The value of mindfulness in the Middle East Classroom
By Karen McGivern
Sharing Good Practice
Mindfulness techniques can bring students a greater sense of calm , concentration , empathy and awareness . The practice can be described as bringing one ’ s full attention to the moment , with curiosity and lack of judgement .
I began using mindfulness in my classroom simply , with a version of the ‘ Sound and Thoughts ’ meditation that can be accessed on the ‘ Frantic World ’ website . In sessions after lunch , when students were returning to the classroom hot and frazzled , I asked them to close their eyes and simply to listen to their surroundings , noticing anything they could hear . I encouraged them to avoid ‘ labelling ’ sound or ‘ judging ’ it and to try not to be pulled into mental ‘ stories ’ about it .
As per the non-judgmental ethos of Mindfulness , I explained that if attention wandered away , as it would , they should gently escort it back to the matter in focus . This is the essence of most Mindfulness meditations and it is startling how quickly it changes the atmosphere in a room . Within minutes , students were calmer , more alert and engaged . I did not use the term ‘ Mindfulness ’ with them , but it wasn ’ t long before they were requesting ‘ the quiet thing .’
Secondly , I wanted to investigate how I might use Mindfulness techniques to enhance the teaching of my subject - English . I decided to employ the core principle of ‘ noticing ’ to feed into the creation and analysis of poetry . I asked students to walk around campus , seeking out things they had never noticed before . It could be an element of nature , but it did not have to be . It could be something beautiful or something simply striking . I also asked them to take a photograph of something they would like to focus on . They then looked further into their images , breaking them down in order to describe aspects : building up nouns , adjectives , similes , metaphors and finally - so as to engage higher order thinking - potential themes connected to them . This eventually allowed for an original piece of poetry to be created . I was amazed at the quality and was brought to tears by one . I am convinced that it was the initial Mindful approach that made the students so open and sensitive .
I employed a similar technique in introducing a class to a poem for IGCSE coursework : ‘ Electricity Comes to Cocoa Bottom ’ by Marcia Douglas . The poet describes a moment in which villagers see electricity for the first time . I wanted students to think about the importance of moments , of how fleeting they are and how they should be savoured . I set them up with ‘ The Chocolate Meditation ’, also to be found on the ‘ Frantic World ’ website , in order to physically engage in this idea . I sent them out to pay attention to their environment , as though seeing it , like the electricity , for the first time . On return , we read the poem and I asked what they thought it was about . The responses were delightfully genuine , empathic and perceptive . Again , I attributed this to the Mindful activity they had engaged in .
These and other Mindfulness activities can be adapted for other subjects . The creative minds of teachers will have little difficulty in doing so . Taking students in a History lesson through the sights and sounds of a Tudor street might be one idea , for example , or in PE asking students to ‘ see ’ or in slow motion ‘ act out ’ the process of a perfect throw / stroke / kick . Anything where we are asking students to slow down , focus on one thing , in the moment , will not only enhance their learning , but quieten their mind and , in turn , improve their mental and personal wellbeing .
Class Time
| | Nov - Dec 2016 |
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