Mindfulness Resources for VVS
Vernon Verona Sherrill School District -- September 2019
Resources, Survey & Support
With gratitude,
James
Workshop Resources
More Resources!
Stop Breathe Think--Free Lifetime Subscription
Calm--Free Lifetime Subscription
Headspace--Free Annual Subscription
Headspace recently came out with their own FREE subscription for educators. Click the link to sign up.
Culturally Responsive Teaching and the Brain
An Edutopia blog written by Elena Aguilar. "Zaretta Hammond's new book, Culturally Responsive Teaching and The Brain: Promoting Authentic Engagement and Rigor Among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students, fills a huge gap in my bookshelf. Hoping to get it into your hands and onto your shelves, I decided to do a Q & A with the author."
Mindfulness Research
Mindful Schools also has a great page on their site that outlines mindfulness in education research.
Trauma-Informed Mindfulness Article
Mindfulness in Austin ISD Videos
Mindful Brain Free Download
Sustainable Mindfulness
Cultivating Mindfulness for Educators Using Resources From The New York Times
How to Avoid A Poorly Designed School Mindfulness Program -- Mindful Magazine
Making Mindfulness Work in Your School -- Free webinar from Free Spirit by James Butler
Making the Case for Mindfulness in Your School or District -- Free Spirit Publishing blog by James Butler
Mindful Classrooms Published!
Mindfulness In A Jar
SEL Coloring Book
**Available in Spanish too!
Check out Mindful Classrooms for more resources.
Mindfulness Book List
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 Austin ISD Superintendent Dr. Cruz supporting mindfulness in schools.
Feel free to edit this to personalize for your school/district.
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
Notes from Types of Awareness Exercises
Breath--Triangle Breath (in in in through nose, out through mouth) for up-regulation. Square Breath (even inhale & exhale-in for 4, out for 4) for regulation. 4-8 Breath (double exhale-in for 4, out for 8) for down-regulation.
Body--Draw two stick figures or gingerbread people. Raise and lower shoulders, flex and relax left arm, then repeat with right arm, left leg and right leg. Draw shapes or words to represent what you noticed about your body while you did that practice on one figure. On the other, draw what you'd like to feel and ideas for how to achieve those sensations in your body.
Surroundings--Notice as many objects that are circular around you. Take 30 seconds (or up to 5 minutes) to just draw circles. They can different sizes, connected or not, etc. Just focus all your attention on the drawing of circles. Another option is 5-4-3-2-1: Notice 5 objects you see (shapes, colors), Notice 4 sounds you hear, Notice 3 feelings and/or sensations you're experiencing in this moment, Notice 2 smells or temperature of the inhale and exhale, Notice 1 taste or observation of your taste in this moment.
Thoughts--Sit for one minute and focus on your breath. As a thought arises, acknowledge it with compassion by gently flexing your toes (or touching a bead on a bracelet, etc.) and come back to your breath focusing on the in breath, pause, out breath, pause. Repeat with each thought that arises.
Feelings--Write down 3-5 things/people that you are grateful for in this moment.
Quick Survey About MC Workshop
Support from Mindful Classrooms
James Butler, M.Ed.
Teacher, Author, Founder
Mindful Classrooms
Austin ISD SEL Mindfulness Specialist
2014 Austin ISD Teacher of the Year
Email: james@mindfulclassrooms.com
Website: mindfulclassrooms.com
Facebook: facebook.com/mindfulclassrooms
Twitter: @mindfulclassrms