Mitey Southland coach Belinda Brown said schools participating in the initiative were seeing some real fruit since it was first introduced into Southland schools three years ago.
It was now becoming embedded into the school culture and "just their way of being in their school," she said.
The Mitey initiative, which was woven into everyday teaching, helped year 1-8 children build necessary and age-appropriate skills to understand and nurture emotional wellbeing.
It also aligned with the New Zealand curriculum and Ministry of Education mental health guidelines.
This year Mitey operated in 26 Southland schools, and with the aid of the ILT donation, five more schools would be added in 2025, Mrs Brown said.
The positive word-of-mouth reputation within the school community had added to its momentum.
Mrs Brown said since Southland became the first region to adopt the initiative outside the Auckland area, it had pioneered the way for other schools across the country.
Schools in Wellington, Waikato and Hawke’s Bay regions had come on board and the Bay of Plenty would start in 2025.
"I think it’s been amazing having Southland on board because they’ve been looking at how Southland has run and been successful to help guide the regions."
Teachers were hearing children’s emotional vocabulary expressions develop as children were able to better explain how they were feeling and why.
They were also seeing a decrease in angry expressions and a shift to more positive emotions.
Staff had also seen cross-curricular links with changes happening in writing and literacy.
One principal said staff were seeing results on a daily basis.
"We are not seeing mass behaviour issues any more [and are having] some high-trust conversations between kids and teachers that they won’t have at home."
ILT Foundation chairman Paddy O’Brien said the trust was proud to have supported the initiative since it was first introduced into Southland schools.
"We’re excited to build on that support with a contribution of $150,000 for next year’s initiative.
"Our board recognised Mitey as an opportunity to make meaningful inroads into youth mental health education and for Invercargill to lead the way once again.
"It ties together three areas that have always been a priority for us: youth, mental health and education. Providing valuable tools to some of the most vulnerable members of our community," he said.
- By Toni McDonald
