M is for…
Mindfulness is the practice of being aware of the present moment; learning how to calmly understand and accept your feelings, thoughts, movements, reactions and responses. By being mindful, a person can feel a reduction in anxiety or stress, build resilience to deal with future stress, develop positive strategies to help them to cope with difficult emotions and allow them to build and sustain positive relationships.
Anyone can learn the practice of mindfulness and reports have shown that mindfulness for young people is easy to carry out, enjoyable and can be used to improve the mental, emotional, social and physical well-being of young people.
Why be mindful?
A 2017 report by the Commons Education Committee showed that school leaders were reporting an increase in mental health issues amongst primary school children including stress, anxiety and fear of failure, especially around exam times.
Furthermore, mindfulness has been shown to contribute directly to the development of cognitive and performance skills and executive function – in other words, being mindful can help children to be more focused, problem solve more effectively and retain learning better. All of this means a reduction in negative emotion and anxiety and happier and more well-rounded children and young adults.
References:
- Weare, K. (2012) Evidence for the Impact of Mindfulness on Children and Young People; The Mindfulness in Schools Project in association with University of Exeter Mood Disorders Centre
- The Commons Education Committee Report (2017) Children and Young People’s Mental Health – the Role of Education. Cited in and available at https://www.theguardian.com/education/2017/may/01/sats-primary-school-chidren-suffering-stress-exam-time [1st May, 2017]
We aim to provide primary schools in the Leicestershire area with the tools to implement mindfulness with their children. We offer:
- Teacher training
- Large group / whole school mindfulness days (up to 10 pupils per group)
- 1:1 or small group follow-on courses for 6 weeks
Our packages are flexible and can be tailored to meet the school or the individual’s needs. Please GET IN TOUCH info@lis4learning.com to find out more.
Our sessions:
Calming the mind
Talking about the chattering mind of thoughts and how that makes you feel.
Exploring feelings and emotions
Discussion of what difficult feelings and emotions are and where we feel them in the body.
Showing kindness to all
Talk about the importance of kindness and compassion to all people even people we find difficult as all people ultimately want to be happy.
The importance of gratitude
Talk about the importance of gratitude and that the latest phone etc is not going to bring you happiness. Talk about things you are grateful for eg. Your family, food on the table, the sun shining.
Mindful movement and celebration
Talk about how we can bring mindfulness into our daily life, even when we are walking to school.
FIND A COURSE IN YOUR AREA
WANT TO FIND OUT MORE?
info@lis4learning.com
THINKING ABOUT FUNDING?
Mindfulness at Home
Are you a parent or carer and want to find out more about how you can support your child with mindful thinking in the home?
Click here to find out more!