Students experience moments of 'joy, restoration, and connection' at upper school Wellness Day

Gently sweeping their sneaker-clad feet through the orange and yellow fall leaves, a group of upper school students join history teacher Nick Oschman on a walk through the evergreen and magnolia trees that fill Harpeth Hall’s campus. In moments of silent reflection, the girls pause to take in the rain-scented autumn air that surrounds them.

Meanwhile, a very different energy pulses through the halls of the library where girls don glowing headphones, laughing and dancing through colorful flashing lights and shout-singing to the music in their ears at a not-so-silent disco.

Each year, Harpeth Hall’s wellness day provides an opportunity for upper school students to “deepen their understanding, knowledge, and practice of wellness, wellbeing, and mental health-related topics,” upper school counselor Carolina Crawley said.

This year, from a peaceful nature walk to a full-scale dance party and an array of activities in between, Harpeth Hall’s counselors and faculty members focused on workshops that provided the girls with opportunities to practice wellness rather than simply learn about wellness.

“As a school, we often talk about the importance of having balance in our lives,” Ms. Crawley said. “We do this through our Life Balance curriculum, through faculty messaging to our students, and also from our school leaders. We want to make sure that we are not just relaying that message in words only but in action. So we set a day aside where no classes are happening, and we are both telling and modeling to our students that pausing is okay, that prioritizing their wellness is important, and that there are many ways that they may engage in doing so.

“We aim to broaden the girls' perspectives on how they can easily implement wellness activities into their lives,” Ms. Crawley said.

Students participated in a variety of activities throughout the day that introduced them to new ways of supporting their mental, physical, and emotional health.

Bracelet-making promoted mindfulness and provided a sense of achievement, a drum-based Pound Fit class boosted mental focus and built strength, a community sing-along provided a creative outlet and encouraged deep breathing, tai chi supported emotional well-being and improved balance and coordination, and guided meditation enhanced self-awareness and helped aid better sleep.

Through each of these activities, the counseling team provided students with a toolkit of wellness practices that they can access and continue to build upon outside of the context of a designated day.

This year’s wellness day was special, as it was the first collaboration with students from Harpeth Hall’s Balance Committee, a student-led organization that aims to promote balance in the lives of students by advocating for healthy habits of working hard while taking care of themselves in both their school and social lives.

Committee officers worked with the counselors to provide touchpoints for students from creating conversation cards to help students get to know each other during lunch and taking over the school’s Instagram stories for the day.

Through their contributions, the Balance Committee helped to bring the counselors’ vision to life.

So, whether it was a nature walk that taught girls about ways to reduce stress, improve their mood, and gain mental clarity or a silent disco aimed to encourage self-expression and enhance cardiovascular health, each experience empowered students to focus on themselves while strengthening their bonds with each other.

More than anything, the counselors wanted the girls to know that wellness and self-care is flexible and adaptable, and practices are there to uplift them at any stressful points in their lives.

“Even when time feels finite, there are accessible practices, no matter how brief, that students can access and practice throughout their week,” Ms. Crawley said. “Even when they may feel out of control or out of time, they do have the power to gently bring themselves back to the present moment, or to experience a moment of joy, restoration, or connection.”