The mental health lessons are designed to be delivered to pupils aged 11-14, aiming to improve their mental health literacy and help-seeking.
Each lesson has a pre-prepared lesson plan and PowerPoint slides, with an adaptable structure to meet different timetable schedules.
The Peer Education Project (PEP) was originally designed with five core lessons, with pupils building their mental health understanding each week. The PEP mental health awareness lessons include:
- Mental health and the mental health spectrum
- The risk and protective factors to mental health
- The 5 ways to wellbeing or The 8 tips for good mental health
- Creating a mental health and wellbeing toolkit
- Building a network of support
We would advise lessons to be delivered in this order to best support pupils in their learning.
PEP has since developed additional mental health lessons on the following topics to support pupils in their mental health learning:
- Body Image: How we think and feel about our bodies
- Healthy relationships: Developing healthy relationships with ourselves
- Healthy relationships: Developing healthy relationships with our peers
- Loneliness: Finding our connections to feel less lonely
- Sleep: Finding our confidence with sleep
- Kindness: Why kindness matters
- Nature: Connecting with nature and the world around us
Mental health awareness lessons
Each lesson has a pre-prepared lesson plan and PowerPoint slides, included in the downloads below.
Mental health and the mental health spectrum
It explores how mental health can change over time, and in response to different factors and experiences.
The risk and protective factors to mental health
The 5 ways to wellbeing
The 8 tips for good mental health
Creating a mental health and wellbeing toolkit
Building a network of support
Additional mental health lessons
Each lesson has a pre-prepared lesson plan and PowerPoint slides, included in the downloads below.
Body image: How we think and feel about our bodies
Developing healthy relationships with ourselves
Developing healthy relationships with our peers
Loneliness: Finding our connections to feel less lonely
Sleep: Finding our confidence with sleep
Kindness: Why kindness matters
Nature: Connecting with nature and the world around us
Supporting resources
Collection of ice-breaker activities
Collection of mindfulness activities
How to deliver the lessons
The mental health lessons have been designed to be as flexible as possible to meet the individual needs of each school and differing mental health literacy levels of pupils.
PEP is modelled on older pupils known as Peer Educators, aged 15 and upwards, delivering the lessons to younger pupils, aged 11-14. However, if this is not possible for your school, the lessons can be delivered by staff. Each lesson has a pre-prepared lesson plan and PowerPoint slides, ready for you to pick up and deliver.
Evaluating PEP
Schools who use the PEP materials may like to evaluate for themselves what difference the lessons have made to their pupils’ knowledge and confidence.
This survey measures mental health knowledge and confidence in seeking help and engaging in self-help, which are two important aspects of mental health literacy. It's been co-developed by Mental Health Foundation staff and researchers from the Universities of Bristol, Lancaster and Exeter.
For this to work best, the survey should be completed before the lessons begin, and then again after the final lesson.
Guidance for Peer Educators
The Peer Educator handbook
Lesson delivery reflection sheet
Doing PEP in forms was extremely helpful as these people will be in the same form together for the next few years, therefore should feel comfortable enough with discussing mental health and looking out for one another.
From start to finish, I have noticed a dramatic increase in the year 7s' understanding of the topics we covered, and they all admitted they felt more comfortable discussing mental health afterwards.
The activities and lessons are catered to their age and tastes unlike a usual lesson where it is usually one dimensional. By confronting assumptions and perceptions on mental health, PEP targets the core questions and evolves a lesson plan around them.