My experience this year with the Cohort 21 gang has been an incredible learning opportunity. I met a bunch of wonderfully talented educators from the CIS family, and learned a ton about different digital tools to use both personally and professionally. I was also encouraged to develop and implement an action plan about a very important (and sometimes overlooked) 21st century skill called mindfulness.
The goal of my action plan was to teach the fundamentals of mindfulness to my Grade 3 students, providing them with tools they could use to increase their focus and concentration, find a sense of calm, relieve stress or anxiety, and improve their impulse control.
My investigation into mindfulness in the classroom was successful in a number of ways. Most importantly, my students actually practiced mindfulness and used mindful language! Not every day, and not every student, but there were some very mindful moments throughout the year. Learning about mindfulness has also been incredibly valuable on both a personal and professional level. I hope to use it with increased frequency and skill in the future, as well as share it with others when the opportunity comes along.
As with any new classroom initiative, there were also a few challenges along the way. There were times when I had planned a mindfulness lesson, but the timing just wasn’t right (i.e. having indoor recess followed by jello for dessert does not create the ideal conditions to Zen out with a bunch of 8-year-olds!) That being said, most of the time we were able to wiggle the sillies out and enjoy 15 minutes of mindfulness. The other major challenge was not only finding the time in our busy schedule to teach the lessons, but also time to reinforce and practice the skills that we had learned.
Overall, I would consider this adventure to be a great success. If I were to do it again, I would be more explicit in scheduling time to teach the lessons, allowing for longer reflections and discussions. I would also like to incorporate some brain science into the lessons, possibly looking at the Mind Up curriculum for some guidance. It would also be helpful to make the vocabulary and skills more visible by posting key words and strategies on the walls of the classroom.
Take a look at this prezi for more information on mindfulness and how to teach it in the classroom.
Danny – the idea of “mindfulness” has now started to come up amongst the faculty and administration at my school. Every time it does, I think you and your journey, and I’ve mentioned some of the great resources that you’ve shared along the way. I think mindfulness is such an important endeavor – especially in an age where we’re often bombarded with stumuli. Your journey has inspired me to take mindfulness seriously, and to pursue it both professionally and personally. Thank you for sharing! You’re doing some really awesome work!
Hi Allison…Thank so much for your kind words! I can’t wait to share some ideas with you on Friday and hear more about flourishing!! 🙂
I so enjoyed watching your prezi! I definitely got carried along in the journey when you were walking through the lesson. I think it is so valuable to be exploring this, and even more so in the context of technology and 21st century learning. It is all connected and ultimately leads to wonderful things! You have inspired me to work more on this in my classroom.