student, try and find opportunities to encourage them to open up. Chatting to a child while caring for our school pet, Beardy (a bearded dragon - see below) has often been effective for us.

Even if you don’t have a school pet, any form of distraction can be less intimidating than “sitting down for a chat”. This could be as simple as a walk around the playground because lack of eye contact can make a child feel more comfortable.

And when you do, make sure you actively listen, without interrupting; make no judgements; and try to avoid offering solutions.

Often there aren’t any but being listened to, and cared for, can make all the difference.

In the international setting, if a student’s English is limited, try to find a member of staff or older student who shares their mother-tongue language.

Just being able to speak freely can be an enormous relief for a child struggling to understand and speak English all day.

3. Provide opportunities to share

Ask your students to create a collage for homework of photos or pictures of the people and places they miss. Give them time to share their collage with the class. Who or what do they miss and why? Why are people special to them?

Perhaps you could provide translanguaging opportunities here - do you have small groups who share a mother-tongue language who could work together? Perhaps an EAL student could share in their mother tongue and another student could translate?

4. Encourage connections in school

Create opportunities for students to spend time with others who speak the same language or share cultural traditions.

This can make school feel more familiar and comfortable. Our EAL department arranges cultural lunches on a weekly basis, encouraging students and staff members to attend.

Even if they currently need to be small scale, within bubbles, they can be incredibly valuable, especially for new students who have just arrived in the country.

That opportunity to speak freely in their mother-tongue language can allow a student to relax and give their brain a much-needed break.

5. Look at life beyond school

International students may find it hard that they are unable to see friends and family in other parts of the world very often.

As such, it is worth encouraging your students to make an even greater effort than usual to stay in touch with those they care about.

How? By talking about it: do they have family quizzes on Zoom? What’s the best TikTok they’ve sent their cousins? Whose grandparents read them a bedtime story in their mother-tongue language? Who can come up with the most creative way of staying in touch?

Making time for these conversations helps to remind students that they all face similar challenges and reinforces a sense of community and develops empathy for one another.

6. Send letters and cards

Technology has dramatically reduced the number of cards and letters we send in the post; yet the joy of both posting and receiving one, especially from abroad, is well worth the effort.

After lockdown, I asked my Year 4 class to post a letter to a family member they hadn’t seen for a while and the activity created a real buzz of excitement for the senders and the recipients (even the physical act of walking to the post box was a significant event for many of them - over half of them had never posted anything!)

7. Show gratitude

Research has shown that expressing gratitude is highly beneficial for wellbeing.

This could involve asking students to share what they are grateful for each day; having a class gratitude jar to fill with gratitude notes or each having a “gratitude journal” to write in at the end of the day or week.

As a Year 5 teacher, I am well aware that due to time constraints you may not be able to do all of these. Yet, as a mother of third-culture teenagers, and a wellbeing and mental health curriculum leader, I have no doubt that we need to make time for some of them.

Building connections, helping our students to feel safe and understood, and recognising the challenges they face will create the best environment to help them learn, grow and thrive.

Rhiannon Phillips-Bianco is a primary teacher at Junior School Leidschenveen, British School in the Netherlands