Mindfullness & Meditation in the Classroom



The last couple of years were stressful. There’s no way to sugar-coat it, Covid threw us all for a loop. Teachers were stressed, school Administrators were overwhelmed, parents were stretched-thin working full-time with children at home, and our students were forced to adapt to a new way of learning at a rapid pace.  Kids were feeling all the feelings!


I have always felt that social/emotional learning (SEL) was a top priority, however it became really apparent throughout the Covid crunch that we as educators needed to make time and space in our lessons for SELs.  In 2020 I started to research new ways that I could add SELs into my elementary classroom on a daily basis.  I wanted to be sure that I was teaching my students how to recognize, name, and then manage their own emotions.  During Covid, while asking my students for what felt like the millionth time, “How are you doing with all this?”, I started to wonder if they even had the emotional vocabulary/awareness to express how they were feeling.  I know most educators are already aware of Calm, an online program for mindfulness and mediation (https://www.calm.com), and I was using it in my classroom, but sometimes I felt like the vocabulary wasn’t accessible for my young learners.  I wanted something else in my arsenal. Via my research I found the Mind Yeti program (https://www.mindyeti.com/v2/s/pricing) and I was happy to discover there are many free Mind Yeti videos on YouTube.  


Mind Yeti is a research-based, online collection of kid-friendly mindfulness and meditation videos.  The videos are around 3-5 minutes and feature a truly hypnotic voice, with incredibly soothing age-appropriate imagery.  The videos provide simple instructions to lead children through a brief mindfulness practice which helps them learn to recognize their feelings, and teaches them practical self-regulating skills. In my own classroom when its ‘Mind Yeti time’ I let my students know before I dim the lights, that if they don't want to actively participate in the video, its simply a quiet time for relaxation and to be respectful of others who choose to follow the video instructions.  Students are allowed to remain in their chairs, stretch out on the floor, put their heads down, or lay sprawled out on the floor- basically, get comfy! I have used the videos to ease daily transitions, calm nerves before a big school event or test, or provide a brain-break in a hectic day.  


My own classroom experience with the videos has surprised me to be honest.  Of course at first there were some giggles, and it took students a few tries to get on board, but I stuck with it.  And i’m glad I did.  My students this past year got to the point where they were asking me for a video, they were reminding others to be respectful because they wanted to participate, and even started using the Mind Yeti vocabulary to describe their feelings when I checked in with them.  I also saw how incredibly effective the series could be for students with IEPs with a former Autistic student who suffers from quite intense anxiety outbursts.  This particular student, absolutely LOVED the series, was always the first to lay down, get comfortable and followed all of the Mind Yeti video cues.  It was such a relief to know that I had another practical, and useful tool to support this student, and the parents also began to use the series at home during stressful moments.  


I’ve included a link to the YouTube video collection below. Im so happy to share something that has truly been so helpful these past couple of years, and it’s definitely something that I will continue to use my classroom in the future.  




Mind Yeti on YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/c/MindYeti/featured


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