Mindfulness practice gives children the opportunity to settle and calm themselves and develop focus. It builds resilience by helping children manage difficult thoughts and emotions. Mindfulness creates space, changing impulsive reactions to thoughtful responses. Children find it easier to get along with their peers and choose kindness and optimism.
Mindfulness practice is the easiest and most reliable way to calm the nervous system, reverse stress patterns, increase positivity and develop resilience.
Focus and concentration
- Mindfulness improves students’ ability to initiate, monitor and direct their attention.
- Increases the brain’s executive functions: working memory, planning and organisational skills. This leads to improved academic performance.
Self Calm + Impulse Control
- Students find a reliable still quiet space inside themselves;they learn to pause and respond, rather than react
- Reduces stress, anxiety and aggression and fosters more peaceful behaviour in classes and playgrounds
Social Emotional Learning
- Students learn to recognise and manage their emotions
- Increases self-awareness, empathy, kindness and pro-social behaviour
Resilience and Optimism
- Mindfulness skills help students flourish by increasing, motivation, optimism, and creative thinking
- Resilient children more easily bounce back from life’s difficult experiences
Mindfulness instruction in schools “takes advantage of a natural window of opportunity during childhood, when the neural circuitry that allows us to pay attention, calm ourselves and attune to our own and other’s feelings takes shape”. Professor Richard Davidson, founder of the Laboratory for Affective Neuroscience, University of Wisonsin.
Teachers who apply mindfulness in their own lives are better able to use and teach the skills in the classroom.
About:
Hayley is a Yoga Teacher, and Yoga Teacher Trainer. She holds a BSc. Hons. in Psychology and a Post Graduation 'Professional Certificate in Education (Positive Education)'. With over 25 years experience in delivering Mindfulness practices to a range of age groups and demographics. Leading Mindfulness and meditation retreats for the past 15 years in Western Australia. Specialised in Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction. Working in communities and in private organisations, as well as designing luxury adventure wellbeing retreat packages, yoga teacher trainings, and within wellbeing centres teaching nutrition and lifestyle courses providing 'stress reduction in the workplace' with a range of wellbeing at work programs.
Hayley is super passionate about mind training and learnng how to nourish the self, as a big part of cross curricular programs in schools in the Australian curriculum across all schools. Self love and how to flourish as a balanced human being could be the primary goal of schooling.