The Global Wellness Institute defines wellness as the active pursuit of activities, choices, and lifestyles that lead to a state of holistic health.
People often confuse wellness with other terms such as health, well-being, and happiness. Although there are some common elements among these concepts, being happy or in good health is often referred to as a state of static being. At the same time, wellness is distinguished by being an active process of being aware and making choices that can lead to optimal health and well-being.

MIS values wellness as an essential part of our students’ holistic development. That can help them thrive within their learning environment and in life in general and learn to take individual responsibility to maintain and improve health. They should know strategies to take preventive action and that all aspects of wellness should become an integrated part of their daily life. The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of this concept and for us to understand the actions we can take to support personal wellness.
Source: The Global Wellness Institute.
As part of our collective responsibility to support our students from EY1 to P5, Mr. Underhill (PSE) and Mr. Fernando (PE) have decided to plan a 21-day wellness challenge for our students, parents, and school staff. The weekly challenges are varied and designed to be accessible to all and will be shared through the weekly homeroom update on Seesaw each Friday. Beginning on Saturday, May 1, families can choose to do the action on the plan for that day or choose another one from the week and do the challenges in the order that suits the family best.
We expect that families will commit to completing all the activities over the 21 days. The activities are connected to student learning in PSPE as each activity connects to one of the three PSPE strands: Identity, Active Living, and Interactions. It is also connected to one of the pillars of the school’s mission is to encourage responsibility.
Throughout the 21 days, families will practice strategies to apply in their daily lives to achieve an optimal state of well-being. We hope that this challenge will motivate all our community members to continue to actively pursue activities, choices, and lifestyles that can lead to holistic health and well-being.
Of course, our MYP students can also take part with the rest of the family!
Fernando Beukes
Head of Department: Physical and Health Education
Works Cited
Global Wellness Institute. What is Wellness? https://globalwellnessinstitute.org/what-is-wellness/ Accessed 28 Apr 2021.
Mahindra International School. Mission Statement and Rationale. Mahindra International School. Revised December 2019.