Movement & Mindfulness 102Skills for Healthier Kids &

TeachersLeah Kalish, MA: leah@move-with-me.com

www.move-with-me.com818-667-3689

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TEAM• Leah Kalish, MA, a recognized expert in movement, yoga, and social-emotional

education, has created many successful products/curricula for companies, such as Barefoot Books, Yoga Ed. and School Specialty. She founded Move with Me™ to support young children in being physically fit, emotionally stable and learning able.

• Wendy Piret, BS, is a Developmental Movement Education Specialist with years of experience teaching children. She is a licensed Brain Gym® Instructor, a certified Yoga Ed. Instructor, and a cranio-sacral practitioner specializing in pediatrics. With her collaborator, Liz Bragdon, she is the co-creator of the Movement & Mindfulness Curriculum and the instructor in the Scooter & Me movement adventure series.

• Liz Bragdon, MA, is a certified Yoga Teacher and veteran early childhood educator. She leads assemblies for Young Audiences and teaches at schools, libraries, gyms, and studios. With her good friend, Wendy Piret, she is co-creator of the Movement & Mindfulness Curriculum, and the writer of the Scooter & Me movement adventure series.

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Objectives

• Understand entrainment and why self-regulation skills / mindfulness is essential for teachers/parents.

• Learn 5 Adventure Skills and when to use them.

• Understand and utilize the benefits of cross-lateral movement.

• Explore the basics of self-regulation skill building.

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Overview• Entrainment - Coherence – Mindfulness • Self-Regulation

– Pause, Reflect, Slow, Center, Self-Care for YOU – New Adventure Skills for Your Classroom/Home

• Cross – Lateral Movement Tools• 3 Mindfulness Games• Mirroring - Support Self-Care & Self-Control• Resources

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Entrainment• Quantum physics – everything is a vibration / wave

• The principle of entrainment - tendency for two oscillating bodies to shift to vibrate in harmony– Universal - appearing in music, chemistry, biology, medicine,

psychology, sociology, education– You influence everyone around you – children, students, employees

– non-verbally– Heart reads vibration – sends messages to your brain – you react

• Coherent Waves & Incoherent Waves– Even, smooth, organized, regular = relaxed & able– Uneven, static, chaotic, irregular = stressed & less able

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BE – DO - HAVE

• BE – your mind-body state/ vibration• DO – infuses “how” you think / act• HAVE – influences your experience According to brain /educational researchers, including Eric Jensen,

Carla Hannaford, and HeartMath, our mind-body state dictates the quality of our choices and the intentions of our actions.

• When you are stressed, what kinds of foods do you choose? • When you are tired or frustrated, how present or kind are you? • When you are worried, how careful or caring can you be?

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Conscious Coherence• Fact - we live, learn and love through our bodies & to do well

socially, cognitively, professionally and academically, we need to feel well.

• Entrainment is the basis for naturally occurring social-emotional learning and self-regulation.

• You are the model & the music in the room

• Choose to prioritize your WELL-BEING over your TO DO List

• When you sustain coherence, children magically learn to as well.

• When you take time to help children grow their self-awareness and practice self-care, they learn how to consciously manage their emotions and impulses. This.

• The ability to self-regulate increases empathy and resilience , and improves behavior and academic achievement.

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Mindfulness• Maintaining awareness of our thoughts,

feelings, sensations, and environment.• Cultivating presence in relationship• Observing what is without interpretation • Allowing what is without judgment • Aligning with a bigger, “vertical” intention –

health, empowerment, kindness – as your “beingness” & your filter for how you respond

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Self-Regulation• Mindfulness practices with the intention to sustain coherence• Reset button on your CNS –sympathetic to parasympathetic• Soothe, shift, calm, integrate or energize your mind-body state• Become more present, aware, reflective = executive function• Takes practice & tools• Imagery – MT / Rainbow/ Ocean

Slow down – Ground/center – Attend to your own Sensations Rest back – Widening focus Align with Intention Breathe easily

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Belly Breathing calms your body and soothes your mind.

Place one hand on your chest and the other on your belly. As you breathe in your nose, feel your belly rise first and your chest expand second. As you breathe out your nose, feel your belly empty and then your chest soften. Repeat 4 – 5 times slowly and smoothly

When?Before a new activity to pause & focusAnytime you want to relax or center yourselfWhen you feel upset, confused, or frustratedTo slow down for sleep

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When?With every mealAt snack timeInstead of sugary or junk food

These foods provide vital nutrients and antioxidantsto every system of the body. They also contain phyto-nutrients which help lubricate the body and act as cleansing agents.

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When?You feel sluggish and tiredYour head feels heavy or thickYou are not able to listen wellYou want to really tune in and pay attention

Gently rub your ears. With your thumb on one sideand your first finger on the other, massage your earsfrom top to bottom. The tingling warmth of this simple massage promotes calm, relieves anxiety,and can heighten your feelings of alertness. When your are calm and alert it is much easier tolisten and understand.

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With one thumb at eye level, the other hand relaxedat your side, draw your thumb through the air, tracing a large 8 lying on its side. Follow your thumb with just your eyes as it moves counter-clockwise for the first loop and then clockwise for the second loop. Follow the sideways 8’s with just your eyes several times to relax & strengthen eye muscles so you can see, read & write more easily & clearly.

When?You can’t focusYour vision is blurryYour eyes feel tiredYou have a headache

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When?You feel stormy and out of sortsYour boat has been rocked and you feel upsetYou feel overwhelmed or out of controlYou want to focus and remember

Sit on a padded floor or surface and lean back onto both hands. Bend your knees half-way and lift both feet, keeping them off the floor. Gently rock on your seat/bottom from side to side, massaging one gluteus muscle, then the other.

Cross-Lateral Movement

• Energizes body and mind• Releases tension• Activates both sides of the brain• Prep for fine motor skills – reading & writing• Enhances thinking, comprehension & learning• Developmental stages of cross-lateral ability

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Monkey Wisdom Chant

I am healthyI play every dayI drink lots of waterI don’t float awayI rest when I’m tiredI breathe when I’m madI eat fruits & veggies‘Cause they are radRed, orange, yellow, greenAt every meal and in between!

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Monkey Wisdom Videohttp://vimeo.com/68339892

Humming Breath Chant

One hand on my belly, I let it restThe other, I bring up to my chestI find a pair of buttons beneath the shelfAnd HuuuuuummmmmmTo calm myself I move my eyes slowly From the left to the rightHeart calm, mind clearBody strong, eyes bright!

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Humming Breath Videohttp://vimeo.com/68339890

Benefits of Self-Care• Increased self-awareness • Situational insight • Clarity of thought (cognition)• Impulse control • Physical coordination

YouTube/MwMAA Channel Demo Videos– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-1f5i15QhI&feature=c4-

overview&list=UUWgg5XvT3iuAnVAZRpMhVqw– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utsDv3y-Qrc&feature=c4-

overview&list=UUWgg5XvT3iuAnVAZRpMhVqw – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rdqnxs-51Oc&feature=c4-

overview&list=UUWgg5XvT3iuAnVAZRpMhVqw

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TIME TO PLAY MORE, STRESS LESS ADVENTURE SKILLS

Drop Off WaterBreathe /Humming Breath/Ocean WisdomDeep Down Wisdom

Transition to Circle Monkey Wisdom Infinity 8’sDeep Down Wisdom

Transition to Active Time Monkey Wisdom Elephant Wisdom

Transition to Clean-up Breathe /Humming Breath/Ocean WisdomElephant WisdomWater

Transition to Quiet Time WaterBreathe / Humming Breath/Ocean WisdomDeep Down Wisdom

Academic/Detail Work Monkey WisdomInfinity 8’sRock the Boat

Conflict Rock the BoatBreathe / Humming Breath/Ocean WisdomDeep Down Wisdom

Emotionally Triggered Drink WaterBreathe /Humming Breath/Ocean WisdomDeep Down Wisdom

Confusion Monkey WisdomElephant WisdomInfinity 8’s

Active Play / Games• Body-mind regulating and integrating

• Over-rides the body’s physiological response to stress.

• Invites whole child participation. Organizes whole-brain function for optimal learning.

• Raises chemical messengers levels that balance mind/ body.

• Triggers BDNF, a neuro-tropic factor required for thinking. BDNF decreases after 20 min. of sitting

• Strengthens key areas of the brain – basal ganglia, cerebellum and corpus callosum by building brain cells and connections.

• Improves mental focus & concentration

• Enhances memory, creativity, and academic achievement.

• Develops eye muscle fitness and helps with reading.

• Helps 85% of students who are kinesthetic learners20

Force vs. Finesse• Give each child a knotted scarf. Ask them to untie the knot.• Notice who is using force – discuss what happens to their bodies &

the knot• Point out anyone using finesse – what is the quality of their actions,

focus, breath?• Help kids summarize the different physical experiences

– Struggling, pulling, tense, frustrated, holding breath, knot tighter– Focused, specific, relaxed, breathing, knot loosening

• Force = working against • Finesse = working with

Name some other activities in which you would want to use finesse instead of force – shoes, containers, friends, using your body…

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Wind in the TreesChildren stand in a circle shoulder to shoulder and count off 1 – 2 – 1 - 2. All 2’s to step out; all 1’s do Tree Pose with their arms up so fingertips lightly touch to make a Forest.

All 2’s become Wind and move in and around Trees without touching them. Wind can blow, sway, wave, and try to distract Trees. The forest and all its trees stay steadfastly rooted & focused – letting the wind do whatever because it doesn’t bother them.

After 1-2 minutes, switch roles. Repeat until children have practiced Trees/Forest on both legs.

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ABC HugathonEveryone partners up and then each couple picks a letter from the alphabet and thinks of a type of person or an animal that begins with that letter. One at a time, each pair shows how their person/animal would hug. Example:

The rest of the group, only knowing the first letter, tries to guess who they are from how they hug. Example

Examples: a couple might do Astronaut, Aardvark or Alien HUG, the next might do the Bear, Brute or Bat hug and so on. (Just imagine how tricky it would be for two porcupines to hug!)

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Model & Schedule • Self-Regulation = Managing thoughts, feelings & behavior = Self-

Discipline

• Use mindfulness / self-regulation to empower you to:– Sustain coherence– React/interpret less & allow/observe more– Respond in a respectful, compassionate way to self/others

• Support children to build self-regulation & self-discipline:– Practice self-care and regulation daily– Teach techniques and use a variety of tools– Drink water, Play, Move, Eat Well– Acknowledge children choosing to use self-care/reg tools

Mirror vs Manage

• When children are triggered, stressed, mis-behaving– Help them be with what is really going on for them– Observe & MIRROR - name the behavior you see – Give space to soothe, calm, re-redirect themselves:

• Feel and allow sensations, breathe, slow down, ground• Name what they feel• Choose tools to SELF soothe, re-direct, build resilience

• Only problem-solve once children are able to hear and listen– Use self-care techniques – then help kids discuss what happened– No right/wrong – just what we want/agreed and what we don’t– All learning how to be/do/have more of what we choose – Builds self-esteem, self-confidence, empathy & resilience

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Resources• InnerKids.org http://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=LpMvTTIr2p4

• Beck Baily – consciousdiscipline.com

• Mindfulschools.org

• Mindful.org

• Brain Gym®

• Dr. Bruce Perry

• Dr. Dan Seigel

• Dr. Daniel Goleman26