00:00I'm Anna Coulson, headteacher, very proud headteacher of the Frobelian School in Horsforth.
00:06My debut children's book is Roxy, the little fawn, about a little fawn who discovers a superpower that makes others
00:15feel truly happy,
00:17encourages authenticity and encourages other woodland animals to be the best version of themselves.
00:24There are so many anxieties that children carry from a very young age, which is what prompted me to actually
00:34put down in writing my story of Roxy, the little fawn.
00:41But children's mental health is something that I've seen over a long career really deteriorate.
00:47And with the external pressures placed upon children, whether they be academic, sporting, whether they be from comparison,
00:56it's so important to instill really good life skills in children to ensure that they're well equipped for their futures.
01:05I was a very shy girl at school, couldn't hold my head up.
01:09I was helped hugely by a lady, Roxy, Roxy Nafusi, and after a really tricky time.
01:18And she gave me a bit of confidence that I didn't have, although professionally, you know, things were great just
01:26in myself.
01:26It also was combined with the time that I started doing Pilates and with a lady called Bryony Deary.
01:34And it was all about well-being and being consistent in habits.
01:41And I wanted to instill really good routines in children and thought I could do so by writing a series
01:50of books.
01:51So this is the first of seven, actually.
01:53And there are seven different woodland animals that Roxy teaches different life skills to.
01:59One of the deputy heads here is married to an artist and I was talking to him one night and
02:07he said that he would help me illustrate the book.
02:11It's hard to believe this, but it's the God's honest truth.
02:14The night that I'd finished writing the book, my daughter, Sophia, called me into her room.
02:22And we see little fawns and deer very often, but quite majestically, it was half six one morning, there was
02:32a fawn stood outside her window.
02:35And it was the night that I'd finished writing the book.
02:38The Frebelian School is a small family school that really recognises children's individuality and really empowers children to be authentic.
02:53And had it not been Frebelian, I would have never have done this.
02:56So very, very, very lucky girl.
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