The mindful teacher

I began painting "ensos" after attending a contemplative teacher workshop in St. Paul a couple summers ago. The word "enso" means circle in Japanese, and comes out of the Zen tradition, although many cultures have created art based on the circle- sometimes called mandalas . What struck me the first time I painted an enso was the simplicity and spontaneity of the process, and that it involved the complete focusing on the moment at hand. There is also the sense that an enso is perfectly imperfect.  There are other interpretations of the enso, such as wholeness,    completeness , or eternity , but ultimately, it can mean whatever the viewer brings to it. For me, it's also the perfect symbol of the dialectical nature of our daily existence - the constant up/down, in/out balance that characterizes everyone's experience. But this is all  theorizing.  The true master might  just smile and say, "It's a circle --why  add anything more?" A tra...

Should mindfulness practices be taught in public schools?  This question has recently been highlighted by a lawsuit filed in a Cape Cod school district, over a program called Calmer Choice.   There was also a a long essay on the topic recently published in Tricycle magazine (a Buddhist publication). The  concern is that mindfulness programs are actually promoting  Buddhism in schools.  At Highview Middle School (the public school where I teach), I have been leading and sharing mindfulness practices for many years, so this is a topic has particular relevance for me and the community I work with.  At my mindfulness trainings and workshops,  we have never stressed -nor even discussed- the core teachings of Buddhism.  We have discussed the idea that life entails stress and difficulty- a common  sense observation embodied in the "First noble truth" (of Buddhism).  Anyone who is involved in education- or merely alive- can assent to t...

                                                                                                                                                                        On Friday of this week, our entire school took a break from our normal schedule, and instituted a day of "exploration." Teachers were asked to prepare lessons outside of their normal curriculum, and we offered everything from mask-making  to "reading cafe," cooking, "Shrinky Dinks," one-act plays, thoughtful movie watching, and even a trip to the local police station (and much more). Although it was a ...

Recently a colleague at my school said to me, "I need some more of that patience that you were talking about".... referring, I think, to a workshop I gave a few days prior, on mindfulness. He reminded me of a phrase I have been practicing with for several years, "May I be patient"... It has resurfaced in my mind countless times as I've dealt with challenging students and classes. I decided to make this artwork in honor of my friend's comment, and I made copies for all the staff at my school. It's a simple but powerful phrase. You might like to try memorizing it and practicing with it. Patience is certainly one of the cardinal virtues that every teacher has to have- or start cultivating. 

I recently returned from three  days in Denver for the 2015 Mindfulness in Education Conference. It consisted of two days of wonderful speakers and workshops, and a final day of mindfulness practice on Sunday.  There are several such conferences now across the country, but this one was founded about eight years ago by Richard Brady, a former high school math teacher from Washington D.C. I've been fortunate to attend every conference put together by the MiEN folks, (Mindfulness in Education Network), and each year just seems to get better. It's now a three day event, with speakers and experts from around the country convening to share the insights from their work in the fields of mindfulness and education.  My wife accompanied me on this trip, and after a day or two, she asked me,  "So what are you learning?.... Are you learning anything new?"  I had to pause when she asked me this question. Certainly most of the concepts are familiar by now: defining mindfulness...

The end of the school year has always provided a challenge for me. The silence of an empty room  has a certain poignancy about it. Leftover student projects litter the counters, like confetti after a ticker-tape parade. Empty hallways seem like medieval catcombs. And custodians begin clearing out rooms with a business-like efficiency. There's also the letting go. Saying good bye to the many students I've developed relationships with;  saying goodbye to colleagues who've decided to move on; letting go of projects that have been in the works for several years; Letting to of a daily routine, which I have down to the minute due to my commute and class schedule. It all involves quite an adjustment. It used to be a  difficult transition for me, taking several weeks to slow down and adjust to my summer schedule. It doesn't take quite as long now, having cultivated the tools of mindfulness and relaxation. I think of my "school mind" as a spinning top, whirling from mo...

I consider energy to be a key component of genius, and if that's true, I've known many geniuses in my tenure at Highview: people who seem to have the ardor of 3 or 4 teachers, who teach a full, chaotic load, as well as put on dances, decorate hallways, and run student councils.  Stacey Olinger, a 6th grade teacher at Highview,  is one of those people who does all that and more. All with a 1000 watt smile, too.  But even geniuses need to hit the reset button from time to time. I received an email from Stacey earlier in the year where she shared how she found a few moments during her prep time to practice mindfulness: "... The other day, I listened to one of your  mindfulness  podcasts in the middle of my prep just so I (could) re-focus and re-energize. I so appreciate your commitment to the whole child. .....you continue to make sure it is deemed important and talked about. " And on the final day of the school year, she shared with staff some feedback from a stu...