The Effects of Yoga Practice on Classroom Management in an Elementary School Setting

Traditionally, students in an elementary class are either disengaged or distracted from their classmates. The problem involves behavior and emotional disturbances that are often accelerated by external influences. The purpose of this research is to explore the use of yoga as an approach to reducing stress, increasing self-confidence and reducing negative behavior in a fifth grade class. A review of the literature revealed that students can ultimately improve behavioral management skills when given specific learning tools. Fifth grade students in a suburban elementary school participated in a weekly yoga practice intervention over a 4-week period of time. Students participated in a 60-minute mindful practice which included breathing practice, yoga poses, meditation and relaxation techniques. This is a teacher action research project that involved a mixed methods approach. Quantitative inquiries measured behaviors before and after implementation of the yoga program. Qualitative documentation included teacher notes, student responses to focus group questions and researcher observation. Although no obvious behavioral changes were recorded, results indicated observable changes in strength, balance, and endurance by some students which may explain their increased self-esteem and self-regulation. Noticeable changes in focus, concentration and attention were recorded for a few students. The directing teacher’s final comments highlighted students’ stronger social connections with peers as they learned breathing techniques and how to use their energy more effectively

Self-Regulation and Self-Advocacy Skills in a Fifth Grade Mathematics Classroom

Social emotional learning has recently been at the forefront of many educational discussions because of its link with children’s academic success (Weissberg & Cascarino, 2013). Since mathematics is a cumulative subject, students who struggle to self-regulate and self-advocate at a young age will spend less time on task and be at risk to fall behind their peers academically. The research question addressed in this project was: how can social emotional learning strategies around self-regulation and self-advocacy be integrated into mathematics instruction at the fifth-grade level? An extensive literature review revealed that a strong student-teacher relationship and a plan to set goals are two of the most important strategies for social emotional growth. The final project integrates research recommendations to create a curriculum of 15 morning meetings to be used in a fifth grade mathematics classroom. These meetings utilize strategies from both the Responsive Classroom and Social Thinking programs to build a positive classroom community centered around mathematics

A Yoga-Based Curriculum To Help Learners Deal With Anxious Situations

Through my experience working in education, I have seen the many benefits that yoga can provide children. My observations led to my asking the following research question: What are the elements of a Yoga curriculum that can support learners in dealing with anxious situations? The review of the research literature supported my professional experiences in a variety of areas and the potential value of creating a four-week unit to be integrated into my third grade classroom. For example, it documented that anxiety is prevalent in children today and it does not simply disappear as those children grow into adults. The review of the literature also identified support for the idea that yoga and meditation are strategies that can help reduce anxious feelings. When taught correctly, yoga can help children who are experiencing anxious feelings. During my review of the research it was difficult for me to find a simple yoga curriculum geared toward middle elementary schoolers. That is why I created a four week yoga curriculum for third graders, with each lesson lasting approximately 10 minutes. The purpose and design of this curriculum project is to create support for any student who exhibits anxious behaviors whether or not they have an official anxiety diagnosis. Included in the curriculum are activities and formative assessments are included in this curriculum, along with a multitude of other resources. Through the development of this curriculum, I have learned how to combine appropriate yoga postures and meditation activities with a variety of engaging cooperative learning activities

Slow Looking: Powerful Tool of Mindfulness to Facilitate Transfer

This paper illustrates how teaching through a “slow looking” pedagogy helps students of Generation Z—who have grown up in a culture of distraction and multitasking—cultivate the habits of mind and dispositions that can enhance their academic performance as well as physical and mental health during pandemic remote learning. Drawing on students’ practice of slow looking in freshman writing courses, the paper demonstrates the power of slow looking as a tool of mindfulness to develop students’ insights and knowledge that are useful in educational settings as well as in their personal lives. It elucidates how their practices of slow looking in various contexts developed inner strength, resilience, and compassion which enhanced their capacity for learning through their own self-discovery. It highlights the insights of slow education that embrace the “whole student” (bodily senses, emotions, and mind) and the significance of reconnecting a cognitive dimension of learning with an affective dimension of learning to facilitate “positive transfer,” helping a student’s learning in one context improve their performance in other contexts

Mindfulness and children

The purpose of this study of mindfulness with third grade children is to describe the process using mindfulness as a tool and strategy to help children become self-aware of the present moment, and bring more calm, and focus and attention to learning within a classroom

Reflective Journaling to Decrease Anxiety Among Undergraduate Nursing Students in the Clinical Setting

Many nursing students experience anxiety in the clinical setting. Increased anxiety impairs students’ ability to learn and can have a negative effect on patient safety. To promote student learning and patient safety, it is imperative that nurse educators identify and implement strategies to decrease nursing students’ anxiety. The purpose of this embedded mixed methods study was to determine if reflective journals are an effective strategy to address the problem of student anxiety. Participants were randomly assigned by their clinical group to either write guided reflective journals, non-guided reflective journals, or no reflective journals during their first clinical rotation where they provided patient care. Participants in the quantitative strand of this study (n = 20) completed an online pre-test to measure their state and trait anxiety prior to beginning their first clinical rotation. After completing the four-week clinical rotation participants completed a post-test to measure their state anxiety. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the quantitative data. Participants in the qualitative strand of the study participated in an interview with the researcher. Magnitude coding was used to determine the participants’ perception of the impact of writing reflective journals on their anxiety. In Vivo coding was used for the first cycle of coding for the qualitative data about participant experiences with writing reflective journals. Common themes were then identified There was a decrease in state anxiety between pre-test and post-test data collection for all participants (p \u3c .05). The decrease in state anxiety was statistically significant for participants in the guided reflective journal group (n = 9, p = .006) and the non-guided reflective journal group (n = 6, p = .024). The decrease in state anxiety was not statistically significant for participants in the control group (n = 5, p = .254). Participants who wrote guided or non-guided reflective journals thought the journals decreased their anxiety associated with the clinical setting. Participants who did not write journals thought they would have benefitted from having a journal assignment. Four themes were identified related to experiences with writing journals for all participants who wrote reflective journals: allowed time, identified feelings, assisted with processing, and increased confidence. The findings of this study support the use of reflective journals as an intervention to decrease nursing students’ anxiety associated with the clinical setting. Key Words: anxiety, reflective journals, nursing students, clinical setting, mixed method

A MOVE TOWARD MINDFULNESS: A STUDY OF MINDFULNESS PRACTICES IN REGULAR EDUCATION CLASSROOMS K-12

ABSTRACT Spirituality practices like meditation, mindfulness, and movement (i.e., yoga) have become widely used and researched in the last 20 years among adults in both clinical and nonclinical settings (Bohlmeijer, Prenger, Taal, & Cuijipers, 2010; Burke, 2010; Ludwig & Kabat-Zinn, 2008). More recently practitioners have used them increasingly with young people in clinical settings (Biegel, Brown, Shapiro, & Schuber, 2009; Burke, 2010; Roberts, Roberts, & Chan, 2008; Thompson & Gauntlett-Gilbert, 2008). But at this time, few studies demonstrate how teachers incorporate these practices in K-12 schools, particularly within the regular education classroom (Goldstein, 2010). The purpose of this grounded theory case study was to identify and analyze how teachers and school staff in Minnesota schools implement mindfulness programs with K-12 students in traditional classroom settings and the impact these practices have on students’ behavior, mental health, and performance as described by study participants. This study utilized qualitative data collection under a constructivist-interpretivist paradigm and investigated six schools. The study consisted of 13 interviews with administrators, teachers, and support staff in K-12 settings in addition to classroom observations and a review of mindfulness curriculum. Primary findings reflected three phases of implementation: initiation, the implementation process, and the impact felt by students and schools. Specific findings included the influence of administration and teacher leaders, obstacles faced by stakeholders, the influence of gateway programs, and the motivation for and impact of implementation of mindfulness practices. This study led to the development of a mindfulness implementation model for K-12 students stemming from Fowler and Dell’s (2006) stages of faith development. The phases of the mindfulness implementation model include establishing a safe environment, play, calm and control, and quiet. Results of the study indicate a need to educate the public in the nature of spirituality versus religion and continued K-12 studies that explore long-term levels of impact

Implementing Mindfulness Practices With Parents of Young Children in a Low-Socioeconomic Status Neighborhood

Background: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether instruction in mindfulness practices would results in improved self-reported mindfulness and reduced depression, anxiety, and family stress in parents of young children living in a low socioeconomic status (SES) neighborhood. Methods: The study utilized a pretest-posttest group design to evaluate the effectiveness of the Mindfulness Ambassador Council-Interactive curriculum with attendees in a parent support program. Participants (n=15) were recruited from families with young children who received support from a community-based organization in one low-SES neighborhood in Atlanta. Mental health assessments, measures of family stress and parenting competency, and a demographic questionnaire with non-identifying questions were administered to all participants during the first and last session of the 8-week mindfulness program. Results: Participants reported increased mindfulness and decreased levels of anxiety and depression. Parent reports of family stressors were relatively stable across the two time points, while self-reported parenting competence decreased. Discussion: Based on the parents’ reports of program acceptability and the impact on their well-being, mindfulness training appears to be a promising strategy for addressing the stressors experienced by parents of young children

Adding lemon juice to poison: examining the oxymoronic nature of mindfulness in education and its future direction

This article seeks to amplify a debate initiated in this journal by Hyland (2016)by deepening a number of conceptual, methodological and implementationalissues concerning the application of mindfulness based interventions (MBIs) toschools and other places of learning. It argues that the pursuit of the by-products of mindfulness, enhanced focus and well-being, serve a neoliberalagenda for education. This is lemon-juice to poison as it encourages students toaccept and cope with oppressive structures partially responsible for suffering insociety rather than develop the deepened awareness necessary to challenge andtransform them. Reconnecting mindfulness with its original meaning ofremembrance and discernment is highlighted as a means for engaging studentswith more agentic possibilities. The article begins to make the case formindfulnessaseducation, rather than mindfulnessineducation, realised as anembodied approach rather than psychological intervention with key roles forcontemplative pedagogy and mindful inter-personal relationships