Take One: A Teacher’s Despair

In a bustling classroom, Ms. Lion found herself caught in a whirlwind of unruly students. The atmosphere was chaotic, the kids couldn’t sit still or focus on their studies. Overwhelmed by the emotional tumult brewing within her class, Ms. Lion often found herself shifting from teaching to impromptu counseling sessions and just plain old fashioned room monitoring.

One particularly challenging day, she reached a breaking point. Frustrated and defeated, Ms. Lion decided to allow her students to go to the bathroom, or use their phone . The mostly promising academic environment devolved into mediocrity with students taking advantage of the newfound freedom to disengage even more from learning.

Take Two: A Teacher’s Triumph

In the same bustling classroom, Ms. Lion faced the challenge of her disengaged and restless students. Recognizing the need for change, she approached the class with empathy. Addressing the elephant in the room, she acknowledged their restlessness and the emotions bubbling within. Ms. Lion was shifting the classroom from chaos to hope.

Ms. Lion said “I see everybody’s very antsy this morning, having trouble sitting still and concentrating. I’m sure there are a lot of feelings building up everyday! It’s not easy to be a teenager .

Some of you may be looking forward to something. Others may be disappointed or hurt about something, so let’s try a calming exercise.

With a gentle half-smile, Ms. Lion guided her students through a mindful breathing- feelings exercise, encouraging then to open their palms to the day and put on half a smile turning the smile up a little .

Let’s try to embrace our feelings acknowledge them, and let them go so we can do some work for now.

Ms. Lion’s warmth and guidance allowed the students to visualize their emotions, breathing in the good and releasing the bad.  As they embraced positive emotions, a sense of serenity settled over the room.

This transformed atmosphere became a catalyst for success. Ms. Thompson’s classroom evolved into a space where both academic and emotional growth thrived.

How to do the exercise: (It can be 3-5 minutes.)

Our brains interpret a smile as a signal that things are better. This makes us more receptive to our day including learning.

• • Now, let’s begin the deep breathing sequence:
  • a. Inhale deeply through your nose for five counts.
  • b. Hold your breath for five counts.
  • c. Exhale slowly through your mouth for five counts.
  • d. Hold your breath again for five counts.
• • As you continue deep breathing, let’s transition to a guided visualization:
  • a. Identify two positive feelings, perhaps calmness or thoughts of a place you like.
  • b. Inhale those positive feelings with a smile, allowing the positivity and light  to flow through every part of your body.
  • c. Inhale appreciation, hold it, and then gently release it.
  •  
  • Notice and release negative emotions:
  • a. Exhale any feelings of hurt, disappointment, anger, tiredness, or upset.
  • b. Inhale the good feeling once more, letting it go and preparing for the next step.
  •  
  • Symbolic release with a balloon:
  • a. Visualize placing the challenging emotion into an imaginary balloon before inflating it.
  • b. Let the balloon go into the sky, open your arms, and smile, symbolizing the release of negative feelings.
  • c. Embrace the positive feeling once again, allowing it to radiate through your body like light, preparing you for a focused and positive learning experience.

      Or Use This Fun Calming Movement Exercises: (It can be 3-5 minutes.)

1. Daily Song Selection:

   • Rotate among students to pick one song each day to play in the room to move to for 3 -4 min.
   • Chosen student stands in front of the room.

2. Class Preparation:

   • All students stand by the side of their desks.
   • Selected student leads any movement to the chosen song.

3. Guided Movement:

   • Perform various movements (arms up and down, legs up and down, body rotation, shoulders up and down, squats) in place for three minutes.
   • Encourage creativity – students can choose movements that feel right for them.

4. Participation Requirement:

   • Everyone stands and participates.
   • If the selected student doesn’t feel like leading, the teacher can take charge.

5. Reflection on Emotions:

   • Students are encouraged to jot down their initial and final feelings on their phones.
   • Emphasis on tracking the shift from the start to the end of the exercise weekly privately.

6. Understanding and Expressing Emotions:

   • The teacher can provide a feeling poster as a visual aid.
   • Use a list of feelings on the wall to guide students in expressing their emotions.

7. Focus on Positive Mental Health:

   • Promote a positive learning experience through movement.
   • This structured approach integrates movement, self-expression, and emotional awareness, fostering a positive and supportive learning environment.

Another  helpful technique for figuring out feelings is the FEELING TOWN MAP. You can print and distribute it to all the students. They can keep it with them to fill out weekly and keep track of how they are feeling. It will help them sort out many feelings. You can download it here.  –