Take a Minute

Have you ever been sitting at your desk, working feverishly to get lesson plans or grades done, pause for a moment and feel so stiff and tense? I catch myself slumping over my keyboard or paperwork only to feel (and hear) all of the snap, crackle, and pops when I finally stand up. While our students are younger (in my case, MUCH younger), they suffer from the same muscle tightness and neck tension after a class period of typing, writing, or reading.

Honestly, no one is in a "learning" state of mind when their back is aching, their neck is tense, and their legs are falling asleep. Every minute of our day is precious time, so it is imperative that we help students be as open to learning as possible. Taking a Mindful Movement break every 30-45 minutes will end up saving you double that time in working (teachers and students). Moving oxygen to all the parts of your body helps energize the body, focus the mind, and enhance physical and mental well being. 

Try these 5 movements throughout the day and see what a difference it makes. When you are guiding students through these movements, remind them to focus on their breathing. Deep inhales through the nose and deep exhales through the mouth sends the oxygen to the movement. Elongate your spine on the inhale; deepen the stretch on the exhale. Complete each movement for at least 3 breath cycles, more as wanted/needed. The more you do it, the more you will feel comfortable moving with your breath to create a flow.

1. Shoulder Rolls: Inhale while pulling your shoulders up towards your ears. Exhale and roll them down your back. Repeat at least 3 times to release any tension you may be carrying in your shoulders. Whenever you feel ready, roll your shoulders in the opposite direction.

2. Neck Rolls: Gently circle your neck in one direction at whatever pace feels good for you. After a few rounds, roll your neck in the opposite direction to cultivate balance.

3. Side Bends: Inhale, reach your arms up. Exhale, bring your left hand down, and your right hand up and over your body, feeling the stretch along your right side. Inhale, elongate the spine. Exhale, create more space between your ribs. Switch sides.

4. Seated Twists: Find a comfortable seat. Inhale, reach your arms up. Exhale, twist to the right, placing your left hand on your right or left thigh, and your right hand on the chair or floor behind you. Twist from your ribcage to the top of your head. Take a few breaths here, imagining as though you are a sponge ringing out anything that may not be serving you. Come back to a neutral position facing forward, and then switch to the left side. *You may do these standing up as well. When twisting, reach for your 'back pockets'.*

5. Cat Cow: Find a comfortable seat, placing your palms on your knees. Inhale, open your heart, gaze up, cow pose. Exhale, round your back, and curl for cat pose. Inhale, drop your belly, look up, cow pose. Exhale, drop your chin and curl for cat pose. Inhale, open. Exhale, round. Do a few more of these cat cows on your own breath; one breath per movement.

For more Mindful Movements, don't forget to click on the pages linked to the right!

Tap Tap Tap

These cold days are tough! I get so restless because I can't go outside to do anything, nerves get short, and tensions get high. Just taking a few moments throughout the day to have some mindfulness can help us all. Studies show that purposeful mindful moments will improve attention, regulate emotions, and reduce stress. 

Consider creating some calming habits in your classroom to help students learn how to reset themselves. Building self-regulation strategies into our routines will help students (and us!) learn to manage their motions appropriately when situations arise. Pro-active planning can help head off discipline issues and foul moods.

One of my very favorite stress-relieving strategies is the Emotional Freedom Technique, commonly known as tapping. As an alternative to acupressure, tapping is using your fingertips to lightly tap meridian points on your body. Tapping these hot spots of energy can help control stress and anxiety, manage emotions, and reduce troublesome thoughts. Done regularly, tapping can lower your heart rate and blood pressure and reduce stress hormones.

There are 9 meridians most commonly used in tapping: top center of your head, between your eyebrows, beside your eye, under your eye, under your nose, on your chin, under your collar bones, under your arms, and on the side of your hand. To gain the most benefits of tapping, find a comfortable seat and soften your gaze or close your eyes. Focus on your breath for a minute, inhaling deeply through the nose and exhaling strongly through the mouth. Using your fingertips, start at the top and work your way down, repeating as needed. 

Try this with your students. Those who are ramped up, for whatever reason, could use this as a way to self-regulate their emotions. Visit the Quiet Stress Relievers page for other ideas to incorporate into your daily classroom practice. And don't forget to look at the Daily Classroom Poses page for those days when students are wiggly and need to just move for a minute!

Surviving the Dark Ages

 After 30 years in the classroom, I confidently say that the 3rd nine weeks is the most difficult time of the year for classroom management and student attention spans. On a good day, students are a little wiggly and talkative, but most days are crazy rowdy. This is due, in large part, to the weather. We can't get outside as much and there is little sunshine, which results in less endorphins and less natural vitamin D. All of that affects both mental and physical health.

At the Air Force Academy, they call these days the "Dark Ages". 😂 The long, cold, dark days seem endless, and it definitely affects our moods. Compassion for our students and ourselves is essential to survive these days in the classroom. Understanding feelings and behaviors during this time will help create a safe environment where those around us feel joy, peace, and health. Compassion can heal the body and mind (both in the giver and receiver). 

Using compassion as a frame of reference, consider what you can do to help those around you through these "dark ages". I know we are all concerned with utilizing class time effectively. Studies show that taking brain breaks that involve movement will actually increase valuable learning time. This is not only good for the students, but it is beneficial for teachers as well. Our brains and bodies are just like our students; we become restless and overstimulated because of the winter environment. Taking 3-5 minutes out of class time for mindful movement will result in more productive  learning time. 

It's looking as if we won't be able to go outside much over the next several days. Utilize the pages linked to the right to incorporate some mindful movement activity throughout your day. Schedule them into your daily lesson plans. I have added a new page: Quiet Stress Relievers. Check those out for some activities that will help settle students and create a calm environment.

In the immortal words of the sage Elle Wood, "Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people don't shoot their husbands. They just don't." So make mindful movement a priority for you and your students!