Our students have been practising mindfulness with Erica and Ren each Tuesday.

Here is the coverage from the past two weeks lessons, with ideas for you to try at home.

Lesson 12: Mindful Eating

In our mindfulness lesson, we learned how to eat mindfully. How often do we rush through meals and not even notice the food we are eating? What if we ate one meal a week mindfully?

Sitting down together, begin by sharing where and how all the food on your plate got there. The grocery store workers, the truck drivers, the processing plants, the farmers––they all played a part in getting the food to your plate today. And then take just one bite, chewing it, tasting it, noticing the flavors, the texture, and paying attention as you swallow––then the second bite... Wow, what a different experience that would be

Follow-up discussions for teachers and parents:

Worksheet Link: Lesson 12 - Workbook.pdf

You can reinforce this lesson at home by practicing with your child and asking these questions:

● What is mindful eating?

● What was it like to eat mindfully, and what did you notice?

Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner Time: You don’t have to have a full meal to practice mindful eating. You can mindfully eat a bite of your apple or cracker, or you can set aside one meal a week to practice a full mindful eating practice.

Lesson 13: Three Mindful Breaths

In our mindfulness lesson, we learned how to stop and take three mindful breaths when our emotions get really big and seem to take over. We are not suggesting children not be angry, sad, or fearful—all of our emotions are welcome. It is how we respond that really matters.

If I get angry because my brother took my book, I might react by hitting him or yelling at him. If I can learn to notice that I am angry, stop, and take three mindful breaths––feeling them from my feet all the way up to the top of my head––then perhaps I have created enough space for me to respond calmly.

Follow-up discussions for teachers and parents:

Worksheet Link: Lesson 13 - Workbook.pdf

Video for senior students: Mini Meditation - Soothing Hands

You can reinforce this lesson at home by practicing with your child and asking these questions:

● How does your body feel when you are mad, sad, or angry?

● How does taking three mindful breaths help your body calm down?

Bed time: After reading a book to your child, have them practice taking three mindful breaths--breathing in from their toes all the way through their body to the top of their head; breathing out from the top of their head all the way to their toes.

Feel free to contact your Mindfuli Kaiako at any time if you have any questions or email us at info@mindfuli.org.nz

Feel free to contact me at any time if you have any questions.

Ngā mihi,Erica Viedma CEO/Head Teacher 

Mindfuli

Mindfulness in Schools Ōtautahi

027 6622497