Equip your Key Stage 1 staff to deliver emotional wellbeing and resilience learning in their own classrooms.
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Key Stage 1
PDMU aligned
40 sessions (approx. 20 mins)
Including training & resources
Sunrise Introduction
FLM Sunrise gives your school the training, curriculum, resources and support to deliver a structured programme with children. Staff build the knowledge and confidence to use the programme in their classrooms, with support from Fresh Minds Education throughout delivery.
When a school joins Fresh Little Minds Sunrise, it becomes part of a wider community of schools and educators helping to embed emotional wellbeing and resilience into everyday school life. Each trained teacher becomes part of that community too, carrying The AMBER Approach forward through the relationships, routines and moments that shape a child’s day.
Sunrise is not simply a programme delivered and completed; it is a way of building lasting capacity within schools so that the learning, language and tools continue to ripple hope long after the initial training has finished.
Developed for primary schools
Sunrise was written and overseen with support from Northern Ireland teaching consultants to align directly with the Personal Development and Mutual Understanding curriculum at Key Stage 1. Delivering the programme contributes to your school’s PDMU teaching.
Fresh Little Minds is designed to meet children right where they are. While it aligns perfectly with the Key Stage 1 developmental stage, its flexible, nurturing approach makes it wonderfully inclusive for neurodivergent learners and children with a wide range of additional support or special educational needs.
Build sustainable wellbeing within your staff
Equipped with five simple, evidence-based steps, your trained staff can seamlessly weave emotional resilience directly into their daily classroom routines, establishing a sustainable “five-a-day” for pupil mental fitness without relying on external providers.
Fresh Little Minds Sunrise fully aligns with the Take 5 Schools framework, offering an interactive, long-term approach to health and wellbeing that empowers your entire school community. Through our specialised training, we upskill your teachers to become certified Sunrise Coaches.
Build capacity in every participating classroom
Each participating class has its own trained teacher or staff member. This equips the adult who works with those children to deliver the programme and use its tools throughout the school day.
The knowledge and physical resources stay within your school, allowing the learning to extend beyond the first programme cycle. Staff can continue using Sunrise with ongoing access to programme support and digital materials for as long as Fresh Minds Education can maintain the programme and platform.
The AMBER Approach in Sunrise
Sunrise uses the AMBER Approach: Anchor, Move, Breathe, Express and Relax. Staff training introduces the approach and shows how to use the classroom resources alongside the Sunrise curriculum.
School Package
A complete, turn-key solution to embed emotional resilience in your classrooms. The Fresh Little Minds Sunrise School Package equips your selected staff member with everything they need to confidently lead the programme. d one of the available dates to take up a funded place.
Intensive In-Person Coach Training
- Time & Location: 9:15 am – 1:30 pm at Fresh Minds Education, Antrim.
- Core Theory: Staff master The AMBER Approach framework and the practical skills required to deliver the Fresh Little Minds Sunrise Programme.
- Measurable Outcomes: Coaches learn how to utilise our unique programme resources and effectively evaluate positive behavioural impact for their pupils.
- System Setup: A comprehensive walk-through of the online platform and digital delivery pathways.
- Instant Access: Staff leave fully equipped to log in, navigate, and utilise all digital materials seamlessly from day one.
⏰ Note for Principals & School Leaders: To ensure flexibility for your school calendar, we offer two training dates annually. Space is limited per cohort.
Dates for 2026
Friday 23rd October & Friday 6th November
The Amber Approach Children’s Mental Health and Resilience Tool Box
Your school receives an AMBER Approach classroom resource box and physical delivery manuals to support programme delivery.
The Amber Approach Children’s Mental Health and Resilience Tool Box Contents
- Rainbow Storage ToolBox
- The AMBER Approach Handbook
- The
- Classroom AMBER Puppet
- AMBER Puppet String Bag
- AMBER Puppet Scarves
- Class Bamber Teddy
- Emoji Card Set
- AMBER Icon Cards
- Sphere
- Windmill
- Flower
- FME Promo Material eg Keyring – link direct to FME online platforms etc
- AMBER Approach Intervention Cards
Rainbow Box Contents
- Build Rainbow Boxes (add sticker to the side of the box
- AMBER the puppet in the AMBER string bag with signature-coloured scarves
- Bamber Teddy
- Set of 5 Amber Story Books
- Emoji Card Sets
- AMBER Icon Cards
- The AMBER Approach Intervention Cards
- Sphere
- Flower
- WIndmill
- AMBER Soul Songs Album (containing inserts, QR Code and Beautiful Child)
- Empty FME Promo Folder (containing a folded High Five Poster)
- A5 Celophane Bags
- Feather
- Blow Ball
- Kazoo
- Little Boat
- Self Care Bookmark
- Straw
- Finger Puppet
- Essential Oil Pack
- Wild Orange Essential Oil or equivalent
- Spray Bottle
- Safe Use Instructions
- AMBER You Are Awesome Bookmarks (Class set of 30)
Digital curriculum and online access
Staff receive access to the FLM online platform and digital programme materials. Access continues for as long as Fresh Minds Education is able to maintain and support the programme and platform.
Simple evaluation tools
We support staff to complete a simple baseline and exit evaluation with participating children. The easy-to-use evaluation tool was developed with support from Queen’s University Belfast researchers.
Support during delivery
We check in with your school midway through the programme to answer questions, review progress and provide support where needed. Our team remains available for additional programme support.
Celebration and staff recognition
Fresh Minds Education visits your school in person to support a graduation or celebration with participating children. Staff who successfully complete the programme requirements and approval process are recognised as an FLM SUNRISE Approved Coach.
A programme that fits your school timetable
A Flexible Programme Designed to Fit Your School Timetable
Deliver high-impact learning in just 20 minutes a session, fully customizable to your classroom’s needs.
- Bite-Sized & Flexible: Features 40 core micro-sessions (approx. 20 minutes each), plus optional extended activities for teachers who want to take the learning further.
- Adaptable Curricula: Includes both basic and extended pathways, giving staff complete control over the pace and depth of delivery for their specific class.
- Customizable Deployment: Run the programme across two terms or the full school year. It adapts easily to your structure, some schools choose to split the delivery across P3 and P4.
- Built for Inclusive Delivery: All learning is carefully scaffolded to support every student, ensuring an inclusive experience that embraces neurodiverse children.
Coach Pathway
1 Register your interest
Complete our short Expression of Interest form. We check eligibility and funded class availability in your Trust area, then contact you to confirm whether we can offer a place.
2 Nominate staff and complete training
Nominate one appropriate teacher or staff member for each participating class. They attend the required training and receive onboarding, classroom resources and digital access.
3 Deliver Sunrise with your class
Begin delivery before the October half-term break and follow the curriculum at a pace suited to your school. Complete the simple baseline and exit evaluations with participating children.
4 Stay connected with our team
Take part in the midpoint check-in and contact us whenever you need additional programme support.
5 Celebrate completion
Celebrate children’s participation with an in-person FME visit. Staff who meet the programme requirements and approval process receive recognition as an FLM SUNRISE Approved Coach.
Funded places across Northern Ireland
Three class places are available in each Health and Social Care Trust area. These may be allocated to one school with three eligible classes, three schools with one class each, or another combination.
Places are allocated on a first come basis to schools that meet the eligibility requirements, have a funded place available in their Trust area and can meet the programme commitments. Submitting an Expression of Interest does not guarantee a place.
Your school’s commitment
- Nominate one suitable Key Stage 1 teacher or staff member for each participating class.
- Deliver the programme and use its resources appropriately.
- Ensure that each nominated staff member attends one full training day and begins delivery before October half-term.
- Complete baseline and exit evaluations, engage with the midpoint check-in and take part in the completion celebration.
Children will learn:
Thinking Skills and Personal Capabilities
- Managing information
- Select, classify, compare and evaluate information
- Use a range of methods for collating, recording and representing information
- Thinking, Problem Solving and Decision Making
- Make predictions, examine evidence, and distinguish fact from fiction
- Make links between cause and effect
- Being Creative
- Seek out questions to explore and problems to solve
- Experiment with ideas and questions
- Make new connections between ideas and information
- Learn from and value other people’s ideas
- Value the unexpected or surprising
- See opportunities in mistakes and failures
- Working With Others
- Listen actively and share opinions
- Develop routines of turn-taking, sharing and cooperating
- Give and respond to feedback
- Take personal responsibility for work with others and evaluate their own contribution to the group
- Be fair
- Respect the views and opinions of others and reach agreements using negotiation and compromise
- Self Management
- Manage their behaviour in a range of situations
- Focus, sustain attention and persist with tasks
- Review learning and some aspects that might be improved
- Seek advice when necessary
- Compare their own approach with others’ and in different contexts
Photographs
See how Sunrise works in the classroom, with programme resources, practical activities and feedback from participating schools.
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Feedback
Teacher Feedback
“Catchy and easy for children to recall and remember. Great tool for them.”
“It’s age-appropriate and teaches children how to properly relax their body and deal with stressful situations that arise. It makes children aware of their body going into meltdown mode and provides amazing tools to stop this in it’s tracks and calm the body down before it’s too late.”
“It’s a really wonderful programme which is so beneficial to the mental health and wellbeing of our children and it would be a shame not to use this amazing resource when it is available to us.”
“Over the last few years we have been trying to develop Mindfulness in our school. The AMBER approach is a great way of doing this as it focuses on the areas we have highlighted that we would like to improve upon.”
Children’s Feedback
In School:
- Relaxation & Calm: The most frequent feedback from children was that AMBER helps them calm down, breathe, and relax.
- Emotional Regulation: Children described how they use the tools they’ve learned to manage difficult feelings and recover quickly.
- Concentration & Focus: AMBER helps them to concentrate better and stay focused on their learning, even when worried or distracted.
- Happiness & Emotional Safety: Words like happy, safe, good, joyful, and comfortable were used repeatedly.
- Self-expression & Help-Seeking: Many said that AMBER gives them the confidence to talk about their feelings, ask adults for help, and understand their emotions.
At Home:
- Breathing techniques and calming strategies were the most frequently used at
home. - Many children also reported better sleep, feeling safer, and talking more openly to family members about emotions.
Children frequently reported: - Emotional calming through breathing, cuddling Amber/Bamber, or quiet time
- Improved sleep routines and bedtime comfort
- Better emotional expression and communication with family
- Use of coping strategies like breathing balls, brain hugs, and finger tapping
- Feeling safe, loved, and less alone
Frequently Asked Questions
Northern Ireland primary schools with Key Stage 1 classes. We consider special school applications individually according to children’s developmental stages and needs.
Places within this period are fully funded (Sept-Nov 2026). Schools are not required to make a financial contribution. Fresh Minds Education is a small charity, and schools may choose to support our wider work through fundraising in the future, but this has no bearing on allocation of a SUNRISE place.
Yes, subject to eligibility and available funded places.
No. Programme training and onboarding prepare staff to deliver Sunrise and use its resources.
There are 40 core sessions of approximately 20 minutes, plus extended activities for teachers who want to take the learning further. These are customizable to your classroom’s needs.
Staff have complete control over the pace and depth of delivery for their specific class, it is typically run over two terms or the full school year. It adapts easily to your structure, some schools choose to split the delivery across P3 and P4.
Training, onboarding, programme support and an in-person celebration visit along with Sunrise Coach physical and digital delivery manuals. Supported by The Amber Approach Children’s Mental Health & Resilience Tool Box, digital programme materials, online platform access and evaluation tools.
Yes. Sunrise was written and overseen with support from Northern Ireland teaching consultants to align directly with the Key Stage 1 PDMU curriculum.
Fresh Little Minds Sunrise fully aligns with the Take 5 Schools framework, offering an interactive, long-term approach to health and wellbeing that empowers your entire school community. Through this specialised training, we upskill your teachers to become certified Sunrise Coaches. Equipped with five simple, evidence-based steps, your trained staff can seamlessly weave emotional resilience directly into their daily classroom routines, establishing a sustainable “five-a-day” for pupil mental fitness without relying on external providers.
Fresh Little Minds is designed to meet children right where they are. While it aligns perfectly with the Key Stage 1 developmental stage, its flexible, nurturing approach makes it wonderfully inclusive for neurodivergent learners and children with a wide range of additional support or special educational needs.
We provide training and onboarding, supply physical and digital resources, support evaluation and complete a midpoint check-in. Our team visits in person for the final celebration.
Your school retains its physical resources and trained staff can continue delivering Sunrise. Staff are recognised as an FLM SUNRISE Approved Coach. Digital access and programme support continue for as long as Fresh Minds Education is able to maintain and support the programme and platform.
We review your Expression of Interest against eligibility, availability and funding. We will confirm your place by email before full onboarding begins.
There is no separate fixed application deadline at present. Places are limited and allocated on a first come basis to eligible schools able to commit. Staff are expected to complete training and begin delivery within two weeks of undertaking their training.
FME bases the allocation of places on a combination of factors including date of application (first come first served), location (the regional mix of schools) and evidence of need.
Fresh Little Minds is designed to meet children right where they are. While it aligns perfectly with the Key Stage 1 developmental stage, its flexible, nurturing approach makes it wonderfully inclusive for neurodivergent learners and children with a wide range of additional support or special educational needs.
Bring Sunrise to your school
Register your school’s interest and our team will contact you about eligibility, funded availability and the next steps.
