Feel Good February reflections

Feel Good February is a hotly anticipated week full of fun, relaxing and exciting activities, running the week before the February half-term each year. 

The aim of the week is to provide several days of de-stress, offering a number of entertaining and unique experiences. Activities include a mini petting zoo, a climbing wall, and even a visit from therapy pets and alpacas. The activities involving the animals are always popular amongst year groups as they are known to boost pupils' self confidence and improve concentration in the classroom. Ultimately, the programme is designed to provide a fun break from routine. 

When discussing the impact of Feel Good February, Summayyah (S6) said: “in the past I have particularly enjoyed the yoga sessions and the visits from the therapy dogs. This year new activities were also introduced and there was a great atmosphere surrounding these, especially the colour run! The fun run was put in place to allow pupils and staff to have a laugh together and end the half term on a high. Whether running or spectating, the community spirit within the school was buzzing!”

The Feel Good February activities helped the pupils and staff enjoy some stress-free fun during what is arguably the most busy term. The various sessions helped senior pupils wind down and relax after prelims whilst other activities encouraged healthier habits such as offering free fruit at break times, yoga sessions, and much more. 

Rosie (S6) went on to explain why ‘feeling good’ is particularly beneficial across the year groups: “whilst Feel Good February allows us to focus on our own mental health and wellbeing, it also encourages us to look out for others as well. For example, in the Junior school during this time, we ran our annual food bank collection to support the Edinburgh Food Project - an initiative we are passionate about helping.”

She continued:

“Feel Good February is centred around mindfulness and is all about promoting mental wellbeing, ensuring we acknowledge and talk openly about mental health across year groups. This is linked to a number of UNICEF UK’s UN Convention Rights of the Child including Article 3 which states that the best interests of the child must always be a top priority in all decisions and Article 31 which specifies that every child has the right to relax, play and take part in a wide range of cultural and artistic activities. Our Feel Good February initiatives here at Watson’s certainly allowed us that.”

All in all, Feel Good February 2023 was a roaring success and we would like to thank Ms Harran for her hard work in bringing the vast array of activities to life - pupils and staff entered the half term break ‘feeling good’ and it goes without saying that the school community already looks forward to next year’s event!