April 5, 2016 5:51 AM

Mindfulness training: An idea whose time has come

It was lunch time at Marysville School in Southeast Portland when the fire broke out. Teachers quickly herded their students out of the building to the sports field behind the school as the old colonial-style building burned. The fire that traumatized students and staff alike was in 2009, when Lana Penley was in her second year as principal…. When the school reopened, Penley and her staff started using the MindUP curriculum, developed by the Hawn Foundation (founded by the actress Goldie Hawn), to try to address underlying trauma both from the fire and from the daily poverty that many students face.

Western culture tends to live on a plane that exalts anticipation and planning. We’re trained to believe that only by planning and looking ahead will we be able to attain our goals. No one gets ahead through something as seemingly mundane as “mindfulness” or “living in the moment.” Except that when one stops to think about that, it’s easy to see that we never really leave ourselves the time or opportunity to fully experience and celebrate our successes…because we’re already looking ahead, anticipating and planning for scaling the next peak. How many times have you seen a player or coach whose team just won a championship asked if they can repeat their accomplishment next season?

In the case of Marysville Elementary School here in Portland, the fire that seriously damaged so much of the school was a very traumatic experience for students. When the school reopened, Principal Penley felt that Marysville, a school facing challenges under the best of circumstances, needed something that would help students address the trauma of both the fire and the difficulties they face in everyday life.

Most Americans wouldn’t immediately think of mindfulness as being a way to help students process challenges and trauma, but it turns out that the MindUP curriculum has made a significant and very positive impact at Marysville School.

At first they implemented the program using a counselor, rotating between classes, teaching the 15-lesson sequence that starts with explaining to students how their brains work and what’s happening when they are stressed, scared or angry. The program then moves into mindful breathing exercises, meant to help students feel present in their bodies. There’s a section on choosing to approach the world with optimism and discussions of mindfulness in all the senses: seeing, listening and eating. Towards the end of the sequence the lessons expand outward, asking students how they can contribute to the community, how they can be better citizens. Students practice doing random acts of kindness and reflect on how that makes them feel. Gratitude becomes a daily practice.

It’s not about teaching children to chant or worship a god other than the Christian God. It’s not about teaching students to be “touchy-feely” (as if there’s something wrong with students learning how to be in touch with their feelings). In layman’ terms, mindfulness is about living in and fully experiencing the moment. The past can’t be changed, the future is unknown; all we really have is this moment- right here, right now.

The mindfulness curriculum has, in Penley’s words, made for a “huge shift in the overall tone and civility of the school culture.” Teaching students at a young age how they might better contribute to society and how they can be better citizens can only bode well for their future. Teaching gratitude and random acts of kindness are great ways to instill positive values and help create good lifelong habits.

Penley says the real shifts in school culture came when they started implementing the program school-wide. Teachers now start class in the morning with a few breaths to help students feel present. The middle school has breathing exercises after passing periods. Penley described how kindergarteners used to come into their classroom for free breakfast while their teacher was already directing them to look at what she’d written on the board. Students were having a hard time learning that way because they didn’t feel settled or safe.

Mindfulness training has helped students process the stress and trauma they’ve experienced. A big part of mindfulness is relaxation, the ability to breathe deeply, attain a state of calmness, and experience the world around you free of stress and anxiety as you live in the moment. Teaching students mindfulness may seem unorthodox and somewhat at odds with traditional educational theory and philosophy, but the truth is that it’s an effective and inexpensive way to help students cope with everyday life.

It’s a good thing…and a very simple and easy way to help students process stress and trauma throughout their lives. The habits students are learning have made Marysville School a calmer and more relaxed environment. Discipline referrals have decreased as students’ observational skills and empathy have increased. Teachers are happier, and Marysville’s mindfulness curriculum has attracted attention throughout Portland.

It turns out that mindfulness and living in the moment are very positive things. Perhaps in time more schools will adopt similar curricula and find ways to help students more positively interact with their community…or not, as we’ll see tomorrow.

Tomorrow: When it comes to things they don’t understand, parents ruin everything

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This page contains a single entry by Jack Cluth published on April 5, 2016 5:51 AM.

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