Easy and brief ways to incorporate yoga techniques in the classroom. Stress is everywhere in kids’ lives and impacts their well-being at home and school. Exercise is known to reduce stress, yet students have never been more sedentary. And teachers have little time to add yet something else into the school day. Enter Louise Goldberg and Classroom Yoga Breaks. In this essential book, readers will find a comprehensive guide to incorporating short yoga breaks into their classrooms. Teachers will learn how to promote movement, learning readiness, attention skills, cooperative community, and self-regulation—all in just a few minutes a day. Goldberg’s evidence-based principles of “Creative Relaxation”—creating a peaceful environment where students feel safe, engaged, successful, and independent, promoting empathy and mutual respect—lead the way toward successful use of yoga in the classroom. The book includes a step-by-step curriculum for integrating yoga breaks into the classroom and over 200 illustrated exercises—enough to incorporate one every day of the school year. Twelve units are arranged by theme, with lessons consisting of one- to five-minute exercises, that can be done from the seat or standing. Each unit includes topics for discussion or writing, movement, breathing exercises, focusing activities, relaxation techniques, mindful practices, and self-calming skills. Yoga is a complement to social and emotional learning, mindfulness training, and physical education. It can help address bullying behaviors, students with autism and special needs, and promote overall resilience and executive function. With this book in hand, readers can integrate these fun, relaxing, and healthy breaks into the daily lives of their students and themselves.

Easy and brief ways to incorporate yoga techniques in the classroom. Stress is everywhere in kids’ lives and impacts their well-being at home and school. Exercise is known to reduce stress, yet students have never been more sedentary. And teachers have little time to add yet something else into the school day. Enter Louise Goldberg and Classroom Yoga Breaks. In this essential book, readers will find a comprehensive guide to incorporating short yoga breaks into their classrooms. Teachers will learn how to promote movement, learning readiness, attention skills, cooperative community, and self-regulation—all in just a few minutes a day. Goldberg’s evidence-based principles of “Creative Relaxation”—creating a peaceful environment where students feel safe, engaged, successful, and independent, promoting empathy and mutual respect—lead the way toward successful use of yoga in the classroom. The book includes a step-by-step curriculum for integrating yoga breaks into the classroom and over 200 illustrated exercises—enough to incorporate one every day of the school year. Twelve units are arranged by theme, with lessons consisting of one- to five-minute exercises, that can be done from the seat or standing. Each unit includes topics for discussion or writing, movement, breathing exercises, focusing activities, relaxation techniques, mindful practices, and self-calming skills. Yoga is a complement to social and emotional learning, mindfulness training, and physical education. It can help address bullying behaviors, students with autism and special needs, and promote overall resilience and executive function. With this book in hand, readers can integrate these fun, relaxing, and healthy breaks into the daily lives of their students and themselves.

In today's schools, students and teachers feel unprecedented—even alarming—levels of stress. How can we create calmer classrooms in which students concentrate better and feel more positive about themselves and others? Author Thomas Armstrong offers a compelling answer in the form of mindfulness, a secular practice he defines as the intentional focus of one's attention on the present moment in a nonjudgmental way. In Mindfulness in the Classroom, Armstrong - Explains how mindfulness affects the structure and function of the brain. - Provides an overview of mindfulness as both a personal practice and a classroom methodology that aligns with such educational models as Social and Emotional Learning (SEL), Positive Behavioral Intervention and Supports (PBIS), and Universal Design for Learning (UDL). - Shares and explains the extensive research that shows the positive effects of mindfulness practices in the classroom. - Describes how to adapt mindfulness for different grade levels, integrate it into regular school subjects, and implement it schoolwide. - Offers guidelines for teaching mindfulness responsibly, without religious overtones. Dozens of observations from teachers, students, researchers, and practitioners provide striking evidence of the power of mindfulness and offer hope to anyone who wants to make classrooms more productive places of learning.

This is the first research-based text intended to help teachers and practitioners implement mindfulness and yoga programs in schools. A complete review of the literature on mindfulness and yoga interventions is provided along with detailed steps on how to implement such programs. Training requirements, classroom set-up, trauma-sensitive practices, and existing quality programs are reviewed. Twelve core principles of mindfulness and yoga in schools are woven throughout for the utmost in continuity. As a whole, the book provides tools for enhancing classroom and school practices as well as personal well-being. It is distinguished by its emphasis on research, translation of research into practice, and insight into potential roadblocks when using mindfulness and yoga in schools. Mindfulness and Yoga in Schools provides: A thorough examination of the efficacy of mindfulness and yoga in reducing stress and conflict and enhancing student engagement to serve as a rationale for integrating such programs into schools How-to sections for training, classroom and lesson plan preparation, and implementing specific techniques and comprehensive programs Photographs, scripts, and figures to help implement your own programs A tool for assessing and cultivating teacher and student self-care Part I reviews the conceptual model for embodied self-regulation and the risks associated with a lack of self-regulation, an intervention model used in education, and tips for implementing mindfulness and yogic practices within this approach. Parts II and III review the philosophical underpinnings of mindfulness and yoga and critically review the mindfulness and yoga protocols and interventions implemented in schools. Part IV addresses mindful self-care for students and teachers, including a scale for establishing self-care goals and a scoring system.

A how-to manual for yoga with kids in classrooms and therapeutic settings. If you are a parent of a child with special needs or a professional who works with one, you know how challenging it can be for them to sit still, to cope with change, to focus on self-soothing strategies, and to interact successfully with others. For these kids, yoga therapy can provide crucial support. Behavior and focus, strength, flexibility, balance, and self-regulation are all improved through yoga, making it an ideal practice for children on the autism spectrum, with ADHD, sensory processing and emotional/behavioral disorders, and other exceptionalities. For use in school, at home, or in therapeutic settings, Yoga Therapy for Children with Autism and Special Needs is a how-to manual that meets children where they are, providing a yoga therapy "lesson plan" that will engage them; promote play, social interaction, speech, language, and motor development; and enhance their self-esteem. It teaches an array of CreativeRelaxation techniques using posture, breathing, and mindfulness designed specifically for children with autism and special needs. Drawing on her 30 years of yoga therapy experience with children and those who work with them, the author walks readers through yoga strategies that both calm and energize, emphasizing sensory and bodily awareness and the "sacred space" that is so important for these children. Learn the best ways to use your voice and body effectively when working with children; how to minimize distractions and ease transitions; and how to create personalized yoga breaks to enhance independence and avert meltdowns. Featuring 60 illustrated poses, 89 photos, and 65 lessons, songs, and games, child-friendly instructions are provided for posture, breathing, and mindfulness exercises. All poses and routines include suggested adaptations and precautions for use, and are organized to address specific sensory skills. Current research on the benefits of yoga for health and learning is summarized, and readers learn how, through yoga practice, the brain’s response to stress can be effectively mitigated. With this book, parents, therapists, and educators alike have the tools to successfully develop a therapeutic yoga program for the very children who can benefit most from it.

This unique book presents a practical and realistic approach to implementing a school-wide, K–12 Genius Hour program—one that can succeed regardless of budgetary and infrastructure constraints. Genius Hour is a movement in which students are allowed to spend a portion of their in-school time learning about a topic of their choosing—even subjects outside of the curriculum. When properly implemented, a Genius Hour program can create true passion for learning among unmotivated students, ignite interest in STEM as well as the arts, encourage collaboration, improve the relationship between educator and students, and help prepare students for real life outside of the educational system. But revamping a school library program to offer a Genius Hour program may seem like an insurmountable task—especially when working with a limited staff or budget. This book provides specific direction and concrete advice that enables school librarians to lead a school-wide program for all grade levels, from kindergarten to 12th grade. It explains why Genius Hour is the perfect program complement to the learning commons environment; presents research and support that will empower librarians to make a convincing case to administration; explains how to enlist the participation of faculty; and provides step-by-step guidance to begin, successfully manage, and grow a campus-wide Genius Hour. Librarians will see why investing in "creative teaching" is worth the effort, despite their limited time and resources; understand how to help underperforming students make their distractions "count" in school; and look forward to playing a part in creating imaginative and independent thinkers, not test takers.