Mindfulness Newsletter

Thanks to all who used and shared the August newsletter. I'm excited about the growing level of interest in mindfulness at AISD.

With mindfulness growing at an amazing rate, please keep me posted on mindful happenings on your campus, so I can facilitate sharing and learning together. You can either send me an email (james.butler@austinisd.org) or if you use Twitter, use the hashtag #mindfulAISD as a simple way to share your stories.

Reminder: To stay up-to-date, please follow me on Twitter, @mrbutler629. I post regularly, providing tips and highlighting mindfulness happening across the district.

Here are a few mindfulness highlights from across the district.

Dr. Cruz rockin' that tree pose in the Palm Mindfulness Room! See tweet for details.

Students help set up the new Cunningham Mindfulness Room. See tweet for details.

6th graders leading kindergarteners (w/ Principal Hewlett & Dr. Cruz) in mindfulness. See tweet for more details.

Kinder teachers lead the whole school in some mindful breathing before dismissal. See tweet for details.

Mindfulness was a part of Transition Camp at Bertha Sadler Means Young Women's Leadership Academy. See tweet for details.

LBJ Instructional Coach, Beatriz Fernós, is leading mindfulness efforts to allow time for students & staff to take "Time to Breathe." I'm guiding the first few sessions and then will transition the leadership to staff/students. Email me if you're already doing this or if you're interested in something similar on your campus: james.butler@austinisd.org

Thursday, November 2 at Baker Rm. 308

8-11 a.m.: Elementary--FULL

1-4 p.m.: Secondary--10 seats left

**Both courses will be offered in the Spring as well. Stay tuned for dates.

Register on HCP in the AISD Cloud.

From this month's AISD eWellness Newsletter...

Bluesky Fitness is offering a special for onsite yoga classes for National Yoga Awareness Month!

Details

• A campus must have a minimum of 8 participants for the class to make.

• The first 6 campuses who send a completed list of at least 8 employees from their campus PLUS the day/time your campus prefers for the class will receive the special rate.

• Discounted rate is $5/class for a 4 week series. (1 class/ week)

• Class is Hatha Flow style - meant for all levels. Instructors will modify moves to fit needs of beginners through advanced!

• Submit your class roster to Melody Carlton to reserve a spot!

Below are 7 new #mindfulAISD videos for you and your class. The videos cover teacher tips for mindfulness implementation, intro to mindfulness, mindfulness and the brain, and 4 different mindful breathing exercises.

All of these videos can also be found on the #mindfulAISD YouTube Playlist. Remember, you can also add these to your GoNoodle account and use mindfulness to help your Champ grow stronger.

We'll share new videos every month and want to showcase students leading mindfulness. Email me if you'd like us to come to your class to record some videos to share with the district.

Shout out to our SEL Communications Coordinator, Victoria Birkeland, for her filming and editing skills.

August 2017 Newsletter (Starting mindfulness from Day 1)

2016-2017 Newsletters (One link to access all newsletters from last school year.)

For those using Mindful Classrooms: The Educator Guide, I recommend using Week 3-6 during September. This is a flexible recommendation though. Use what works best for you and your class. AISD staff can sign up for a free electronic copy of the book in the support form at the bottom of this newsletter.

If you haven't filled out the #mindfulAISD Google Form (below) and want to highlight your work and/or receive mindfulness support, please check it out. It only takes a moment to complete. Know someone in AISD interested in mindfulness? Send them this newsletter for them to fill out the Google Form.

James Butler

SEL Mindfulness Specialist

james.butler@austinisd.org