The Wellbeing in Education Podcast

Feeling slightly more stressed about having to include more wellbeing in the curriculum?!If that resonates even slightly with you, you are going to love the rest of the conversation that I have with today's guest, Dora, a Class Yoga graduate and training assistant. Dora shares her thoughts and experiences around the overwhelm and pressure that she once felt as a school teacher, that lead her to starting yoga herself. How the changes to her wellbeing inspired her to find the right mindful yoga experience for her daughter - and how that lead to her training with me and becoming a full time children's yoga teacher. It's a conversation that I'll think you'll enjoy and learn a lot from, whether you're a parent or teacher.If you are a school teacher wanting to get started with sharing yoga and mindfulness to your pupils - for the benefit of their wellbeing, and yours - get started with a free trial of Well Ed at classyoga.com/welled. It's the Class Yoga video resources site that expertly guides you to sharing safe, effective yoga and mindfulness in school.If you have some experience, and you're ready to learn to teach these skills to children, then why not join us on the next CYTT course. Head to classyoga.com/tt to see the upcoming course dates!Connect with Dora at dora@classyoga.com - she teaches yoga to children in West London. 

In this episode I share a series of affirmations that you can share with your children - all around raising self-esteem. Affirmations are powerful mind tools: when we continue to tell ourselves what we want to experience, the faster those experiences/ feelings will become a reality. Have a listen through - I repeat the affirmations for a second time - then share them with your children. Watch a similar video, and download the transcript at classyoga.com/selfesteemAt the time of recording we are approaching the next round of our Teacher Training course! Find out more at classyoga.com/ttEnjoy yoga, mindfulness, visualisations, relaxations, breathing and affirmation recordings and videos inside Well Ed. Find out more at classyoga.com/welled

Better wellbeing leads to improved academic attainment.To me, and perhaps yourself, this is a very intuitively true statement.But as educators, we all want to make the right choices when it comes to improving our children’s wellbeing - so having trusted researched evidence to back our intuition when it comes to raising wellbeing for raising success - is, in my opinion, more than welcome.  Will government even support us fully without thorough and dedicated academic research linking wellbeing to success? and, might this research actually cause us to question our definition of success and reevaluate what a successful educational outcome looks like? For these reasons and more, I celebrate today's guest, Tania Clarke, a PhD scholar from the education faculty at Cambridge University, who is undertaking an enormous research project to examen the link between psychological wellbeing and academic attainment at school - so that we all might better understand the reasons behind this relationship that we know exists, and for what this greater understanding could mean for schools. "Some educators feel that wellbeing is a nicety rather than a necessity, but my research and the work of others in the field suggests that on the contrary, a whole-child approach to education, whereby children's wellbeing is seen as foundational, is critical to children's development of self but also their ability to learn." Tania Clarke.Join me for this inspiring and highly informative conversation, including Tania's action items for teachers to implement now.Connect with Tania on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/taniaclarkecambridge/and Twitter https://twitter.com/taniaclarke_At Class Yoga we pride ourselves on being experts in wellbeing in education, which is why we created Well Ed - it's a video resources platform for schools and teachers providing yoga and mindfulness for pupils and staff. Start your free trial now at classyoga.com/welled

Today I want to speak to you about some of my core values and methods when it comes to teaching yoga to children, that I've developed through experience over the last 12 years, teaching 1000s of kids from age 3 and up.  I want to talk to you about:- why not to design a yoga class for children around a story - and how to go about it instead.- why it's useful to plan your lesson, and even better to not use the plan- why the yoga itself, and we as teachers with the right training and support are enough to captivate, engage and provide an abundance of benefits - from strength and coordination, to self worth and confidence, to resilience and emotional intelligence, and more. The next Class Yoga Children's Yoga and Mindfulness Teacher Training course starts on the 17th July! This is our 11th course, but the first Summer round we've held! Enrolment closes on the 11th July, so if you have at least one year's personal yoga practice experience, have felt the benefits and want to share those benefits with children aged 4 to 12, then we'd love to welcome you on this 6 week live-led, online course. Head over to classyoga.com/tt to find out the details!Find out about Well Ed - our video resources platform and the Educator CPD at classyoga.com/welled.

Today I’m thrilled to be talking about growth mindset, with my guest Gemma Sanchez. I’m a big believer in the transformational power of developing a growth mindset for individuals and organisations as it’s something I have worked on personally and in my work within schools through yoga and mindfulness, but if growth mindset is new to you, or you are aware and interested to know more then this conversation is going to excite you!Gemma and I discuss what Growth Mindset is and how to bring it to an educational setting to benefit pupil and staff wellbeing, how it builds resilience and independent learning capabilities and ultimately improves academic attainment. Let’s dive in!See exactly how Helen teaches growth mindset through yoga and visualisation, with Well Ed® - the follow-along yoga and mindfulness video resource platform from Class Yoga, designed and taught by Helen especially for pupils and educators. Get your free trial at classyoga.com/welled!To see more of Gemma's work head on over to:www.growyourmindset.co.uk

It's a practical follow along episode today. Get you and your children or classroom comfortable, either seated or lying down and join me in this short but very effective breathing exercise designed for children to help them calm down.After a few times doing this class the kids will start to remember the techniques and apply them themselves in moments of stress, to self regulate their emotions and moods a feel positive and better.Follow a video version and plenty more yoga and mindfulness classes inside Well Ed® - the follow-along resources platform from Class Yoga, designed especially for pupils and educators! Get your free trial at classyoga.com/welled.

Schools in the UK are now required to incorporate Social, Moral, Spiritual and Cultural development into the school day, but how do we do that, and more importantly how do we do it in such a way that it has a real benefit to your children and school?Today my guest is Hayley McDonnell, teacher and SMSC expert. We discuss the massive benefit a well implemented SMSC programme can bring to your children, and some practical advice for school leaders, home educators, parents and teachers.To connect with Hayley head on over to her website at: https://hayleymcdonnell.com

Visualisation is a powerful tool for all of us, including children. This week I have a special episode for you where I guide you through a visualisation to build a child’s confidence to share with your children.Suitable for the classroom or home, children can be seated on chairs or the floor, or lying down.To watch a video version & download the transcript to lead the visualisation yourself head to https://classyoga.com/confidence

Join me for this passionate conversation with International School Principal, Julia Knight!We discuss:- how and why wellbeing needs to be embedded throughout the whole curriculum- why it's crucial to consider and enhance the wellbeing from our Early Years children- why we must be the change-makers to allow our future generations to flourishand so much more!Find Julia at @KnightWilliams on Twitter and Julia Knight on LinkedIn 

Giving our children the time and permission to just be calm, relaxed and happy is such an amazing gift in this busy modern world of ours. In this special episode I have a calming guided relaxation for you to share with your children. This is great to do anytime, at home or in the classroom.For a video version and a downloadable transcript to use yourself head over to https://classyoga.com/calming

This episode is all about PLAY! Laughter Facilitator, Katie White, joins me for a conversation about her playful approach to wellbeing techniques. She believes that if this approach was adopted in more schools, children would be better equipped when they are faced with difficult emotions or situations. And that teachers would also have more ways of responding to the needs of different children. A few of the things we discuss:- Using a scale with children to help them to identify + recognise their anxiety. - Using role play as a tool to help children play out their fears and take back control- Cultivating mindfulness practices in games and group activities so children can practise and strengthen their ability to reach a level of calm - Creating a safe space for children to fully express their emotions, through high energy games, improv, and therapeutic laughter techniques.  Find out more about Katie and her work at https://thebestmedicine.co.uk/Head to https://classyoga.com for free yoga and mindfulness resources 

How yoga and mindfulness improve executive brain function - and social and emotional intelligence.The executive brain functions are all the ‘adulting’ things that we are required to do: like plan ahead, organise, assess risks, empathise with others, manage time, rationalise... and The region of the brain responsible for this type of thinking - the prefrontal cortex - is still under development in children and adolescents. Today I want to talk about a few ways that yoga & mindfulness can help aid this development, particularly of the executive function region.Visit us at classyoga.com/welled to start your free trial and see the benefits of mindful yoga in your school!Try our other free resources here >> https://classyoga.com/magazine/

A couple of weeks ago I did an episode all about yoga - to unravel some myths around it and explain just how great it is to incorporate at school for the benefit of pupils and teachers. Today, I want to talk more about its benefits on our body and mind. I've chosen 4 physical benefits that yoga offers to young people and adults - that each have a psychological benefit as well, to show you how, when taught in the right way, yoga can raise physical, mental and emotional wellbeing.  If you're inspired to get sharing yoga with your pupils and staff, at Class Yoga we offer a school programme that includes ready to use videos in a whole range of lengths and intentions, so go try it for free at classyoga.com/welled. 

3 ways that mindfulness boosts our immune system, lowers stress and anxiety, and reduces common illnesses. In this episode we'll explore the benefits of mindfulness on our  immune system to help us stay healthy in body and mind - a fascinating topic, as well as a really practical one in the effort to raise staff wellbeing and lower absence due to illness.Take a free school trial of Well Ed to experience the benefits of yoga and mindfulness at school - classyoga.com/welledResearch:Mindfulness meditation and the immune system: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials; David Black, George Slavich; 2016Can meditation slow rate of cellular ageing? Cognitive stress, mindfulness, and telomeres; 2011Zen meditation, Length of Telomeres, and the Role of Experiential Avoidance and Compassion; 2016

This is a short breathing exercise that I recommend to do first thing in the morning, not long after you have got up. It's going to help start your day feeling calm - because of the mindful awareness that we'll be taking on to our breath - but also alert because the attention on the breath, leads to fuller breathing and oxygen in take. This one is just for you, rather than to share with pupils - but you will see similarities with the guided breathing that I do lead for children and young people. So be sure to explore Well Ed, when you trial or enrol, and try the full range of breathing classes in there - both for teachers and kids. To get your 2 week free trial, head to classyoga.com/welled.

Today I want to start talking more about the practice of yoga at school. I'll be uncovering a few myths around what it is and who it's for - and provide some simple ideas for incorporating it at school to raise physical and mental wellbeing. As you may know or have already heard on this podcast, my main area of expertise is in teaching and training in yoga and mindfulness within the education system. So I want to talk about what yoga is, and isn't, some benefits it offers, and discuss how it can be included at school for the wellbeing benefit of everyone.Teachers, take a 2 week free trial of Well Ed from Class Yoga at classyoga.com/welled - and start seeing the benefits of yoga and mindfulness at school, today!Just a few of the research papers on yoga:Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Attention and Executive Function in Children and Adolescents—a Systematic Review; Catherine Mak, Koa Whittingham, Ross Cunnington & Roslyn N. Boyd. 2017 Yoga Prevents Bullying in School; Dee Marie, M.A., CYT1, Grace Wyshak, PhD2, George H Wyshak, DMD, PhD3; American Medical Association Alliance, Boulder, CO, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, MA, AHIMSA Non-profit Organization, Boulder, CO.Mindful movement and skilled attention. Dav Clark, Frank Schumann and Stewart H. Mostofsky. Front Hum Neurosci. 2015; 9: 297.Don’t worry, be active: positive affect and habitual physical activity.  Pasco JA, Jacka FN, Williams LJ, Brennan SL, Leslie E & Berk M (2011). Australian and New Zealand Journal ofPsychiatry, 45(12) p. 1047-52

In this episode I'll be speaking about anxiety, and specifically how we help reduce it with mindful movement at school. We know that we need to reduce anxiety levels and increase the well-being of our pupils and educators, so in this episode, I want to share with you how mindful movement has the potential to do just that!Get a free school trial of Well Ed®, the wellbeing in education programme from Class Yoga, at classyoga.com/welledResearch mentioned: Mindful movement and skilled attention. Dav Clark, Frank Schumann and Stewart H. Mostofsky. Front Hum Neurosci. 2015; 9: 297.

In this episode I'm talking about what it really means to be mindful - and the true positive impact it can have for us in education.What mindfulness really is. Why it's so important within education. Plus 3 simple steps to help us live more mindfully, more of the time. To take a free trial of Well Ed®, the wellbeing in education programme from Class Yoga, head to classyoga.com/welled.Research mentioned:Extracts from Mindfulness for Teachers, Patricia Jennings and Dan Siegel, 2015Mindfulness and the pre-frontal cortex, Chiesa & Serretti,  2010Mindfulness and empthy,  Beddoe & Murphy, 2004 

How we can simply define what wellbeing is, what it looks like in our pupils and 3 approaches to promoting pupil wellbeing in school. As everyone can have a different perspective on what wellbeing is, or perhaps has never truly considered it - in this episode I'll draw upon my experience of working within the wellness industry and the education sector, to share with you what I consider wellbeing in children and young adults to look like - and to offer some simple approaches to boosting the wellbeing of your pupils. To trial Well Ed®, the school wellbeing programme from Class Yoga, head to classyoga.com/welled.

In this episode I'm talking about the importance of a whole-school culture approach to well-being - why we need all teaching staff onboard, and wellness embedded into the school day as routine, in order to make real positive impact for pupils and teachers.We'll touch on research that shows intervention approaches need to be embedded into the curriculum and supported by professional development. And we'll cover the 3 stages to successfully implementing a wellbeing strategy in school, that I have seen to work.To trial Well Ed®, the school wellbeing programme from Class Yoga, head to classyoga.com/welled.