Establishing better outcomes

Establishing better outcomes for tamariki

By Natasha Parrant

The Child and Youth Wellbeing government website has been created with the hope to better improve education, health, and wellbeing for young people.

The website published a story about ‘Creating safe, stable and nurturing environments for tamariki to learn and play’ to show what Aotearoa is doing to ensure Aotearoa’s youth are supported. A Manawatu-based organisation is teaming up with Aotearoa schools and other non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to establish better outcomes for tamariki. MentorED (Ngā Whakaruruhau Mātauranga) is a charitable trust based in Palmerston North and aims to represent, support, and advise primary and intermediate school pupils who have difficulties and emotional and educational needs, due to unfortunate circumstances like suffering from family abuse, being in state care or living in transitional housing. “Some aspects of mainstream schooling can be challenging for these children. We want to help create a trauma-informed education system that is aware of and caters to, the varying educational and emotional needs of every child,” MentorED programme co-ordinator Fiona Cain says. “Our volunteer mentors are vetted, trained, and thoughtfully matched with a child. They then work to build trusting relationships with the child through fun, social, and emotional education and activities,” MentorED co-founder and volunteer Mercedes Strutt says. “We aim to boost confidence and wellbeing in order to help children navigate the challenges of life, using a PACE approach (Playfulness, Acceptance, Curiosity, and Empathy) – it’s a way of thinking which deepens the emotional connections in our relationship with others.” MentorED’s volunteers come from various roles like teachers, social workers, scientists, parents, grandparents, and more. Together the experienced, knowledgeable, and supportive team share similar morals like being empathetic, patient, and committed to tamariki.

The team like doing fun things - they even have Mercede’s therapy dog Rocco the labradoodle, who visits schools weekly as part of mentoring tamariki. The dog helps children aged 6-13 years old. Along with one-on-one mentoring, MentorED is also sponsoring access to school camps and paying for digital education platforms. “Traumatic childhood experiences can have a lasting impact on health, wellbeing, and life opportunities. Promoting acceptance, empathy, and resilience by creating safe, stable, and nurturing environments for children to learn and play is essential to mitigating these harmful impacts,” Fiona says. MentorED believes that supporting children going through challenging times can raise school engagement, confidence, and wellbeing, and ensure school pupils have good quality education. Teachers involved in the programme are complimenting the volunteer mentors saying they’re positive role models, provide consistent support and help pupils through one-on-one sessions, which teachers can’t always do. MentorED works with various schools, agencies, and NGOs including Oranga Tamariki, the Ministry of Education, NZ Police, Women’s Refuge, Caring Families Aotearoa, and SuperGrans Manawatū. Link: www.mentored.org.nz

Wonderful water

We all need to have enough fluid to be able to function at our best.

In particular, children are at risk of dehydration, especially when either in hot weather or when they are exercising. But here’s the thing about hydration - by the time they feel thirsty they are probably already dehydrated — so it’s up to teachers and care givers to ensure they are drinking enough. As well as being less heat tolerant than adults, young children have a higher proportion of body water than adults, making them less heat tolerant and more likely to get dehydrated, especially when being physically active and in hot climates. Encouraging children to drink fluids regularly is important as they may not remember to have a drink themselves.

WATER WORKS

Water is the best choice of fluid to combat dehydration. Avoid sports drinks, fruit juices, soft drinks and flavoured mineral waters, since they all contain sugar and are acidic, which can lead to tooth decay.

The recommended daily intake of water for children is:

• 5 to 8 years old: 5 glasses (1 litre) • 9 to 12 years old: glasses (1.5 litres) • 13 years old and over: 8 to 10 glasses (2 litres). Remember that children need even more water when they are exercising. They should drink before, during and after physical activity — even if they aren’t thirsty.

TIPS TO HELP KIDS STAY HYDRATED

• Make sure they always pack a water bottle

• Choose water rather than sugary or fizzy drinks • Remind them to drink before a sports game • encourage them to have a few mouthfuls of water during any breaks in the game • Make sure they have a big drink afterwards to make up for any sweat they have lost.

THE WARNING SIGNS OF DEHYDRATED

Mild dehydration can be treated by giving a child more to drink. But serious dehydration — for example, if they are unwell — can be very serious. It’s important to know what to look out for.

If a child has a fever, diarrhoea, or vomiting, or is sweating a lot on a hot day or during intense physical activity, watch for signs of dehydration. These include: • A dry or sticky mouth • Few or no tears when crying • Eyes that look sunken • Peeing less or fewer wet diapers than usual

• Dry, cool skin • Irritability • Drowsiness or dizziness.

STAYING HYDRATED

It’s been said that you are what you eat, and there is no denying that the food we eat impacts our health throughout our lives. Part of our diet also includes what we consume in liquid form so it can also be said we are what we drink too.

Not enough fluid intake leads to dehydration, with as little as one percent to five percent of body water is lost, symptoms start to occur, including thirst, vague discomfort, lessened movement, impatience, and increased pulse rate. Health effects of chronic, mild dehydration and poor fluid intake include increased risk of kidney stones and urinary tract cancers and some colon cancers as well as heart valve disorder and diminished physical and mental performance.