The cultural association La Vida es Zuaina has concluded the first part of the project El Colegio Encantado, a project carried out at the CEIP Argana Alta that aims to "empower the child and youth population in emotional self-regulation". The initiative is promoted by the General Directorate of Youth of the Government of the Canary Islands.
Through "non-violent communication", the 3rd grade students of the center have explored with the game and other dynamics, the recognition of emotions and those of others. During the 2024/25 academic year, the second part of the project will take place.
Since 2018, cases of depression, suicide and youth violence have increased considerably. According to data from the Canarian Health Service, suicide is one of the main causes of death in our country and the Canary Islands is the third autonomous community, below Asturias and Galicia, in number of suicides. Self-misunderstanding, together with the lack of empathy practice and learning to resolve conflicts peacefully from a focus on caring for the needs of everyone, can generate conflicts and in its most extreme cases confrontations, fights, bullying, abuse or gender violence, among others.
Thus, "it is essential to implement the necessary resources so that our youngest population has access to their own feelings, can identify them, name them, give them meaning and attend to them," the association says. "By learning to regulate our own emotions we can develop as full beings, we can have healthy relationships both with ourselves and with others," they comment.
El Colegio Encantado aims to take a step further in creativity and emotional management in the classroom. In this way, the purpose is to create emotional awareness to facilitate healthy management and regulation through play and the magical world of imagination. Empathy, listening, compassion, awareness or emotional regulation are key elements in our project. They are some of the keys to be able to reach the world with strength, firmness and security.