Social-Emotional Learning

This week, take some time for gratitude. If you think you don’t have time because of all you need to do, consider the research. People who practice gratitude have an improved attitude, have improved physical and psychological health, feel more positive, are able to handle challenges more effectively, and are more likely to have lifelong happiness. When you face life’s challenges with gratitude, they become less overwhelming and more manageable, creating a sense of well-being.

If you still aren’t sure, give it a try this week and see for yourself. Try one of these ideas:

• Go outside for a Gratitude Scavenger Hunt,
• Write a list each day of things you are thankful for,
• Call or send a note to someone you appreciate,
• Be creative and show gratitude through art, dance or music,
• Come up with your own idea!

Even taking one minute to be mindfully grateful each day, especially first thing in the morning, can have a positive impact on your well-being and state of mind!

If you describe a person you know or have learned about who overcame an obstacle or challenge in his or her life, you would be describing someone resilient.

Resilience is the ability to keep trying, even when things are hard. We are not born with resilience; it is something that we learn through each difficult event we encounter. It is a skill that we use throughout our lives at school, in our jobs, in our relationships. Sometimes we challenge ourselves by learning a new hobby like playing the piano or learning to longboard. Sometimes the challenges comes to us, like a school closure and stay-at-home order. Either way, we can use these challenges to learn how to overcome difficult events. Watch this video to learn ways to become more resilient!

Becoming Resilient for Kids

Parents: Here is an article with more information.
20 Powerful Strategies for Building Resilience in Children
 

Whether you’re a student or an adult, we all have a lot on our minds right now, and those thoughts can turn into worries like:

1. The worst thing I can imagine is going to happen.
2. I won’t be able to handle whatever it is that happens.
3. This situation and these feelings are going to continue forever.

When worries continuously play in our head, our brain becomes anxious, and our body becomes stressed. The good news is that we CAN do something to change our mindset and reduce our anxiety, Calming Anxiety in Children article.

For older students and adults, watch this video, Surfing Corona, for inspiration to learn “how we can transform our anxiety into hope, joy, and compassion.” 

Life is busy and finding time to help your child with school assignments can be challenging.  As parents, we often become task-oriented and try to get through our to-do list as efficiently as possible. Connecting with your child before diving into school assignments can help children feel loved, valued, and understood.   

This article, 3 Easy Ways to Create Connection Before Correction in Parenting, by Positive Discipline Parenting Educator, Marcilie Smith Boyle, reviews easy ways to connect with children.

• Elementary students – Hug or sit close by your child. Studies have proven that Humans were built for physical connection.
• Secondary students – Ask for one concern, one hope, and one joke BEFORE asking if their homework is done. Show them that you care about how they are doing.
• Adults- Talk with someone you care about what you are thinking about or how you are feeling. This connection will boost your immune system! 
   

  People need connection! Did you know that being connected to others helps you live longer? Enables you to ward off disease? Reduces the likelihood of feeling depressed? Makes us nicer to be around? We need connections to other people every day, and that is even more true during a time of crisis like we are experiencing now.

  With the stay-at-home order and so many requirements to do work and school using digital resources, take some time for person-to-person connections while maintaining a safe social distance from others.

   Try some of these ideas:
   

These times are difficult as we seek resources to support children at home academically, emotionally, and socially.  Now more than ever, we need to work together to create safe, supportive, and engaging environments.  But how?

In collaboration with Collin Henderson, the founder of Master Your Mindset, Puyallup School District is excited to release video vignettes giving parents, caregivers, and students the tools to cope with emotions and condition the mind to manage stress. 

These brief, but powerful, video clips will be released on a weekly basis via the District website and social media platforms beginning Dec. 14.  Tune in to hear information that builds:

Resilience
Train yourself to have a limitless mind   
Train your mind to be resilient by learning how to be present in the moment.  In this video, Master your Mindset founder Collin Henderson, teaches us that shame and depression live in the past, fear and anxiety live in the future, and wellness and peak performance live in the present. 

This mindset training video provides questions and activities to do as a family—including three powerful tools you can use right now to improve resilience and mental wellness.  Learn how to be in the here and now with the best version of YOU in the present moment.

Confidence 
The Power of Confidence and Self-Talk How do you train yourself to be confident?  Your belief in your abilities to perform a certain task is directly linked to confidence, but where does this come from?  Research shows that self talk is the number one source that influences confidence.  The most important conversation that you have each day is with yourself.  

In this mindset training video, learn how to master your self-talk through affirmations.  This will, in turn, influence your mindset.

Motivation
Learn to Cultivate Motivation in your Life
The traits of successful people are Drive + Belief = Success, or D+B=S.  Mindset Coach Colin Henderson explains the three main roadblocks to motivation: feelings, procrastination and lack of clarity. How do you remove these roadblocks to cultivate motivation in your lives?

This mindset video breaks down the art and science of motivation, learn how drive contains five elements of proper goal setting.  

Connection
Let's Make Connection a Huge Focus this Year
Studies show the number one source of happiness is human connection. Right now we are missing that human connection, causing us to feel isolated.  Here are four ways to have connection: love yourself, be of service, stay curious, and over-communicate.

 The fourth video in this series shows us how to connect better and make relationships and connection a key mindset focus.

Mindfulness
Practice Mindfulness Each Day to Reduce Stress and Anxiety
The past, present, or future – where do you focus most of your mental energy? Learn how to train your mind to focus on the present, to connect with the here and now to reduce stress and anxiety. Mindfulness is a practice.  Carve out time each day to be still, be present in the moment.

This mindset video provides prompts for family discussion, and exercises designed to train your mind to be in control, to be calm and in the present moment.

Happiness
Three things needed to achieve happiness, and a summary of the wellness tips presented in the last five trainings.
In this last video of the series, Mindset Coach Colin Henderson asks us to consider which comes first – success then happiness?  Or, does happiness attract success?  The science is clear.  People who are happy, optimistic, and grateful first achieve success faster. Take a few minutes to learn the three things needed to achieve happiness, and to summarize the wellness tips presented in the last five trainings.

Most importantly, it’s ok if you’re not ok. Kids can ask for help from their school counselors, parents can search the internet for counselors and resources in your area. Asking for help is a sign of strength.

You’ve got this!  The body has limits, but the mind is limitless. YOU are limitless!

 

Whether you are a student or an adult, we are all experiencing stress in some way as we deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. Deep breathing is one of the best ways to lower stress in your body and is a strategy that you can use anywhere at any time. Although everyone’s reactions are different, some signs that your body could be feeling stress are faster breathing, tense muscles, upset stomach, irritability, low energy, or insomnia. Intentionally breathing deeply sends a message to your brain to calm down and relax.

Try one of these techniques the next time you feel stress in your body (or if you want to prevent stress from building up)

4-7-8 Breathing Exercise

A Japanese Method to Relax in 5 Minutes

Lazy 8 Breathing