Mental health problems affect about one in ten children and young people. They include depression, anxiety and conduct disorder, and are often a direct response to what is happening in their lives. By teaching our children and young people about feelings, how they can effect the body and how to cope with them, can alleviate problems now and in later life.
The emotional well-being of children is just as important as their physical health. Good mental health allows children and young people to develop the resilience to cope with whatever life throws at them and grow into well-rounded, healthy adults.
Things that can help keep children and young people mentally well include:
being in good physical health, eating a balanced diet and getting regular exercise
having time and the freedom to play, indoors and outdoors
being part of a family that gets along well most of the time
going to a school that looks after the well-being of all its pupils
taking part in local activities for young people.
Other factors are also important, including:
feeling loved, trusted, understood, valued and safe
being interested in life and having opportunities to enjoy themselves being hopeful and optimistic
being able to learn and having opportunities to succeed
accepting who they are and recognising what they are good at
having a sense of belonging in their family, school and community
feeling they have some control over their own life
having the strength to cope when something is wrong (resilience) and the ability to solve problems.
Most children grow up mentally healthy, but surveys suggest that more children and young people have problems with their mental health today than 30 years ago. That’s probably because of changes in the way we live now and how that affects the experience of growing up.
Dealing with Change
Mostly things that happen to children don’t lead to mental health problems on their own, but traumatic events can trigger problems for children and young people who are already vulnerable.
Changes often act as triggers: moving home or school or the birth of a new brother or sister, for example. Some children who start school feel excited about making new friends and doing new activities, but there may also be some who feel anxious about entering a new environment.
Teenagers often experience emotional turmoil as their minds and bodies develop. An important part of growing up is working out and accepting who you are. Some young people find it hard to make this transition to adulthood and may experiment with alcohol, drugs or other substances that can affect mental health.
Risk Factors
There are certain ‘risk factors’ that make some children and young people more likely to experience problems than other children, but they don’t necessarily mean difficulties are bound to come up or are even probable.
Some of these factors include:
having a long-term physical illness
having a parent who has had mental health problems, problems with alcohol or has been in trouble with the law
experiencing the death of someone close to them
having parents who separate or divorce
having been severely bullied or physically or sexually abused
living in poverty or being homeless
experiencing discrimination, perhaps because of their race, sexuality or religion
acting as a carer for a relative, taking on adult responsibilities
having long-standing educational difficulties.
How Parents Can Help?
If they have a warm, open relationship with their parents, children will usually feel able to tell them if they are troubled. One of the most important ways parents can help is to listen to them and take their feelings seriously. They may want a hug, they may want you to help them change something or they may want practical help.
Children and young people’s negative feelings usually pass. However, it’s a good idea to get help if your child is distressed for a long time, if their negative feelings are stopping them from getting on with their lives, their distress is disrupting family life or they are repeatedly behaving in ways you would not expect at their age.
Types of mental health problem
These are some of the mental health problems that can affect children and young people. You can find out more from the Mental Health Foundation booklet Whatever Life Brings.
Professional Help
If your child is having problems at school, a teacher, school nurse, school counsellor or educational psychologist may be able to help. Otherwise, go to your GP or speak to a health visitor. These professionals are able to refer a child to further help. Different professionals often work together in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS)
If you have watched or read any news lately, it is likely you have heard some of the tragic stories about young people committing suicide.
Children killing themselves as a result of being bullied has been a particular focus in the media recently, sparking numerous debates and new anti-bullying legislation in a number of states.
It is truly disheartening that so many of our youth feel desperate enough to take their own lives, obviously feeling hopeless about ever feeling better. It makes it doubly tragic that so many parents must endure the mental anguish of losing a child—especially losing a child to suicide.
A rather new question that further adds to the tragic nature of many of these cases is: What role do antidepressants play in shaping this trend?
As more and more teens are prescribed antidepressants, antipsychotic drugs and drugs for ADD/ADHD, suicide rates have gone up rather than decreased. I'll explore this particular facet of this troubling trend in a moment.
Shocking Teen Suicide Statistics
As of 2007, suicide ranked as the third leading cause of death among young people (ages 15 to 24), exceeded only by accidents and homicides. Sadly, suicides account for 1.4 percent of all deaths in the U.S. each year, but comprise 12.2 percent of all deaths among 15-24 year-olds.
In other words, the proportion of deaths resulting from suicide amongst teenagers is nine times the proportion for adults!
There are approximately 11.3 youth suicides each and every day in the U.S. Every two hours and seven minutes, a person under the age of 25 completes suicide.
In the past 60 years, the suicide rate has quadrupled for 15-24 year-old males and doubled for females.
Males in this age group are 4-5 times more likely than females to completesuicide. However, females are more likely to attempt suicide. This is largely a result of males tending to choose more lethal methods (firearms) as a means of ending their lives, whereas girls more often choose less lethal methods (pills).
Between 1981 and 2007, suicide rates for children ages 10-14 increased by 50 percent.
In the U.S. in 2007, 119 children ages 10-14 completed suicide. In this age group, suicide is the fourth leading cause of death.
Guns are the most commonly used suicide method among youth, accounting for 45.9 percent of all completed suicides. Guns in the home have proved deadly to children.
It is estimated there are more than 1,000 suicides on college campuses each year. According to the American College Health Association, 9.5 percent of college students have seriously contemplated suicide, and 1.5 percent have made an attempt.
Interpersonal Conflicts Top the List of Reasons Youth Commit Suicide
Interpersonal conflicts are often the core problem of your adolescent's reasons for suicide. One of the most serious conflicts an adolescent can encounter is the issue of gender identity. The social repercussions of this issue can be profoundly distressing to a teen, and unfortunately the bullying and "gay bashing" that sometimes occurs can result in a suicide attempt.
Forth Worth City Councilman Joel Burns captured the heart of the public recently by telling his own story about the bullying he faced as a gay teen at a public council meeting October 13, 2010. His powerful message to the nation's youth is a poignant example of the devastating effects bullying can have on a child.
Regardless of your feelings and beliefs about the gender identity issue, I think we can all agree this particular group deserves more support and compassion from society. As researchers have attempted to get a handle on youth suicide, they have identified several important trends:
Most adolescent suicides occur after school in the teen's home.
If you have a child in high school, it is likely three students in his classroom have made suicide attempts in the past year.
Not all suicidal children admit their intent. Therefore, any deliberate self-harming behaviors should be seriously evaluated.
Most teen suicide attempts are precipitated by interpersonal conflicts. The suicide behavior often represents a child's desperate attempt to change the behavior and attitudes of others.
If your child makes more than one nonfatal attempt, she is using this as a means of coping with ongoing stress. Children who do this need immediate help learning better ways of coping.
What cultural factors could be responsible for the fragile emotional health of our youth?
Teen Suicide is a Blend of Biological, Emotional, Spiritual and Social Factors
I believe today's rates of suicide in our young people stems from several key areas, including:
Vast increases in off-label psychiatric drug use for kids. Psychotropic drugs that have not been approved for children are nevertheless being prescribed for depression, anxiety, insomnia, distractibility, and even shyness or social awkwardness. Antidepressants top this list (which I will discuss in detail later).
Decreased parental involvement. Many kids are growing up in single-parent households, or those where both parents are working, so a large number of children are spending more time alone (or with peers) than with parents. Many are not receiving enough adult guidance and modeling, so they don't have the opportunity to learn the coping skills necessary to effectively deal with stress.
Increased toxins in your environment and food supply. Estimates show most Americans have somewhere between 400 and 800 chemicals stored in their bodies. Exposure to environmental toxins from your air, water and food supply has been linked to depression, attention deficit disorder, schizophrenia, and less ability to cope with stress.
No outlet for negative emotions. Children learn by example. If a child is never taught how to release his sadness or fear or other negative emotions, he may be at increased risk for depression and suicide. Early childhood stress can have a lingering effect on your child's health—mental AND physical.
Loss of connection with the Earth. Children today spend most of their time inside buildings, disconnected from the earth and its healing electrical field. Even when they are outside, they wear rubber-soled shoes that effectively shield them from the healing energy of the Earth. There is exciting new research underway about how reconnecting with the Earth (walking barefoot), also known as "earthing," can result in profound healing of your mind and body.
And then there's the new bully on the block: the cyberbully. No longer are encounters with bullies limited to the back alley on the way home from school.
21st Century Terrorizing: The Age of the Cyberbully
Cyberbullying is a relatively new means of abuse that has received a great deal of media attention lately.Cyberbullying is defined as follows:
"Cyberbullying is when a child or teen is tormented, threatened, harassed, humiliated, embarrassed or otherwise targeted by another child or teen using the Internet, interactive and digital technologies or mobile phones."
For the mean-spirited, the methods for cyberbullying are endless and limited only by a child's imagination and access to technology. Children have killed each other, as well as themselves, after being involved in cyberbullying.
A recent review of 37 international studies, which explored bullying and suicide risk, concluded that children who are victims, perpetrators, or even witnesses to bullying have an increased risk for suicidal thoughts.
With social networking and electronic media expanding the ways kids can bully, tease and otherwise malign their peers, a great deal of damage can be done in a very short period of time, devastating the victim's life. The use of electronic media allows the bully to retain some "perceived distance" and even anonymity from the victim, while doing extensive and irretractable damage.
With the Internet, there are no take-backs, even if the bully later has second thoughts!
This recent take on bullying has created new levels of stress for our youth, which directly impacts suicidal behaviors. It is vitally important that you monitor what your child is doing on the Internet. For more about how to prevent cyberbullying or stop it once it starts, go to
www.stopcyberbullying.org. In order to prevent teen suicide from all angles, it is vital to recognize what leads to it, and then address the causes.
How to Tell if Your Child is at Risk for Suicide
Unfortunately, there is no way to be one hundred percent sure if another human being is suicidal—even if it's your own child. There is no clear profile of the suicidal adolescent.
However, there ARE signs you can watch for. Epidemiological studies have identified variables correlated with suicide risk, and becoming familiar with them will stack the deck in your favor, giving you time to intervene before your child becomes desperate enough to harm himself.
According to the American Association of Suicidology and other organizations, most suicidal teens will have one or more of the following risk factors:
Prior suicide attempt
Expression of thoughts of suicide, death, dying, or the afterlife, in the context of sadness, boredom, hopelessness, loneliness or other negative feelings; risk is even higher if he has a specific suicide plan
Presence of a psychiatric disorder (e.g., depression, drug or alcohol abuse, behavior disorders, conduct disorder and/or incarceration, etc.)
Impulsivity, irritability, and aggressive behavior; frequent expressions of rage
Increasing use of alcohol or drugs
Exposure to another's suicide, especially a family member or friend
Recent severe stressor (e.g., struggling with gender identity, unplanned pregnancy, loss of a parent, recent trauma, anticipated losses, etc.)
Family instability or significant family conflict
The following is a general list of things to keep in mind when assessing your child for potential suicidal risk. The list is in no way comprehensive but will give you a general idea of the kinds of behaviors to notice. A child thinking about suicide may exhibit:
Sad, anxious or "empty" mood (for example, talking about being a bad person, unworthy or not good enough)
Sleeping too much or too little
Changes in weight, appetite, or eating habits
Deteriorating grooming habits
Talking about or preoccupation with death (for example, writing poems about death)
Declining school performance or poor school experience; feeling like he has failed to live up to his own or someone else's expectations
Signs of psychotic thinking, such as delusions, hallucinations or bizarre thoughts
Intolerance of praise or rewards
Loss of pleasure/interest in social or sports activities
Giving away prized possessions
Dramatic changes in personality—such as acting like a rebel when he's usually timid, becoming violent or aggressive, or running away.
Suddenly becoming cheerful after a period of sadness/depression
Deteriorating relationships with friends or family; trouble with a girlfriend or boyfriend; withdrawing from people he used to feel close to
Out of character boredom or trouble concentrating
Abuse of alcohol or drugs
Physical complaints that seem to have no physical basis, such as headaches, stomachaches, etc.
You might find this Teen Suicide Risk Calculator useful. However, keep in mind that every child is different, so I would caution you to not rely exclusively on one source of information or tool.
YOU know your child best!
The bottom line is, trust your gut feelings. If you are concerned, consult a professional for help. If you believe your child is in imminent danger, call a specialised suicide helpline/counsellor or call the police for help.Better to over-react than to do nothing.
QUESTION: Do You Have Any of These Common Misconceptions?
Dr. Robert A. King, professor at Yale University and a psychiatrist at the Yale Child Study Center, has done extensive research on adolescent suicide. According to Dr. King, there are three main misconceptions about teen suicide:
"My teenager might attempt suicide if he has a bad day." Although an upsetting episode is often the immediatetrigger, the vast majority of adolescents who commit suicide have had long-standing emotional problems, such as depression or substance abuse.
"If I ask my teenager about suicide, I might put the idea in her head." Research shows that distressed or previously suicidal adolescents actually feel LESS distressed or suicidal following surveys that ask them about it, rather than more so. So the best thing you can do if you are concerned that your child is suicidal is to ask. Open up honest dialog, and let her know you're concerned.
"I should start thinking about suicide prevention when my child reaches adolescence." Some of the most effective long-term prevention measures begin in early childhood. The earlier your child learns how to effectively deal with negative emotions, the less at risk she will be.
Kids are Increasingly Targeted With Antidepressants – A Dangerous Proposition that Might Be a Driving Factor for Rising Suicide Rates
Every year, 230 million prescriptions for antidepressants are filled, making them one of the most prescribed drugs in the United States. The amount of drugs being given to U.S. children is outrageous, and the extent of the problem becomes clear when you compare the statistics with other countries. U.S. children are getting three times more prescriptions for antidepressants as kids from Germany and the Netherlands, for example.
Depression can indeed progress to suicide if left untreated. But do antidepressants work to alleviate the symptoms of depression?
NO, they don't.
Studies continue to show antidepressant drugs are not any more effective than a placebo, and in some case less effective. A study published in the January 2010 issue of JAMA, concluded there is little evidence that SSRIs (a popular group of antidepressants that includes Prozac, Paxil, and Zoloft) have any benefit to people with mild to moderate depression.
SSRIs were 33 percent effective, just like a sugar pill—but with far more adverse effects, including violence and suicidal thoughts and actions. Another study presented at the Neuroscience conference in 2009 tells a similar story.
Not only are these drugs ineffective, but there is much evidence that they intensify violent thoughts and behaviors, both suicidal and homicidal. It's rather telling that seven of the last 12 school shootings were perpetrated by children who were either on antidepressants or withdrawing from them! Besides introducing risk without benefit, antidepressants may be making depression more chronic.
So, antidepressants appear to be changing depression from a "transitory" illness into a more chronic illness. Antidepressants are clearly not the answer for a depressed child or adolescent. But if we take those off the table, then what is the answer?
A Technique Offering Great Hope—and it's FREE
My favorite technique for clearing out the negative emotions that sometimes lead to depression is the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT). EFT isn't just for adults—it's being used by children for all sorts of different issues ranging from stomachaches to bedwetting, sprains and strains, phobias, social anxiety, learning problems, hyperactivity, sleep difficulties, stress management—and depression.
Children are generally quick learners, as well as being very open to learning something new. The earlier you teach your child EFT, the better.
Some innovative groups have developed wonderful EFT learning tools for children in the form of cuddly stuffed bears with the tapping points marked on them (TappyBear, Magic Buttons Bear), which makes EFT fun. Children can project their fears onto the bear and tap on him, which they sometimes find more fun than tapping on themselves.
One EFT practitioner, Mary Stafford M.Ed.,LPC,EFT-Adv, has even developed an EFT "shortcut" for kids, which simplifies the process by limiting the tapping points to only four (instead of 8 to 10) when teaching EFT to children.
Teaching your children how to do their own "emotional housekeeping" through EFT is a gift that will serve them well throughout their lives. The time to start is BEFORE issues begin to appear—so the earlier, the better.
Other Practical Suggestions for Nurturing Your Child's Mental Health
In addition to EFT, there are eight important strategies to employ if your child is struggling with his emotions. These strategies have nothing but positive effects and are generally very inexpensive to implement.
Take time to really talk to, and listen to, your child. Sometimes the difference between feeling helpless and feeling hope is just knowing that you are loved. Teach positive coping skills, and let your child know it is okay—even desirable— to ask for help.
Control access to potentially dangerous items in your home, such as guns and pills.
Make sure your child is getting adequate exercise. Regular exercise is one of the secret weapons against depression, helping to normalize insulin levels while boosting the "feel good" hormones in your child's brain. Getting them moving can do wonders for their mental health (and yours!) and is a major improvement over sitting in front of a television or computer.
Encourage your child to go outside and play in the sunshine. Safe sun exposure allows your child's body to produce vitamin D, which is great for his mood. One study even found that people with the lowest levels of vitamin D were 11 times more prone to depression than those who received adequate vitamin D. Just make sure your child doesn't overdo it and get sunburned.
Limit the amount of sugar, soda, grain, and processed food your child eats. Doing so will help normalize his insulin level and prevent his becoming another victim of childhood obesity. Sugar causes chronic inflammation, which disrupts immune function and can wreak havoc on the brain; sugar consumption is directly linked with depression.
Supplement your child's diet with a high quality omega-3 fatty acid, such as krill oil. This may be one of the most significant nutrients preventing depression. DHA is one of the Omega-3 fatty acids in salmon and krill oil, and many children don't get enough of it. Low DHA levels have been linked to depression.
We hope by reading this article you as a parent, brother, sister, grandparent, aunt, uncle or friend will be equipped with the skills to recognise and understand suicide a little better. Education is key in tackling this what can sometimes seem like an epidemic among our young people of Ireland.
Please feel free to comment and we do encourage you to share.
This is an article published in and courtesy of http://schoolsweek.co.uk/. The British government are prioritising mental well-being with enormous investments in the education sector. This is our time to let our powers that be, we want them to follow suit.
This week marks the second British annual Children’s Mental Health Week, organised by children’s mental health charity Place2Be.
British education secretary Nicky Morgan has described mental wellbeing as a priority for the government and announced a £3 million investment for mental health “schools link” pilots, joining health services with schools.
Suruthi Bala, senior conference producer at Optimus Education, which runs a mental health conference every November, said the focus from teachers and leaders had changed over the last two years. Schools had wanted to know who to refer children to, now they asked how they could offer counselling in school.
As part of the preparation for the event, Ms Bala speaks with a large number of professionals about children’s needs.
“With the reduction in CAMHS [children and adolescent mental health services], schools are looking at what they can do with their staff to offer support to pupils,” she said.
Self-harm was previously designated as a tier 1 referral to CAMHS, meaning the service would offer swift support, but since its redesignation, Ms Bala said schools had
had to take the lead in looking after self-harming pupils.
She added: “There is a pressure to conform and pressure to perform, so that is both social and academic.”
She also said self-harm was more prevalent in independent and selective schools.
The last collection of data on mental health disorders in children and young people was in 2004. Previously, it was undertaken on a five-yearly basis.
In 2004, one in 10 children had a mental health problem, with most having emotional and/or conduct disorders. The figures were broadly similar in 1999.
There is a consensus among professionals and practitioners that this figure has risen in the last decade.
In December, children and young people’s mental health expert Tanya Byron told the SSAT conference that self-harm presentations to the NHS were up by 75 per cent in the past five years.
A new survey of young people’s mental health was announced in October and is due to report in 2017. Last year, the then social care minister Norman Lamb told Schools Week he had secured funding for the survey.
Last month, academics published new research showing that children were at their most worried at 10 years old. Ms Bala said younger children struggled with anxiety, which was shown in behaviour such as biting and pinching.
A joint report by Place2Be and the National Association of Head Teachers found 64 per cent of primary schools did not have a counsellor based on site, with 77 per cent of those stating financial pressure as the main reason for the lack of counselling services.
Place2Be chief executive Catherine Roche said: “Primary school leaders are well aware of the challenges that their pupils face, whether it’s coping with parental separation, the illness or death of a loved one, or even witnessing domestic violence or substance misuse at home.
“But teachers are not counsellors, and sometimes schools need professional support to make sure that problems in childhood don’t spiral into bigger mental health issues later in life.”
About 2.5% of children in the U.S. suffer from depression. Depression is significantly more common in boys under age 10. But by age 16, girls have a greater incidence of depression.
As in adults, depression in children can be caused by any combination of factors that relate to physical health, life events, family history, environment, genetic vulnerability and biochemical disturbance. Depression is not a passing mood, nor is it a condition that will go away without proper treatment.
Can Depression in Children Be Prevented?
Children with a family history of depression are at greater risk of experiencing depression themselves. Children who have parents that suffer from depression tend to develop their first episode of depression earlier than children whose parents do not. Children from chaotic or conflicted families, or children and teens who abuse substances like alcohol and drugs, are also at greater risk of depression.
How Is Depression Diagnosed in Children?
If the symptoms of depression in your child have lasted for at least two weeks, you should schedule a visit with his or her doctor to make sure there are no physical reasons for the symptoms and to make sure that your child receives proper treatment. A consultation with a mental health care professional who specializes in children is also recommended.
A mental health evaluation should include interviews with you (the parent or primary caregiver) and your child, and any additional psychological testing that is necessary. Information from teachers, friends and classmates can be useful for showing that these symptoms are consistent during your child's various activities and are a marked change from previous behavior.
There are no specific tests -- medical or psychological -- that can clearly show depression, but tools such as questionnaires (for both the child and parents) combined with personal information can be very useful in helping diagnose depression in children. Sometimes those therapy sessions and questionnaires can uncover other concerns that contribute to the depression such as ADHD, conduct disorder, and OCD.
Long-Term Outlook
Studies have found that first-time depression in children is occurring at younger ages than previously. As in adults, depression may occur again later in life. Depression often occurs at the same time as other physical illnesses. And because studies have shown that depression may precede more serious mental illness later in life, diagnosis, early treatment and close monitoring are crucial.
As a parent, it is sometimes easier to deny that your child has depression. You may put off seeking the help of a mental health care professional because of the social stigmas associated with mental illness. It is very important for you -- as the parent -- to understand depression and realize the importance of treatment so that your child may continue to grow physically and emotionally in a healthy way. It is also important to seek education about the future effects depression may have on your child throughout adolescence and adulthood.
What Are the Treatment Options?
Treatment options for children with depression are similar to those for adults, including psychotherapy(counseling) and medication. The role that family and the child's environment play in the treatment process is different from that of adults. Your child's doctor may suggest psychotherapy first, and consider antidepressantmedicine as an additional option if there is no significant improvement. The best studies to date indicate that a combination of psychotherapy and medication is most effective at treating depression.
We here at Buddy Bench Ireland find this article although short, very disturbing indeed. We ask you as parents, grand-parents, aunts, uncle or simply concerned members of society to talk to the candidates who will be knocking on your door to ensure mental health among our children and young people will feature in #GE16
Primary school principals say they are increasingly concerned about their pupils' mental health.
Taoiseach Enda Kenny is due to address the Irish Primary Principals Network conference on emotional well-being this afternoon.
The organisation said that despite their students' young age, they are coming across deeply worrying situations on a daily basis in schools.
IPPN president Maria Doyle outlined the kind of issues teachers are dealing with.
"We have children as young as junior and senior infants displaying significant symptoms of depression," she said.
"We have children in primary schools speaking about suicide, we have them self-harming.
"Now this would not have been the case 10, 15 years ago, but it currently becoming a problem at primary level."
It was a day for teachers, students, and family members to remember and honor Slade Gilley. Slade died in a house fire, along with other family members, in December 2014. Slade would have been in the sixthgrade at Riverside West Elementary.
Cpl. John Shipman with the Jonesboro Police Department, organizer of Back
The Blue, led an assembly at Riverside West Elementary making a presentation of a Buddy Bench in memory of Slade.
Shipman said the Back The Blue organization helps with projects or needs throughout the area communities.
The Buddy Bench project has turned into a memorial bench project and several have been placed in different schools.
The benches are made from donations from Barton Lumber providing material; Reilly's providing paint, and a local contractor, Toby Bunch, building the benches at no charge.
Cpl. Shipman said they had placed a bench at Westside in memory of student Garrin Fair. Cpl. Shipman called Riverside Principal LeeAnn Harrell to ask about placing a bench in memory of Slade. She was very pleased to accept the bench.
Riverside West Elementary students, along with teachers, and about 20 family members gathered on the playground on Friday for the dedication service.
Cpl. Shipman reminded the students, "together we are better."
"It is not hard to be kind," Shipman said.
He encouraged the students to remember Slade and be kind to others.
Ms. Harrell shared her memories of Slade.
"He was a funny boy who liked to laugh and have fun," she said.
She shared a questionnaire one of Slade's teachers had found. He had filled it out with his favorite subjects, likes, colors, vacation, books, food, and named his mother as the person he admired most.
His sister, Shelby, a seventh grade student at Riverside, did the honors of unveiling the memory bench. Sixth grade students released balloons as the bench was unveiled.
In the questionnaire Slade's favorite snack was Doritos so all of the students were given a bag of Doritos with a message attached.
"This week is the Great Kindness Challenge. Slade Gilley's favorite snack was Doritos. We would like for each person to do an act of kindness in his honor this week," Ms. Harrell said.
She reminded them when they needed a friend they could go to the Buddy Bench.
Mrs. Harrell thanked Cpl. Shipman and Lake City Officer Daniel Haynes for their service.
