Not only is May designated as Mental Health Awareness month, but for many schools it’s also the end of the school year!  As the year winds down, students get antsy and yearn to be outdoors as the weather gets nice.  Why not combine the two by getting students outside to create sidewalk art that celebrates mental health awareness?  Continue reading Mental Health Awareness: Chalk the Walks to learn more!

Set

You may want to educate students about mental health and all it encompasses before you set them loose to create sidewalk art. I’ve linked a few resources below that may be helpful, however, these are just the tip of the iceberg!

• Personally, I have used this website “Walk in Our Shoes” in conjunction with this TPT Freebie titled, Mental Health Mythbusters! with my students.

Supplies

• Sidewalk Chalk (affiliate link)
• iPads & Laptops
• Projector & Screen

Chalk the Walks Activity

• Be sure to get permission from the appropriate administration in your school before assigning this activity!
• Try to schedule this activity when the forecast will be cooperative!  
• Clear the sidewalks so they are free of debris.
• Give students the directions a day or so ahead so they can be thinking of designs and quotes and to get their creativity flowing!  Remind them that all artwork and quotes need to be school appropriate. 
• Encourage students to create happy, healthy, words of encouragement and messages to help raise awareness for mental health and inspire positive thoughts and actions from the sidewalk up! 
• Artwork can be done individually, with a partner or in small groups depending on your time.
• Get permission for other classes to view the messages and artwork as part of a school wide gallery walk.
• Take pictures of messages and designs and use them to create posters or fliers to hang around the school to keep the momentum going!

Additional Resources

• Just Breathe Lesson Plan Bundle free from Signal Hill (8 Video Based Lesson Plans)
• The Struggle of Mental Health Ted Talks (many topics to choose from)
• The Imagine Project–Tools to use in the classroom
• Mental Health Awareness Presentation with Celebrity Trivia Game (TPT Freebie)
• MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS–Free Awareness Activities & Announcements (TPT Freebie)
• Middle + High School Mental Health Toolkit (TPT Freebie)