Elementary Students Practicing Mindfulness: A Meeting of the Minds(Mindfulness in Education)

Much of the literature about stress and its effects on children is focused on how these various groups can learn how to “cope,” “adapt,” and/or “manage” stress. Practicing mindfulness, on the other hand, is about becoming familiar with how one responds to stress and, as important, how one can differentiate between stressors that generate beneficial actions and ones that escalate distress and discomfort. It was the latter approach that characterized the year-long mindfulness project that a group of racial, ethnic, and culturally diverse fifth graders in a local Boston public school participated in during the AY2016-2017. The facilitator of the project met with participating students for an average of 75 minutes, once per week. In large and small group discussions and numerous creative techniques and processes (e.g., photography, symbolic art) the participants explored, documented, and assessed how they experienced various forms of mindfulness and how those processes informed their thinking, emotions, and actions. As important, participating in the project provided the young people with opportunities to become ‘mindfulness ambassadors’ who brought mindfulness into their families, school, and respective communities. Engaging in mindfulness practices provided the young people with opportunities to develop life-long, skillful ways to become familiar with their minds, increase their self-awareness, more effectively respond to difficult thoughts and emotions, and provide strategies to foster positive connections with others. In addition, sharing and exploring strategies for developing a mindful perspective contributed to creating an environment for learning that intersected with young people’s capacity to be critical thinkers and thoughtful decision-makers. The greatest contribution of the book is that it is threaded with the voices of young girls and boys who speak about themselves, their thoughts and emotions, their experiences with fear, anxiety, success, and failure with directness, honesty, and a confidence in their skills and abilities. Their participation in the project demonstrates the possibilities classroom teachers have to integrate mindfulness practices into the school day. As important, teachers are invited to hone their own mindfulness practices to ensure that they are intentionally working with their own thoughts, emotions, and assumptions as they relate to the students they teach.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments Introduction Chapter One: Making Meaning of the Mind and Mindfulness Chapter Two: Pausing on Purpose, Breathing with Intention Chapter Three: Working with Stress and Emotions Chapter Four: Mindfulness, Bullying, and Political Discourse Chapter Five: Snapshots of Living Mindfully Chapter Six: Kindness, Compassion, and Mindful Reminders Chapter Seven: Mindfulness Ambassadors References About the Author

About the Author :
Alice McIntyre is professor and chairperson of the Elementary Education Program at Hellenic College.

Review :
Alice’s extensive experiences in the field of education has allowed her to witness an ever changing society and has clearly afforded her the ability to identify the variety of needs of our youth. In a time where violence is more frequent and common amongst the youngest members of our society than ever before, mindful practices need to begin at a very young age. Alice has brought us Elementary Students Practicing Mindfulness: A Meeting of the Minds in an attempt to change the culture of current mindsets. With deep respect for the ten-year-old students she studied, and a poet’s ear for what children can teach us all, Alice McIntyre gives us a sophisticated and practical guide to mindfulness practices. Her work is grounded in Buddhist teachings, informed by social science research, and based on decades of experience as a teacher and PAR scholar. But the voices of the ten-year-olds are always the center of McIntyre's attention and they reveal what the experienceof mindfulness is and why it works. This is a great resource for teachers who are on the front lines of the battle for the life chances of urban, immigrant students and for any adult who wants to understand what mindfulness is.