Mindfulness in schools starts with the adults. Here's some goodness for y'all. :)
I think I've shared this in a previous newsletter and I've shared it during trainings, but I wanted to revisit this New York Times article. It has some quick & simple practices for teachers listed at the end of the article, but also has links to other resources/activities throughout the article.
And here's our compilation of mindfulness related self-care resources.
Check out the Spring 2019 Mindfulness In Schools Sessions! Class sizes will be expanded soon, so get on the waitlist if it's full. Click on the links to go directly to HCP to sign up.
Tuesday, March 26th Mindfulness 101 AND 201 8:30am-3:30pm @ Blanton Museum
Thursday, March 28th Culturally Responsive Mindfulness 8:30am-3:30pm @ Amala Foundation
Thursday, April 25th Mindfulness 301 8:30am-3:30pm @ Blanton Museum
Tuesday, April 30th Librarian Mindful Maker Spaces 1pm-4pm @ Blanton Museum
Soon to be added to HCP...
Saturday, April 13th 9am-1pm AISD Staff Mindfulness Retreat! Mark your calendars for this awesome morning of self-care that will feature keynote and classes from Yoga N Da Hood & more (see Mindfulness & Equity for more about Yoga N Da Hood).
Here's a Today's Parent article that features 5 simple mindfulness activities for kids that can be shared with families.
As a reminder, you can always find family resources on bit.ly/mindfulfams.
I had the fortune of learning from Ebony Smith, Founder of Yoga N Da Hood, in this Culturally Responsive Trauma Informed Yoga Certification Course I'm taking. She is incredibly inspiring and does awesome work with yoga & mindfulness based out of Dallas. From their site: "Yoga N Da Hood is a mobile program that is dedicated to making yoga affordable and accessible to everyone. We travel to underserved communities and offer no-cost classes in yoga and mindfulness. Serving the 48 Contiguous States." Check them out y'all!
We were even able to get Yoga N Da Hood to come be our keynote and lead some classes for our upcoming AISD Staff Mindfulness Retreat (Saturday, April 13th 9am-1pm)!
Full Catastrophe Living
Learning To Breathe
Disruptive behavior in the classroom, poor academic performance, out-of-control emotions: if you work with adolescents, you are well-aware of the challenges this age group presents. What if there was a way to calm these students down and arm them with the mindfulness skills needed to really excel in school and life? Written by mindfulness expert and licensed clinical psychologist Patricia C. Broderick, Learning to Breatheis a secular program that tailors the teaching of mindfulness to the developmental needs of adolescents to help them understand their thoughts and feelings and manage distressing emotions.
Visiting Feelings
Visiting Feelings by Lauren Rubenstein
Beautifully descriptive prose and delightful illustrations cultivate a message of mindfulness and emotional awareness to help children fully experience the present moment. Rather than labeling or defining specific emotions and feelings, Visiting Feelings invites children to sense, explore, and befriend any feeling with acceptance and equanimity. Children can explore their emotions with their senses and nurture a sense of mindfulness. Gaining this objectivity allows space for a more considered response to the feelings. Practicing mindfulness can also enhance many aspects of well-being, help develop insight, empathy, and resiliency.
From their site: "Most meditation apps say they’re free but the reality is quite different; once the starter pack finishes they quickly lock you out. We offer the largest free library of guided meditations on earth and the world’s most loved meditation Timer, for free."
From an Outside Magazine article:"Mindfulness isn’t a superpill or an instant game-changer. The effects are subtle. But there seems to be something here, and it’s an important step that we’re starting to see careful studies that look not just at brain scans and other proxy measures, but at sports-specific outcomes like the handball agility test."
Mindful Classrooms: The Educator Guide
Those of you who are using Mindful Classrooms: The Educator Guide, I recommend Weeks 22-25 for February. As a friendly reminder, the book will be published by Free Spirit Publishing soon and I won't be able to give away free copies anymore soon. AISD staff, sign up for a free electronic copy of the book while you can in the support form at the bottom of this newsletter.
Inner Explorer
So much gratitude to LG for the $20,000 grant to provide Inner Explorer community licenses to 20 AISD campuses through the 2018-2019 school year!! Inner Explorer is a web-based mindfulness program that's very easy to use for all ages. Elementary content is in Spanish as well. They even have a community component where families can have an account along with the school. For more info and sample practices, click here.
Stop Breathe Think--Free Lifetime Subscription
Calm--Free Lifetime Subscription
FREE Calm.com Lifetime Subscription for Teachers (PreK-12). Fill out the form at the link above for a FREE subscription to their site & app.
#mindfulAISD YouTube Playlist
Letter to Families
Here's a letter about mindfulness you can share with families. It provides a brief description of mindfulness and a message from Dr. Cruz supporting mindfulness in schools.
The letter is available in English, Spanish, Arabic, Farsi/Dari & Burmese.
Multilingual Mindfulness
Want mindfulness activities in Spanish, Arabic, Farsi/Dari, Burmese, Swahili & Kinyarwanda? We've got them for you!
Zen Den YouTube Playlist
The "Zen Den" YouTube playlist offers 18 videos, ranging from 4-8 minutes in length.
Mind Yeti: Connecting Mindfulness w/ Explicit SEL Lessons
Mindyeti.com is a great resource that connects mindfulness with Second Step lessons, and it's FREE!
GoNoodle
GoNoodle is for the body and the mind.
Here is a link to a document that lists all the GoNoodle Mindfulness videos sorted by channel and with the length of each video.
De-Escalation Strategies Poster
This poster can be an addition to your classroom, Peace Area, hallways, Mindfulness Room, etc.
Mindful Life Project
Guided Mindfulness Activities in English & Spanish--Great for Secondary.
They also have a free app titled "Mindful Life Project."
Videos Explaining Mindfulness
Contact
SEL Mindfulness Specialist
2014 Austin ISD Teacher of the Year
Twitter: @mrbutler629