Take 5 – A Moment to Be Still

At St. Edmund’s CofE Primary and Nursery School, our vision – “A journey to discover life in all its fullness” (John 10:10) – includes nurturing children’s emotional wellbeing and spiritual development.

Through Take 5, we make space within the busy school day for children to pause, breathe and experience a moment of calm.

What is Take 5?

Take Five is a whole-school programme developed by Each Amazing Breath to support emotional wellbeing and resilience. Its approach includes opportunities for children to develop leadership through an Ambassador Programme.

At St. Edmund’s, we use short breathing and grounding practices to help children notice how they feel, settle themselves and become ready to listen and learn.

Stillness, Reflection and Prayer

Quiet moments give children space to notice their thoughts and feelings, reflect on their experiences and appreciate the world around them.

Within our Christian ethos, this stillness can also help prepare children for prayer: a moment to give thanks, bring a worry to God, think about someone who needs care, or simply be quiet in God’s presence.

Take 5 is a wellbeing practice. We make a connection with prayer through the opportunities it creates for stillness and reflection. Children of all faiths and beliefs are welcomed, and these quiet moments can be meaningful through personal reflection as well as prayer.

Our Leaders and Ambassadors

Our Take 5 staff leaders are Miss Smith, Mrs Walker and Mrs Shaw.

We now also have Take 5 Ambassadors – pupils who help lead practices and encourage others, supported by our staff. This gives children an opportunity to use their voice, grow in confidence and contribute to the wellbeing of our school community.

Living Our Sixcess Values

Take 5 offers practical opportunities to live out our values:

Respect: recognising that people experience feelings differently.
Responsibility: learning ways to care for our own wellbeing.
Compassion: responding kindly when someone needs support.
Perseverance: practising strategies that may take time to become familiar.
Truth & Trust: recognising our feelings honestly and knowing we can ask for help.
Justice & Forgiveness: making space to reflect, repair relationships and begin again.

Our aim is to help children carry these skills beyond the classroom – finding moments of calm, approaching challenges with confidence and showing care for themselves and others.

Every Child is Known. Every Child is Valued. Every Child is Inspired. Every Child can Flourish.

Find out more about the programme at Each Amazing Breath.

How Can Take 5 Help Children?

Each Amazing Breath reports that Take 5 can support children to feel calmer and ready to learn, manage difficult emotions, feel more positive about themselves, build relationships and cope with change.

On its whole-school impact page, the organisation reports findings from two classrooms in one primary school in 2021. Among children identified as struggling most, it reported:

56% improvement in their perceived ability to concentrate.
56% improvement in how calm they felt.
48% improvement in their perceived ability to cope with change.

These findings reflect children’s reported experiences in that setting; they are not results from St. Edmund’s.

At our school, Take 5 provides regular opportunities to practise pausing, breathing and finding a moment of peace. These moments also create space for reflection and, within our Christian ethos, can help children prepare for prayer.

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