No matter how hard you have focused on promoting wellbeing and eliminating stress, Sats week will still stir up those unwanted feelings of anxiety that cause children to feel out of control. Identifying the children struggling with these feelings isn’t always as easy as you might expect.

A child displaying extraordinary behaviour is trying to communicate something to you. Whether it be a child who is unusually quiet or teary, they need you to support them in regulating their emotions.

Sometimes their struggle will be communicated to you through their refusal to engage with what is causing them stress, which may be the tests themselves. It may be that their behaviour traits are exacerbated which, if disruptive behaviours, can be hard to support.

But you do have the key to not only spot but also support these children. You know them. You can identify their struggles and know how best to approach individual struggles. But for the whole class, here are five things you can do to support wellbeing in general this week:

1. Model positivity

Remember that you are part of a team all year round, and that most certainly includes Sats week. Your body language, mental health and wellbeing radiates. Children, like sponges, will soak this up - so make sure that you are a priority as well.

2. Focus each day with communal activity 

Ease children into each day with a particular focus, whether it be a breakfast club or mindfulness activities, and ensure that the whole team is involved in this.

3. Provide opportunities to share feelings

The more that you can create a “team” feeling, the less children will have the opportunity to feel alone in their feelings. Also in doing this you are creating systems that will allow children the opportunity to self-regulate some emotions through simply talking through their thoughts and feelings to another.

4. Maintain a sense of normality

It can be tempting to remove all demand in the afternoons as a way of allowing the children to “destress”, but consider whether keeping a sense of normality will allow children to feel the comfort of boundaries.

You can remove the “assessment against a learning objective” element to your art, computing and even PE lessons but provide the safety net of having them in their usual slots!

5. Be vigilant

Keep an eye out for those children who struggle and do what you do best: support them.

Tracey Lawrence is assistant headteacher and specialist leader of education in social, emotional and mental health at Danemill Primary School in Leicester

Join Tracey for #behaviourchat tonight at 8pm on Twitter.

Tes is providing practical tips to support children through Sats week.​

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