Substitute teachers: Want to promote emotional, social, psychological, and mental well-being among students? Teach mindfulness! Here’s how.

<h2>How Substitute Teachers Can Bring Mindfulness into the Classroom</h2><p>Activities that promote emotional, social, and psychological well-being in the classroom are perfect for subs! What better way than mindfulness activities to help your students become calm, focused and eager to learn?</p><p>We know educators are busy and that reputable resources can be hard to find. So, we’ve compiled our top three sites to help you teach students how to support their own mental health and well-being through mindfulness!</p><h2>What Is Mindfulness?</h2><p>Mindfulness is the state of being aware, or present, in the moment. It involves paying attention to what’s happening internally and externally while releasing interpretation or judgment.</p><h2>How Can Teaching Mindfulness Help Children and Teens?</h2><p>Evidence suggests mindfulness can improve children's and adolescents' overall health and well-being (<a href="https://www.lidsen.com/journals/icm/icm-04-01-001" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">OBM Integrative and Complementary Medicine</a>). Further, mindfulness-based interventions have been shown to help children and teens with mental health symptoms (<a href="https://acamh.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/camh.12113" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Association for Child and Adolescent Mental Health</a>).</p><p>Mindfulness may help students improve (<a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00603/full" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Frontiers in Psychology</a>):</p><ul><li>Academic performance</li><li>Anxiety</li><li>Attention</li><li>Classroom participation</li><li>Compassion</li><li>Conflict resolution</li><li>Depression</li><li>Disruptive behavior</li><li>Focus</li><li>Self-control</li><li>Stress</li></ul><h2>Top 3 Mindfulness Resources for Children and Teens</h2><p>Here are our favorite resources subs can use in the classroom to teach mindfulness:</p><ul><li><a href="https://kidshealth.org/en/kids/mindfulness.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Nemours KidsHealth</a> – Nemours Children’s Hospital has a site called KidsHealth, which explains mindfulness in kid-friendly language. It has exercises on mindful eating, breathing, walking and speaking. The site has a step-by-step script that subs can read aloud to kids or that students can read themselves. Plus, it links to other Nemours wellness pages on relaxing and unwinding, using yoga to lower stress, training your temper and dealing with test anxiety.</li><li><a href="https://www.additudemag.com/ten-mindfulness-exercises/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">ADDitude Mag</a> – ADDitude is an online resource for individuals with ADHD and related conditions and professionals who work with them. They have a rich selection of resources on mindfulness for children and teens, including a mindfulness meditation to “soothe squirming souls,” a <a href="https://www.additudemag.com/webinar/mindfulness-meditation-for-kids/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">webinar and podcast</a> on mindfulness for young children with ADHD, a <a href="https://www.additudemag.com/download/mindfulness-for-adhd-kids-10-easy-meditation-exercises/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">free download</a> with ten kid-friendly mindful meditations, and more.</li><li><a href="https://achieve.lausd.net/smh" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Los Angeles Unified School District</a> – LAUSD has extensive resources to help promote mental health, wellness and mindfulness. For example, on their School Mental Health page, you’ll find articles on creating sanctuaries in schools and how mindfulness can help teachers and students. They also offer a PDF on <a href="https://achieve.lausd.net/cms/lib/CA01000043/Centricity/Domain/260/SMH_Mindfulness for Educators_handout.pdf" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">mindfulness for educators</a> and a page of <a href="https://achieve.lausd.net/cms/lib/CA01000043/Centricity/domain/416/attendance/staff/fridays brief aug-oct 2020/FREE Mental Health Apps.pdf" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">free mental health apps</a>.</li></ul><h2>Substitute Teacher Jobs</h2><p>Find your next <a href="https://www.crosscountryeducation.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">sub job</a> today!</p>

Mindfulness Activities for Students and Subs