Denla British School (DBS) promotes Well-being for students and the rest of the community, promoting sustainable happiness with the ‘Denla 5’ campaign – a week of learning and practising elements of well-being
The cultivation of well-being, or life’s sustainable happiness, needs to be practised during childhood so that it becomes a habit. Well-being consists of 5 dimensions: 1. Physical Well-being – being healthy physically is the basis of a good life leading to success and happiness. 2. Social Well-being – having good friends positively affects your emotions. Without love and friendship, it would be impossible to feel part of society. 3. Community Well-being – is about creating a good environment. These Well-being dimensions can be acquired at a young age, and when students learn about them and have good-quality education, this promotes successe and wellness in later life. 4. Career Well-being – opportunities to use what you have learned, do what you love and make a career to support yourself will lead to 5. Financial Well-being – financial stability.
‘Nurturing Global Leaders’ is the vision of Denla British School (DBS), a premium international school that implements an enhanced British curriculum from the best practice of independent schools from the UK. Students are inspired to adhere to balanced values and encouraged to reach their own academic excellence. This ensures that they can flourish in universities and beyond. DBS encourages students to be brave decision-makers, creative thinkers, confident, thoughtful, and generous entrepreneurs with global perspectives. Students can achieve their fullest potential on the world’s stages and become well qualified, happy leaders.
Mr Mark McVeigh, DBS’s Principal who has extensive experience from leading schools in the UK and South East Asia region, says that Well-being is a hugely important element of our daily lives. His wife, Lisa, is Well-being Manager at DBS, with the knowledge and experience to drive sustainable wellness of the community. The community is not just about the students, but it includes students, parents, staff, and surrounding societies. To emphasise our mission, DBS created the Denla 5 initiative to cultivate Well-being values within our community. This year, there are 5 elements: Get Active – Connect – Keep Learning – Healthy Eating – Give Something Back. The Well-being events will be educational and fun, running for 5 themed days, from 4th-8th November 2019.
Get Active Monday (health focus)- Get Active Monday is about raising awareness of the importance of exercise for both our physical and mental well-being. The students will engage in activities which they do not normally do at school, such as cycling, scooting around the athletics track, parachute games, and a disco. This way, children broaden their experiences and discover new interests and talents. Physical activity and exercise can have immediate and long-term health benefits. They improve your quality of life, and reduce the risk of developing several diseases like type 2 diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease. Additionally, there will be the Boditrax workshop for parents.
Connect Tuesday (relationship focus) – Connect Tuesday is about developing relationships and being mindful. DBS believes that the mental well-being means feeling good about ourselves and the world around us. Wider awareness of the world helps us to build stronger connections and can make us feel happier and more secure, giving us a greater sense of purpose. Under this theme, students will learn to develop relationship via Pen Pal – interacting with new friends through a written communication. There is a Buddy Reading activity where students help each other read, developing closer relationships. Wake and Shake is also a fun activity that children can enjoy with their classmates. For parents, teachers, and school staff, there is a Yoga class to help us focus and connect with our bodies.
Keep Learning Wednesday (learning new things) – DBS believes that ‘You are never too old or too wise to learn something new’. Students will be energised with new activities they have never done in school before. Learning new skills stimulates neurons in the brain, which forms more neural pathways and allows electrical impulses to travel faster across them. The brain will be more active, helping you to learn better and think more creatively. Moreover, learning new things develops a growth mindset. If children have a fixed mindset, they believe they cannot change their characters, creativities, or potential for successes. A growth mindset is a more positive outlook, as children believe they have control over their successes and failures. Children with a growth mindset can look at classroom tasks with a ‘go-getting’ attitude and are able to bounce back from challenges with an optimistic point of view. When they fail at something, they will understand that they can use that experience to learn new ways to achieve growth towards a goal. For parents and staff, there is a Zumba dance on this day that helps them socialise and exercise.
Healthy Eating Thursday (nutrition) – Students are educated about choosing a balanced diet that is beneficial to their health. There will be a cooking class, a food science and nutrition class. Students will enjoy a delicious healthy barbeque at lunch time. Moreover, there will be a food workshop and an organic food market for parents. We aim for students and parents to be aware of the advantages and disadvantages of their diet. By choosing a healthy, nutritious diet, we can reduce the risk of problems, such as obesity, diabetes, cancer, vascular disease etc.
Give Something Back Friday (act of giving) – This is an activity for students and the whole community to give something back to the society. In this theme, students will contribute to the ‘Denla Heart’. We will also collect donations such as toys, books and clothes to give to those less fortunate. It aims to encourage compassion and appreciation of giving.
To grow up acquiring both hard and soft skills leads to high quality and happy leaders, and it is necessary to nurture children to gain these skills. DBS believes that strong academics, outstanding activities, acquisition of social skills, as well as a well-being mindset can make students whole, leading them to the world’s top universities and on to successful careers. This is DBS’s mission as one of the leading international schools in Thailand, dedicated to ‘Nurturing Global Leaders’.
