Wellbeing is an important consideration for our everyday lives. Whether it is taking time to relax, check in with our bodies, getting fresh air or moving about – wellbeing and looking after our wellbeing is something that we try to instill in our students quite early on.
In October 2025, led by our school counsellor Megan Behnke, AIS led its first Wellbeing Week. Each day had a special focus that was introduced at the start of each day in order to get students in the right headspace and mindset for the rest of the day.
Monday
We started the week with Mindfulness Monday, where each class was engaged in some type of mindfulness activity. Whether this was a small meditation, yoga movements, or a check in with ourselves and something we look forward to the week bringing.
Tuesday
Tuesday was talk-it out Tuesday. Often stress or anxiety stems from misunderstanding or miscommunication, or not being felt you are listened to or heard. Communication and talking it out, often reduces the number of conflicts that happen and helps find resolutions to issues or problems. Each class spent some time together to talk about an issue that was really important to them. It helps teach student to listen to each other and give space for everyone’s opinion. In this way we become closer together and relate more to each other, reducing the points of conflict that can occur.
Wednesday
Walking Wednesday was a good healthy reminder to spend some time moving our bodies and getting some fresh air. There are many neurological and psychological benefits to getting just 10 minutes of fresh air through walking outside. It allows us to clear our minds, gain different perspectives, and reduce stress. This is an important skill for our students, especially in the MYP, who may be starting to feel the pressures of exams and assignments. Each class went on a walk with their teacher together to reap the benefits of fresh air and gentle motion.
Thursday
Thankfulness Thursday was a chance for students to reflect and give back. And not just students, all the staff and teachers were encouraged to write a thank you note to someone they wanted to show their gratitude towards. Some students wrote to their friends, others to teachers and some to their teachers. Students also wrote in a language that was meaningful to them, so that the sentiment came across as genuine and authentic.
Friday
And finally Friday ended with the annual national Motions Day – a day where all schools in Denmark partake in some for of motion before breaking up for Autumn Break. At AIS EY students went outside and played some team games such as egg and spoon race, relay races and parachute games. In PYP, students did 1km laps around Tangkrogen to see how many laps they could make in 45 minutes. And in MYP students partook in the annual cross country 5km through the forest in Marselisborg. Some extra keen students even ran the race twice completing a total of 10km.
Thank you to our wonderful school counsellor, Megan Behnke, for putting together this stimulating week of wellbeing and mental health. It is a really important subject to keep our minds and body healthy and encourages our students to instill good habits into their daily routines.
We look forward now to making this an annual tradition with Wellbeing Week 2026!
