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I came across an inspiring site today. It is a great model!
Their vision is “of a society that promotes and protects good mental health for all children and young people. A society where children’s views are respected and they are loved, safe and enjoy life.”
- To improve life chances for children and young people at risk of and experiencing difficulties with mental and emotional health
- To achieve better outcomes for parents and families who engage with children’s mental health services
- To promote the good mental health and emotional well-being of all children
Their “Young People” section is user friendly and my own students (youth-at-risk) find it useful. LINK
I like that they highlighted the following:
To celebrate youth, mental health, and the use of art to heal, I am sharing a detail below from my student Alicia’s latest painting. Love, Katarina
To read more about Katarina’s sock creations, go to POST STREET
To read more about Katarina’s work with sock monkey/art therapy for at-risk youth go to SOCK MONKEY MONTHLY
To read more about Katarina’s art therapy and visual art, go to KATARINA’S ART BLOG
“Five years ago, FRONTLINE‘s groundbreaking film, The New Asylums, went deep inside the Ohio prison system as it struggled to provide care to thousands of mentally ill inmates. This year, FRONTLINE filmmakers Karen O’Connor and Miri Navasky return to Ohio to tell the next chapter in this disturbing story: what happens to mentally ill offenders when they leave prison. The Released is an intimate look at the lives of the seriously mentally ill as they struggle to remain free.”
THE NEW ASYLUMS: LINK
THE RELEASED: LINK
RELATED:
DRAWING TIME- ART THERAPY IN PRISONS AND OTHER CORRECTIONAL SETTINGS
Art Therapy With Prison Inmates: A Pilot Study: prison_pilot_study_article-final_draft_version
I try to connect to my journal every day- but it can be as little as throwing in a note into the basket of papers. There are times when the mind is in need of deeper work and I am certainly in that frame of mind.
I have been “distracted” by my sock monkeys. Yet, can a sock monkey be a type of journal- each stitch a thought?
In all honesty, I have held back on starting a new journal as the current one was started when my mom passed away (Nov 8, 2008)… Letting go is easier as a concept.
OK- that’s it- the basket has been spilled onto the floor, there is glue, scissors, news articles, journals, notes, ideas, lists, inspirations… I’m diving in!
Love, Katarina (Kat) Thorsen
To read more about Katarina’s sock creations, go to POST STREET
To read more about Katarina’s work with sock monkey/art therapy for at-risk youth go to SOCK MONKEY MONTHLY
To read more about Katarina’s art therapy and visual art, go to KATARINA’S ART BLOG
I have no doubt about the power of journalling. Personally, I need to organize my current one… It’s all in a large basket. But it still counts as a journal! In fact, I have many journals going all at once it seems. That’s OK! My journals can challenge space-time continuum- not following a linear route and are created through collecting, sketching, in binder here, in a notebook there. It’s the tactile part of journalling that I favor. DARE TO BE MESSY!
The internet offers a great way to share with the world, but nothing beats the power of actually cutting, pasting, scribbling. Glue on your fingers, the warped paper and a journal so thick it won’t close. I tell students that keeping a journal can help reduce anxiety and stress- but the students often complain that they get stressed at the thought of maintaining a journal… No worries. Let that go. Connect with your journal once a day. Simply picking it up, shoving in a piece of paper you want to keep, writing to-do list inside keeps the flow going. That way you can allow the natural process- then take personal retreats- surround yourself with collaging materials and interesting pens, glue, scissors, bits… then spend some time making a page (or pages)… Or just write- stream of consciousness. The main thing is to get those voices out of your head and onto the paper. ENJOY!
Here are some of my favorite books on journaling:
Artists’ Journals and Sketchbooks: Exploring and Creating Personal Pages by Lynne Perrella
Art Journals and Creative Healing: Restoring the Spirit Through Self-Expressionby Sharon Soneff
Creative Awakenings- envisioning the life of your dreams through art by Sheri Gaynor
MY FAVORITE JOURNAL ARTISTS:
LYNDA BARRY [MY FAVORITE GRAPHIC NOVELIST/COMIC BOOK ARTIST!!!]
There are many online exercises out there… Here is an example:
Creative Journal Exercises and Activities
Love, Katarina (Kat) Thorsen
To read more about Katarina’s sock creations, go to POST STREET
To read more about Katarina’s work with sock monkey/art therapy for at-risk youth go to SOCK MONKEY MONTHLY
To read more about Katarina’s art therapy and visual art, go to KATARINA’S ART BLOG
Since January 2010, The Western Division of Operation Sock Monkey (OSM) at Keith Lynn Alternative Secondary School has been using sock monkeys as therapeutic and philanthropic tools. Youth-at-risk experience profound comfort and joy when making sock monkeys. They may keep their creations or donate them to OSM. So far 200+ sock monkeys have been made by students, staff and the community. In June 2010 we shipped 40 sock monkeys to Kwa-Zulu Natal. On October 20, 2010, 40 more sock monkeys were shipped to headquarters for fundraising. 150 were displayed in the Downtown Eastside this past summer. The sock monkeys in Kwa-Zulu Natal are being used as part of Clowns Without Borders South Africa residency programs teaching the power of play in guardian-child relationships.
TO READ MORE ABOUT CWBSA’s SOCK MONKEY THERAPEUTIC PROGRAM GO TO: CWBSA Sock Monkey
To read more about Keith Lynn’s art therapy program with Kat, go to: SOCK MONKEY MONTHLY!
Online full length programs:
Autism: The Road Back charts the personal journey of three BC families with children who have been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder. It talks to parents, service providers, and experts in the field about assessment, diagnosis, and options available for treatment, and provides guidance for families trying to navigate their way through the challenges of ASD in the first six years of their child’s life.
http://www.knowledge.ca/program/autism-the-road-back
Through the personal stories of three young people, this intensely compelling documentary traces the journey of depression, from early signs and symptoms, to assessment, diagnosis, and treatment.
http://www.knowledge.ca/program/beyond-the-blues-child-and-youth-depression
A one-hour documentary designed to raise awareness and provide an understanding of dyslexia. Through extensive filming with dyslexic children and adults, and their families, viewers will learn about the most scientifically sound strategies for intervention, the latest research into possible causes, and the challenges and breakthroughs experienced by people with dyslexia.
http://www.knowledge.ca/program/deciphering-dyslexia
A one-hour documentary examining the challenging reality of families with young children who live with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder.
http://www.knowledge.ca/program/fasd-finding-hope
Anxiety disorders are the most prevalent mental disorders affecting BC’s children and youth today. This compelling documentary outlines the causes, symptoms, and treatments for anxiety disorders, and emphasizes the importance of early identification and intervention.
http://www.knowledge.ca/program/fighting-their-fears-child-and-youth-anxiety
This insightful Knowledge Network-produced documentary explores the personal stories of four young British Columbians, and sheds light on symptoms, community resources, and emphasizes the importance of early treatment for adolescent psychosis.
http://www.knowledge.ca/program/map-of-the-mind-fieldsmanaging-adolescent-psychosis
With the help of her grandmother, a young mother composes a lullaby to her baby in Halq’eméylem, and at the Chief Atahm School in Adams Lake, children learn math in the Secwepemctsin language of their ancestors. This documentary celebrates 13 BC First Nations languages and pays tribute to the drive to preserve and revitalize them for future generations.
http://www.knowledge.ca/program/our-first-voices
What’s it like to grow up in Damascus, the oldest capital city on earth? In Syrian School, we get an insider’s look through the eyes of young students at four very different schools. As it charts the highs and lows of the school year, following the youngsters into their homes and through the streets, the series challenges stereotypes and misconceptions about Arab life.
http://www.knowledge.ca/program/syrian-school
Wipe Out tells the story of three young men living with permanent brain damage as the result of head injuries they suffered pursuing extreme sports. Through their stories, the documentary explores the science of thrill-seeking, and reveals how cultural forces and ignorance are propelling young men to dangerous new heights.
http://www.knowledge.ca/program/wipe-out-stories-of-brain-injury
Pull a random book from a shelf! What catches your eye?
For a student, creativity should be the last lesson. - Ralph Steadman
I pulled out my worn dusty copy of Between the Eyes from my art therapy bookshelf. It is written and illustrated by Ralph Steadman. [I remember the day I bought it (November 7, 1986) at Graffiti Books on 4th and Collingwood (long gone) with my 1 year old asleep in her stroller. I had just started Emily Carr College of Art and Design.] The book is filled with sublime passages and sublime images.
I found some old highlighted passages that raise my eyebrows with their cynicism and insights.
For a student, creativity should be the last lesson. If it’s there, let it be but for the moment, learn- look- absorb- study. The situation for teachers is more complex. Time has gone by. They may have compromised. They probably have financial commitments. They may compare themselves to the students, creating an inhibition that students need never know. Exercising their own creativity through students is a huge temptation, for an apparent glitter in end-of-year shows may appear to display a teacher’s effectiveness. But I believe it is only superficial. A discipline achieved early on should be come as automatic as breathing or talking. And the discipline of drawing is the finest. A savage tow or three years is imperative. No creativity. Drawing forces you to look and an artist needs to do that more than anything short of thinking. But drawing will stimulate that too. Then give yourself a break and waste a year in total anarchy. Vent that precious creativity you have nurtured for so long and find out what you might have to offer- bearing in mind that the unsuspecting world does not give a rat’s flash. (p. 21 “Between the Eyes” Ralph Steadman
These random trips into random books can be much needed mini vacations. - Katarina Thorsen
To read more about Katarina’s art therapy and visual art, go to KATARINA THORSEN ART BLOG
To read more about Katarina’s work with sock monkey/art therapy for at-risk youth go to SOCK MONKEY MONTHLY
To read more about Katarina’s sock creations, go to POST STREET
