Elementary school students from around Portage la Prairie gathered at École Arthur Meighen School Monday to see a presentation for mental health week. Portage la Prairie school division mental health facilitator Dana Geisel says it included a first for the school division.

"I partnered with Jordan Friesen from the Canadian Mental Health Association central region, and together we planned this Building Your Mental Health Toolkit event," she explains. "It kicked off mental health week. I think it's the first time there's been a partnership between the school division and CMHA, so it was pretty exciting."

She says they invited some visible Portage members to build their own toolkits as the kids were doing, and share their experiences and discuss the importance of mental health. Geisel explains the toolkits are made of plastic and taken to one of ten stations where they did an activity representing the strategy learned at that station. Concepts presented at each station included identifying feelings, identifying trusted adults in their lives, the importance of belonging and having roots to bolster mental health, and having a positive outlook on life.

An important aspect of the event was the involvement of various people in the community that kids would see in seeking help, such as a guidance councillor from the school at one station, Lynn Parker from Recreation Opportunities for Kids at another, a doctor from the clinic, a mental health worker from the shared care program, and somebody from Addictions Foundation Manitoba.