Healthy Minds
Mental wellbeing is essential for living a fulfilling life. The World Health Organization describes mental health as a state where people realise their potential, cope with everyday stresses, work productively, and contribute to their communities. In Aotearoa, mental wellbeing is viewed as a taonga and is a key part of Te Whare Tapa Whā.
Everyone - adults and tamariki - experience challenging situations/periods. Mental health problems arise when these challenges persist and begin to affect daily life. Resilience helps us adapt to challenges and is shaped by both risk factors (like stress or poverty) and protective factors (like supportive relationships). Positive experiences and responsive relationships strengthen resilience over time.
Te Whāriki
Holistic development – kotahitanga - Holistic learning can be encouraged through kaiako and whānau recognising how their behaviours influence tamariki both positively and negatively.
Relationships - Ngā hononga - Learning about mental wellbeing through responsive and reciprocal relationships with people, places, and things in the early learning service environment through routines, activities and discussions.
Handy Actions are ideas, activities and initiatives that your Early Learning Service could implement relating to the topic of Healthy Minds. You could use the list as inspiration or as a checklist to assess what your ELS is currently doing towards 'Healthy Minds' and decide what other ideas could be implemented. Choose actions that suit your service, your community, and where you are at. You don’t need to do everything; these are ideas.
He Pou Oranga Tangata Whenua
Here are some examples of how the pathways of wellbeing can be interwoven into this Block:
Encouraging kaiako and whānau to take ownership of their mental wellbeing enhances the mana and self-determination (rangatiratanga) of tamariki and whānau as well as developing and growing their skills, knowledge and attitudes (pūkengatanga).
Recognising mātauranga Māori about taha hinengaro (mental wellbeing) is a way of preserving the knowledge of tangata whenua (kaitiakitanga).
Providing an environment where people who are experiencing distress are supported, included, and not judged demonstrates respect, kindness and support (manaakitanga). This also shows a unity and solidarity (kotahitanga) to creating an environment that supports mental wellbeing for everyone. Tamariki are at the heart of their whānau and supporting their mental wellbeing at your service and at home is about a collective journey to wellness (whānaungatanga).
Supporting information and evidence
Early learning services play a vital role in supporting tamariki wellbeing by creating safe environments, teaching social and emotional skills, and ensuring children experiencing distress feel included and supported. Building resilience involves strengthening children’s skills and improving the environments around them, with social and emotional learning being a key approach.
Early learning services can be busy, and sometimes stressful environments, so staff wellbeing and self-care is important! Workplace stress and burnout, including workload, challenging relationships and expectations, can impact staff wellbeing. Staff self-awareness also supports the social and emotional learning of tamariki through positive interactions and role-modelling.
Key messages
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Life events and daily demands can impact the mental wellbeing of tamariki, whānau, and kaiako.
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The Five Ways to Wellbeing—Connect, Be Active, Take Notice, Keep Learning, and Give—help build balance, resilience, and overall wellbeing.
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Social and emotional learning (SEL) supports tamariki to understand emotions, manage feelings, and build healthy relationships.
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Calming strategies such as mindfulness, deep breathing, and yoga strengthen coping skills during stress.
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A positive workplace culture supports staff mental wellbeing by encouraging self‑care and providing support during distress, which also enhances positive role‑modelling for tamariki.
Facts
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One in five New Zealanders experience mental illness each year, and most recover or live well with the right support.
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Positive early experiences shape the developing brain and build the foundations for good mental health.
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Research shows that early, supportive, and responsive relationships can prevent or reduce the effects of toxic stress.
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The strongest predictor of resilience in children is having at least one stable, supportive adult in their lives.
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Workplaces that prioritise mental health see better engagement, lower absenteeism, and higher productivity, while people benefit from improved wellbeing and morale.
