Building Awareness: Home Instead Romford Brings Dementia Education to Local Schools

Have you ever wondered how young people perceive dementia and its impact on individuals and families? At Home Instead Romford, we believe that early education is key to building understanding and fostering empathy. To help shape a more compassionate future, we recently visited Drapers Mayland and Drapers Pyrgo in Harold Wood to deliver tailored dementia awareness sessions to Year 5 and Year 6 students.

The children at Drapers Mayland & Drapers Pyrgo were enthusiastic and engaged throughout the sessions, asking thoughtful questions and sharing their own experiences. Here’s a closer look at the key topics we covered:

• What is Dementia?
  We explained dementia in simple terms, focusing on how it affects the brain and impacts memory, communication, and behaviour.
• Understanding the Brain:
  To make the topic accessible, we shared fascinating facts about the brain, highlighting its role in everyday functions and how dementia changes these processes.
• Recognising the Signs:
  Through examples and stories, the children learned to identify behaviours that might indicate someone is living with dementia, helping them recognise changes in loved ones.
• Supporting Someone with Dementia:
  We shared tips on how children can show kindness and patience, such as engaging in simple activities with loved ones or just being there to listen and help.
• Interactive Quiz:
  At the end of each session, we conducted a fun and engaging quiz where children completed sentences about the five key messages they learned. This activity reinforced their understanding and helped them reflect on the importance of the session.

At Home Instead Romford, our goal is to create a more dementia-friendly community by educating all generations. Reaching young people is an important step in fostering understanding and encouraging conversations about dementia at home, in schools, and beyond. The feedback from students and teachers has been overwhelmingly positive, and we are proud to have made an impact.