This September and October, we had the pleasure of delivering our Hummingbird Project to St William of York RC Primary School in Bolton. Our brilliant facilitator, Sonia, led sessions with students from years 3 and 4, helping them boost their mental health and wellbeing through fun, interactive activities.
We joined the school for session five of their six-week programme, which focused on the theme of “bouncing back”. Sonia began by checking in on their homework: how had they used their strengths to make themselves or someone else feel good over the past week? The responses were wonderful—one pupil shared how he accidentally got tangled in his school trousers and toppled over, making his mum laugh during a stressful morning.
Then it was time for the main activity of the day—the hula hoop challenge! Pupils were tasked with moving a hula hoop all the way around their circle without letting go of each other’s hands. The challenge was all about teamwork and resilience — could they support one another, problem-solve together, and find the quickest way to complete the task?
Everyone took to it with big smiles and buckets of determination, with lots of inventive techniques being used and plenty of encouragement from friends. Afterwards, Sonia led a discussion on how to “bounce back” when things don’t go our way — whether during the challenge or in everyday life. From “asking friends for help” to “keeping going even when things are hard,” pupils shared brilliant ideas for staying positive. Sonia reminded everyone that doing our best is what matters most, and that they should all be proud of how they tackled today’s challenge.
Before finishing, Sonia set one final task: could each pupil try something that challenged them in the coming week, drawing on their strengths to help? There were nods and thoughtful smiles all around, sure signs that their new resilience skills were already taking root.
