Tuesday, April 14, 2020
The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) is focused on supporting the mental health and wellness of children, families, and educators during this time of school closure. There are innovative methods and new technologies to support student and adult mental health and wellness.
Taking into consideration the need to be physically distant while maintaining social and emotional connections, the DPI Student Services/Prevention and Wellness Team is providing mental health and wellness resources organized by the following four topic areas:
• General Mental Health and Wellness
• Child and Adolescent Mental Health and Wellness
• Parent, Caregiver, and Educator Mental Health
• Positive Parenting and Safe Home Environments
The Focus on Mental Health During School Closures document lists specific resources including helplines, toolkits, websites, videos, and opportunities to connect in various formats.
The Student Services / Prevention and Wellness Team is also offering a weekly Community of Practice Zoom call on supporting student mental health during school closures. These community of practice calls will occur Thursdays at 8:00 a.m. through April 30 for those in the pupil services professions, which includes school counseling, nursing, psychology, and social work organized into a team with school administration. The first half-hour of the calls will focus on the elementary level. The second half-hour will focus on the secondary level.
For more information on COVID-19 matters, visit the DPI Information on COVID-19 web page.