05 Aug, 2024

Vuelve a la Escuela Feliz – VALE FELIZ

In collaboration with the Carlos Albizu University, Fields of Joy developed the "Vuelve a la Escuela Feliz” program with the aim of providing children between the ages of 8 and 12, their parents and caregivers, with the necessary skills to manage the emotions, anxiety and stress caused by the pandemic and the return to school.

VALE FELIZ - VUELVE A LA ESCUELA FELIZ: STRENGTHENING OUR CHILDREN DURING THE PANDEMIC

The COVID-19 pandemic left an indelible mark on all of us, but especially on our children and young people. For more than a year and a half, they faced the coercion of freedom, lack of socialization, loneliness, difficulty in relating to others, and the challenges of remote learning, among other difficulties. Faced with this scenario, it was necessary to prepare our children and teen population for the return to normality and provide them with the necessary tools to manage their stress and accumulated emotions.

The VUELVE A LA ESCUELA FELIZ Program (VALE FELIZ)

VALE FELIZ was designed as a series of videos aimed at children ranging from 8 to 12 years old and their caregivers.

They illustrated key skills to face the experiences lived during the pandemic, prepare children for the return to school and manage situations of stress and anxiety.

The program was developed in a series of 5 modules focused on offering effective strategies for the management of emotions and thoughts. Four modules were designed to directly impact children. One module was aimed exclusively at parents and caregivers with the purpose of providing them with strategies and techniques that would help them preventively manage the emotional effects caused by the pandemic.

Program Objectives:

Strengthen emotions and thoughts for their management and effective expression.
Develop stress management skills in the wake of the pandemic.
Teach techniques to manage the possible anxiety that accompanies the return to in-person classes.

The children learned about:

COVID-19: the reason school attendance was barred, and the difficulty of living in a time of uncertainty, coercion of freedom, social isolation and health risks.
Emotions: how they are experienced in the body and how to manage them.
Relaxation and mindfulness exercises to reduce stress in situations of anxiety, uncertainty, or fear.

Likewise, VALE FELIZ provided parents and caregivers with the necessary tools to deal with unwanted behaviors in children and teens to and help them have a more fluid and anxiety-free return to school.

Why was the VALE FELIZ program so important?

The VALE FELIZ program was a comprehensive and necessary response to the emotional challenges that the pandemic imposed on our children and adolescent population.

Thousands of children were afraid to go back to school and were unsure about how to relate again, interact with other people, and face the new school year. The VALE FELIZ program socialized these fears and prepared children to face the future with confidence and resilience.

Through a collaborative effort, the Fields of Joy Foundation and the Carlos Albizu University provided children, their parents and caregivers with the support, skills, and tools needed to encourage them to return to school with confidence, safety, and emotional well-being.