We’d like to share some social skills activities, worksheets, and mini schedules that you can teach to your students or children, or that you can use personally: How to Practice Mindfulness.
Mindfulness is the act of taking intentional notice of what is happening in the moment. Paying attention to how your body feels, what you see, smell, hear, taste. It’s allowing yourself to feel the emotions you are feeling in that moment, noticing what your mind is doing. Are you having a lot of rapid thoughts? Is your mind drifting to a particular topic or thought pattern?
Mindfulness has a lot of benefits. It can help you or your child/student focus more deeply on tasks, navigate through difficult emotions, and allow your body to relax.
Try these five steps to start your mindfulness practice:
- Still your body. Sit with your arms and legs relaxed, un-tense your muscles in your face or shoulders.
- Close your eyes.
- Stay quiet and listen. What do you hear around you?
- Take deep, slow breaths in and out. Focus on your breathing.
- Pay attention to the thoughts that are crossing your mind. What does your mind drift to when it’s not focused on a specific task or activity?
Learn how to teach your students to practice mindfulness and give it a try yourself!
These special education resources for practicing mindfulness were authored by Andee Morris, M.Ed.
Power Point Presentations:
I Can Practice Mindfulness PowerPoint
I Can Practice Mindfulness Facilitator’s Guide
Resource Materials:
I can Practice Mindfulness Magnet Cards
I Can Practice Mindfulness Activity 1 – Sound Signal
I Can Practice Mindfulness Activity 2 – Deep Breathing Exercise
I Can Practice Mindfulness Parent Note
I Can Practice Mindfulness Mini Schedule
This week I might try to practice mindfulness
I Can Practice Mindfulness Teacher Note
I Can Practice Mindfulness Outline
Pre/Post Assessment
A pre and post lesson assessment is included in each lesson. Use of the assessment is an instructor preference. Many of the ‘homework’ pages for a lesson can be used as a pre/post assessment device alone or as part of the provided assessment. Each homework page can be checked by the instructor as well as the student.
Review all included pages of the lesson to determine what ‘assessment’ method will meet your needs. If the student is able to achieve a + in the majority of items of the pre-assessment, or if the student has been observed to display the skill topic of the lesson often, then the lesson may not be introduced or can be taught with a group as review and/or reinforcement.
I Can Practice Mindfulness Pre-Post Assessment
If you have questions or concerns about the Watson Institute’s use of this information, please contact us.