Professional Development Plan:

A Still Quiet Place

Mike Smith, Ashley Cameron and Natalie Horne

Educ 569: Mindfulness in Education

St. Francis Xavier University

July 28th, 2015

A Still Quiet Place PD Plan: Day 1 (Staff Handout)

Agenda (9:00 – 3:00)

The goal of today’s session on mindfulness is to set the tone for a positive and engaging day of professional development and provide a sense of where our school is going with respect to the practice of mindfulness as we continue to improve our school. We hope to provide you with some experiences of mindfulness and help you to begin to develop your own understanding of mindfulness. This is the first of three sessions based on the mindfulness book “A Still Quiet Place” by Amy Saltzman.

Session 1 – Mindfulness?!?!!? (9:00 – 10:15) Welcome

Mindful Eating

Group Agreements

Break (10:15 – 10:35)

Session 2 – Mindfulness!!!!! (10:35 – 12:00) Introductory Video

Connection to CSI

Question Period

Lunch (12:00 – 1:00)

Session 3 – Big Picture (1:00 – 1:30) Meditation

Overview

Break (1:30 – 1:45)

Session 4 – The present and considering the future (1:45 – 3:00) Rationale

Group discussion and Go forward

Additional Resources

Saltzman, A. (2014). A still quiet place: A mindfulness program for teaching children and adolescents to ease stress and difficult emotions. Oakland, CA: New Harbinger Publications.

Video: Dr. Amy Saltzman ‘Still Quiet Place Within’ at Mind and Its Potential 2012https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9igPP_QlHWw

Website: Amy Saltzman’s Still Quiet Placehttp://www.stillquietplace.com

A Still Quiet Place PD Plan: Day 2 (Leader’s Version)

Agenda (9:00 – 3:00)

Session 1 – Mindfulness?!?!!? (9:00 – 10:15) Welcome (5 minutes)

The goal is to set the tone for a positive and engaging day of professional development and provide a sense of where our school is going with respect to this practice as we continue to improve our school.

Mindful Eating (25 minutes)o Staff will participate in a mindful eating practice to introduce the idea of

mindfulness. The script below can be found on page 53-54. o An important part of this first session is to experience mindfulness, specifically

mindful eating. This is intended to give you an immediate, personal, embodied understanding of mindfulness by paying attention in the present moment with kindness and curiosity. We have some apple slices for each of you. Directly from the text, we would like to share the following with you:

Take a moment and just notice how you are feeling right now: curious, tired, restless…I hear lots of thoughts like, ‘Yeah, I love apples.’ Ew, I hate apples.’ Just notice your thoughts as the apples are passed….Let’s take a moment and just feel the objects in our hands….Are they heavy or light?...Warm or cool?....Smooth or rough?...What do you see? An apple? Well, if you take away the idea of an apple, what do you see?.... Is it just one colour? What do you notice about the shape and the texture?...What did the stem do?....Yes, it connected it to the tree. Did you have a stem when you were a baby?....Yes, your belly button was your stem. What did it connect you to?.... How did the apple get from being attached by the stem to the tree to being in our hands?... Yes. It fell off the tree, or someone picked it. Then what?... It was put on a truck and then in a box, or in a box and then on a truck. Someone drove it to the store. Someone unloaded it, put a price tag on it, and put it on the shelf. Someone – me – chose it, paid for it, brought it home, washed it, put it in a bad and brought it to school today for this in-service. The person next to you passed it to you, and now it is in your hand, just waiting to be eaten.As we eat these objects, let’s use them to practice mindfulness. Let’s bring our kind and curious attention to smell. What does this object smell like?.... What is happening in your mouth and your mind as you smell this object?...Now close your eyes and bring your attention inward, to just yourself and your object…..

We will be doing the next portion of the exercise in silence. Do your best not to get ahead of me. Close your eyes. Lift the object to your mouth, taking just one bite and letting the bite rest in your mouth.Let the bite of the apple rest in your mouth, paying attention to what is happening in your mouth…. Don’t rush….Now take just one chew, noticing the taste….Continue, taking one single chew at a time, noticing how the taste changes, how your teeth and tongue work…Do your best to put all of your attention into your mouth, with the apple and chewing and tasting….See if you can notice the urge to swallow before you actually swallow, and then feel the whole swallow as the food moves down your throat….Take your time….Be curious about your experience….Before you open your eyes, notice how your body, mind and heart feel now, in this moment.

Group Agreements (45 minutes)o A significant amount of the work we do will be activities, usually in groups. It is

important that we develop group norms that can guide how we interact with each other. Please take the next 30 minutes and work with your pre-assigned group to discuss some that come to mind. We will then come together and reach consensus as a whole staff.

Break (10:15 – 10:35)o We have provided water/juice and your choice of fruit in the cafeteria. Enjoy

the time for refreshments, the chance to chat with colleagues or to use the washroom. Please be back by 10:35 am.

Session 2 – Mindfulness!!!!! (10:35 – 12:00) Introductory Video (25 minutes)

o We have chosen the following video because it provides a solid introduction to the concept of Mindfulness and the Still Quiet Place textbook.

o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9igPP_QlHWw Connection to CSI (40 minutes)

o As we approach year two of our CSI process, we have established our goals (academic: By June 2017, Hants East Rural High will reduce the percentage of course failures by 5% as a result of implementing strategies focused on improving work habits as defined in the Learner Profiles and climate: By June 2017, Hants East Rural High will demonstrate improvement in staff and student morale by 5% as measured by staff and student surveys), implementation strategies and timelines and set up our working committees, it is time to consider setting the table for an actual program to improve our school for students and staff. This program must be consistent with the CSI goals and driven by our agreed upon CSI process. As a staff, earlier this year, we looked at five possibilities and Mindfulness was the consensus choice. With three staff members having completed a graduate course on Mindfulness at

Saint Francis Xavier and two more teachers on staff with significant yoga teaching experience, we have a start in terms of colleagues with some experience. There may be others of you who have experience we don’t know about. As importantly, there may be a number of you eager to learn. We will not rush through this training. This will not be mandatory. If you choose not to participate, you will be assigned other professional development to takes its place.

Question Period (20 minutes)o This may be quite a paradigm shift for many of us. With that in mind, are there

any questions? You will be provided with resources to read at the end of each day which may prompt additional questions. As the old saying goes, if you have a question you can be sure the person beside you is wondering the same thing.

Lunch (12:00 – 1:00) You are on your own for lunch. By providing a full hour, our hope is that you

will be back here and ready to get started at 1:00 pm.

Session 3 – Big Picture (1:00 – 1:30) Meditation (10 minutes)

o The staff will be asked to sit in a comfortable position and close their eyes if they feel comfortable. They will then be led through the guided meditation practice found on the next page. A debrief will occur if the staff have comments or questions to offer.

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,and remember what peace there may be in silence.As far as possible without surrenderbe on good terms with all persons.Speak your truth quietly and clearly;and listen to others,even the dull and the ignorant;they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons,they are vexations to the spirit.

If you compare yourself with others,you may become vain and bitter;

for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.

Keep interested in your own career, however humble;it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs;for the world is full of trickery.

But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;many persons strive for high ideals;

and everywhere life is full of heroism.Be yourself.

Especially, do not feign affection.Neither be cynical about love;

for in the face of all aridity and disenchantmentit is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,gracefully surrendering the things of youth.

Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.

Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.Beyond a wholesome discipline,

be gentle with yourself.You are a child of the universe,

no less than the trees and the stars;you have a right to be here.

And whether or not it is clear to you,no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,whatever you conceive Him to be,

and whatever your labors and aspirations,in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.

With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,it is still a beautiful world.

Be cheerful.Strive to be happy.

Overview (20 minutes)o We have three full days of PD to explore Mindfulness at our school. We

will be using the text A Still Quiet Place by Amy Saltzman, MD. We chose this text because we feel that it is written in language that is appropriate for our needs as well on focusing on mindfulness in a school context that could be implemented in a positive way.

o We will outline the key themes from the book and the way it is set up with 8 sessions of mindful exercises.

Break (1:30 – 1:45)

Session 4 – The present and considering the future (1:45 – 3:00) Rationale (60 minutes)

o Let’s spend an hour looking at some data which may support the reason for embarking on this Mindfulness journey.

2006 2011 20140

20406080

100

47

92 89

35

2 4

Teachers: 6. Our school has a positive learning environment

posneg

2006 2011 20140

40

80

90 85

4 4

Teachers: 18. This school has high ex-pectation for teachers and administra-

tors

posneg

2006 2011 20140

40

80

15

67 51.063829787234

73

19

34.042553191489

4

Teachers: 4. Teachers receive praise, thanks, and other recognition for their

work at this school

posneg

2006 2011 20140

20406080

100

3657

3431 3347

Teachers: 11. School-based PD related to school and teacher professional goals

posneg

2006 2011 20140

20406080

100

12

45 40

82

28 26

Teachers: 17. Honest, open communica-tions exist among staff members

posneg

o We are not going to lead you with our own thoughts on what these charts indicate. Instead, we ask that you spend 15 minutes in your groups discussing what you see and the implications for further PD. Some thoughts may include growth, decline, statement importance, size of percentage values, perceived validity of responses, relationship to mindfulness, opportunity for improvement, etc.

Group discussion and Go forward (15 minutes)o Spend the last 15 minutes having a whole staff discussion about the day,

how they feel about the concept and what potential benefits and pitfalls may lie ahead as we go down this road.

A Still Quiet Place PD Plan: Day 2 (Staff Handout)

Agenda (9:00 – 3:00)

As outlined in Day 1, today we will be reviewing the first four sessions as outlined in the Still Quiet Place book. We have chosen activities and information which we feel will make a valuable contribution to your understanding of mindfulness and its potential contributions to improving the quality of life at our school. We hope that, one day, you will feel comfortable sharing these activities and concepts with those around you, including yourself, your loved ones and students.

Session 1 – Taking a Bite, Taking a Breath (9:00 – 10:15) Singing bowl

Intentions/outcomes of session 1

Review group agreements and guidelines

Community check-in

Mindful eating practice and discussion

Breath-based Still Quiet Place practice

Breath-based Still Quiet Place discussion

Singing bowl

Break (10:15 – 10:35)

Session 2 – Beginning Again (10:35 – 12:00) Singing bowl

Intentions/outcomes of session 2

Seaweed Movement practice

Debrief of Seaweed Movement practice

Pleasant events exercise

Debrief of pleasant events exercise

Participant Check-in

Singing bowl

Lunch (12:00 – 1:00)

Session 3 – Thought Watching and Unkind Mind (1:00 – 1:30)

Singing bowl

Intentions/outcomes of session 3

Action circle movement practice

Mindfulness of Thoughts practice - Bubbles

Bubbles and thought watching discussion

Meeting the Unkind Mind discussion

9 dots exercise and discussion

Singing bowl

Break (1:30 – 1:45)

Session 4 – Feelings and Unpleasant Experiences (1:45 – 3:00) Singing bowl

Intentions/outcomes of session 4

Unpleasant events exercise and discussion

Suffering = Pain x Resistance discussion

Halfway point discussion

Home Practice and Resources

Singing bowl

Additional Resources

TED Talks: Mindfulness in Schoolshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mlk6xD_xAQ

Article: School Mindfulness Programs may Reduce Stress – and make Teens Happier, Study Findshttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/28/mindfulness-in-schools_n_3505319.html

Website: Mindfulness in Schools Project – this website has lots of resources to offer. Feel free to browse at your own leisure! http://mindfulnessinschools.org

A Still Quiet Place PD Plan: Day 2 (Leader’s Version)

Agenda (9:00 – 3:00)

As outlined in Day 1, today we will be reviewing the first four sessions as outlined in the Still Quiet Place book. We have chosen activities and information which we feel will make a valuable contribution to your understanding of mindfulness and its potential contributions to improving the quality of life at our school. We hope that, one day, you will feel comfortable sharing these activities with those around you, including your loved ones and students.

Session 1 – Taking a Bite, Taking a Breath (9:00 – 10:15) Singing bowl (5 minutes)

o The ringing of the singing bowl will be used as a method to begin and end each session in a mindful, purposeful way. Its purpose will be to focus everyone’s attention and have them refocus their thoughts and energy to the purpose of the session while participating in a simple listening practice.

Intentions/outcomes of session 1 (5 minutes)o The intentions for this session include reviewing purpose of mindfulness

and its potential usefulness in schools. It is also an opportunity to providing more mindful experiences.

Review group agreements and guidelines (10 minutes)o As established during the day 1 session

Community check-in (15 minutes)o This will be an opportunity to develop an understanding of how the

information from the day 1 session has impacted the participants’ lives. An informal discussion will follow, and prompting questions will be provided if necessary, including but not limited to:

Are there questions from last day, regarding what mindfulness is or its potential use and impact at school?

Have you watched or read any of the articles or videos that have been provided? Have they been useful or did anything stand out to you as you browsed the resources?

Have you been using mindfulness in your personal life? Mindful eating practice and discussion (15 minutes)

o Each staff member will be provided with a nutritious option, like an apple or orange. Since the staff was led through a mindful eating practice in day 1, we will use the same format and prompting speech as outlined in day 1 and page 53-54 of the book as a review. If the majority of the staff seems to be engaged in the process, less prompts may be offered throughout the activity.

o Since the mindful eating practice was debriefed during day 1, we will have a more informal discussion period following the exercise. We will remind the staff that slowing down and paying attention to each

sensation experienced during eating is mindfulness. We will open the floor to comments or questions and be prepared with prompting questions if necessary, including:

Did you find it difficult to mindfully eat? Do you practice mindful eating during regular meal or snack times?

Since you have already done this exercise once, was your experience the same or different this time? In what ways was it similar or different?

Breath-based Still Quiet Place practice (10 minutes)o Ask the staff to sit in a comfortable position, grounded in their chairs

with their feet on the floor and close their eyes, if they feel comfortable, to participate in a mindful exercise.

o The book outlines a breath-based practice called Rest for people age 11 to 18. Read through the script on page 57 – 58, adjusting terms as necessary for an adult audience. For example, consider replacing worries of “homework” with “bills”.

Breath-based Still Quiet Place discussion (10 minutes)o As a wrap-up to this activity, lead the participants through a discussion

as outlined on page 58-59. Remind them that paying attention to the breath is mindfulness

and it is important to follow the natural rhythm of the breath, not to try and extend or hold it.

Let the people who want to share their experience feel free to do so. As a leader of the discussion, remember to practice non-judgment, especially if people experienced difficulty. Let them know that mindfulness is not about feeling calm or relaxed, but being attuned to one’s feelings in the moment.

Singing bowl (5 minutes)o Simple listening practice to indicate end of session 1 and the beginning

of break. Break (10:15 – 10:35)

A break similar to day 1 will be offered to all staff.

Session 2 – Beginning Again (10:35 – 12:00) Singing bowl (5 minutes)

o Simple listening practice to indicate the beginning of session 2 Intentions/outcomes of session 2 (5 minutes)

o The intention of this session is to help participants to notice the details of their pleasant experiences, including their thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations (p. 63).

Seaweed Movement practice (15 minutes)o The purposes of this activity are to provide participants with a chance

to move around and help to establish the importance of physical practice. We are aware that some staff members may feel silly or shy

doing this, but we believe that these moments can be powerful team-building moments.

o Ask everyone to move to an open space in the room and spread out. Read through the script on page 66 – 67.

Debrief of Seaweed Movement practice (10 minutes)o This will be a very open and informal discussion. Open the floor to

comments or questions. As a leader, validate the experiences of each participant and commenter.

Pleasant events exercise (15 minutes)o Ask participants to recall a pleasant event from the last couple of days,

and suggest they focus on a brief and simple moment. Use the pleasant events cartoon provided from the book’s website so that participants to recall the thoughts, feelings and physical sensations associated with the experience. For more detail, see page 67-68.

Debrief of pleasant events exercise (20 minutes)o Have willing participants share their experience and/or the thoughts,

feelings and physical sensations associated with it. o Remind the group that some students, and perhaps themselves, had

trouble coming up with a pleasant experience. We could all use the reminder that pleasant events can be the simplest of experiences, and they may bring us the most joy even if we don’t recognize it in the moment (p. 68)

o Explain that being mindful of pleasant experiences can lead to practicing gratitude. Have people share in small groups or to themselves things that they are grateful for in their lives (p. 69)

Participant Check-in (15 minutes)o Open the floor to any questions, comments or concerns the group

members may have. Encourage open, honest dialogue among colleagues and do your best to reassure the participants and validate their experiences.

Singing bowl (5 minutes)o Simple listening practice to indicate end of session 2 and the beginning

of lunch.

Lunch (12:00 – 1:00) You have one hour for lunch. Please return to the library in one hour. Try to be

mindful of the time as we have a full afternoon scheduled!

Session 3 – Thought Watching and Unkind Mind (1:00 – 1:30) Singing bowl (5 minutes)

o Simple listening practice to indicate the beginning of session 3 Intentions/outcomes of session 3 (5 minutes)

o The intention of this session is to have participants begin to learn how to observe the thoughts and feelings that occur during difficult

situations and to begin to develop the capacity to challenge negative inner dialogue.

Action circle movement practice (15 minutes)o The purpose of this activity is the same as the seaweed movement

practice. o Lead the group through the activity on page 76. o Debriefing may not be necessary after this activity, but open the floor to

any comments or questions after the exercise. Mindfulness of Thoughts practice - Bubbles (15 minutes)

o The purpose of this exercise is to introduce the group to the idea that thoughts are impermanent and to have them focus their attention to their thoughts, since we often act on thoughts that we may not even be fully aware of.

o Provide each group member with a set of bubbles and lead them through the exercise, reading the script on page 77.

Bubbles and thought watching discussion (15 minutes)o Open the floor to any comments or questions regarding the activity. o Use the talking points on page 78 to lead a discussion of the activity.

Highlight the ideas that thoughts are impermanent, some thoughts continually reoccur in our minds, many thoughts are universal and shared by many people, and some thoughts can be inaccurate and trigger other thoughts and feelings.

Meeting the Unkind Mind discussion (15 minutes)o Transition from the thought watching discussion to the idea of the

“unkind mind”, meaning negative internal dialogue. Use the discussion points on page 78 – 79 to review the concepts. Emphasize that just as we all struggle with negative self-talk, our young students are also susceptible to the dangers and struggles of negative internal dialogue.

9 dots exercise and discussion (15 minutes)o Handout the nine dots worksheet provided on page 82 and lead

participants through the activity on pages 80 – 81. Encourage them to remember that the point is not to get the right answer, but to focus on outside of the box thinking and challenging negative self-talk.

o After they have had 5 minutes to work on their own, lead the group through a debriefing discussion using the talking points on pages 80 – 81. Ask staff to consider how we can use these ideas to support students in our classroom when they are facing challenging situations and their negative self-talk is encouraging them to give up.

Singing bowl (5 minutes)o Simple listening practice to indicate end of session 3 and the beginning

of break.

Break (1:30 – 1:45)

Session 4 – Feelings and Unpleasant Experiences (1:45 – 3:00)

Singing bowl (5 minutes)o Simple listening practice to indicate the beginning of session 3

Intentions/outcomes of session 4 (5 minutes)o The intention of this session is to explore the thoughts and feelings that

arise during challenging or unpleasant events. The idea that much of our suffering is due to wanting things to be different is a key concept.

Unpleasant events exercise and discussion (15 minutes)o Ask participants to think of an unpleasant experience that occurred

during the last few days and ask them to think about the thoughts, feelings and physical sensations associated with this experience.

o Handout the unpleasant events cartoon provided on the book’s website and ask them to sit in a comfortable seated position, and if they feel comfortable to close their eyes. Read through the script on page 88 and ask them to complete the cartoon worksheet.

o Open the floor to ask if anyone wants to share their experience or their thoughts, feelings of physical sensations.

Suffering = Pain x Resistance discussion (20 minutes)o Write this concept on a whiteboard (if possible) and introduce the idea

that we can influence how much suffering we experience by the amount of resistance to the pain we feel.

o Use the talking points on pages 90 – 92 to highlight key concepts. o Have participants think of a negative circumstance or event in their life

(“pain”) and assign it a number from 1 – 10. Ask them to think about the amount of resistance or how much they want that situation to be different, and assign that a number. They can then find their suffering number. Ask them to discuss in small groups their example and try and come up with alternate ways of dealing with the situation to reduce their overall suffering.

Halfway point discussion (20 minutes)o Since the participants have now attended two full day sessions and are

halfway through the Still Quiet Place sessions, this is an important time to check in. This can be an informal discussion about how participants are feeling about the activities and mindfulness in general or how they believe these kinds of activities could be implemented in their classrooms and potentially provide benefits to their students. A review of the major concepts of the course could also be discussed at this time, if time permits.

Home Practice and Resources (5 minutes)o Bring the staff’s attention to the resources provided on the agenda and

encourage them to review these resources before the next in-service day. Singing bowl (5 minutes)

o Simple listening practice to indicate end of session 4 and the end of the in-service day.

A Still Quiet Place PD Plan: Day 3 (Staff Handout)

Agenda (9:00 – 3:00)

As outlined in Day 1 and 2, today we will be reviewing the last four sessions as outlined in the Still Quiet Place book. We have chosen activities and information that we hope will contribute to your understanding of mindfulness and its potential impacts on your own life and the lives of those around you. We believe mindfulness has the potential to improve the quality of life and morale of our school, and we appreciate your open-mindedness and thoughtful participation throughout our sessions.

Session 5: responding and reacting: holes and different streets (9:00-10:15) Singing bowl

Intentions/Outcomes of session 5

Review group agreements and guidelines

Mindful eating

Community check-in

Emotion theory discussion

Holes and different streets discussion

Yoga practice

Singing bowl

Break (10:15-10:35)

Session 6: Responding and Communicating (10:35-12:00) Singing bowl

Intentions/outcomes of session 6

Body scan

Difficult communication exercise and discussion

Kind heart discussion

Mindful walking

Singing bowl

Lunch (12:00-1:00)

Session 7: Communication and Love (1:00-2:00) Singing bowl

Intentions/outcomes

Making rain movement practice

Impulses exercise and discussion

Hook report and debrief

Aikido and discussion

Loving Kindness

Singing bowl

Break (2:00-2:15)

Session 8: The End of the Out-Breath Singing bowl

Intentions/outcomes of session 8

Flashlight practice

Putting it all together: PEACE

Closing Sharing

Moving forward

Singing bowl

Additional Resources

TED Talks: All it takes is 10 Mindful Minuteshttps://www.ted.com/talks/andy_puddicombe_all_it_takes_is_10_mindful_minutes?language=en

Article: Bringing Mindfulness to the School Curriculumhttp://www.macleans.ca/society/health/bringing-mindfulness-to-the-school-curriculum/

Website: Mindful Schools – this website offers lots of information and a variety of resources. Check it out if you’re interested in more information!http://www.mindfulschools.org

A Still Quiet Place PD Plan: Day 3 (Leader’s Version)

Agenda (9:00 – 3:00)

As outlined in Day 1 and 2, today we will be reviewing the last four sessions as outlined in the Still Quiet Place book. We have chosen activities and information which we hope will contribute to your understanding of mindfulness and its potential impacts on your own life and the lives of those around you. We believe mindfulness has the potential to improve the quality of life and morale of our school, and we appreciate your open-mindedness and thoughtful participation throughout our sessions.

Session 5: responding and reacting: holes and different streets (9:00-10:15) Singing bowl (5 minutes)

o Bring our awareness to the session and the tasks at hand by listening mindfully to the singing bowl.

Intentions/Outcomes of session 5 (5 minutes)o Expand on the feelings practiceo Examine unpleasant events and the idea that suffering = pain x

resistanceo Explore the use of yoga to further our mindfulness presentation

Review group agreements and guidelines (5 minutes)o As established during the day 1 session

Mindful eating (10 minutes)o As mentioned in our second day agenda, we will be releasing the

responsibility of the facilitator in the mindful eating practice as people develop their own mindful practices. Provide apple slices and ask staff to eat mindfully.

Community check-in (15 minutes)o Facilitate a discussion regarding people’s experiences with mindfulness

thus far. Allow your staff members to direct the discussion to the topics they believe need to be covered, but some topics you should touch on include the readings from last session, the homework practice, and how mindfulness has impacted people’s daily lives both in and out of the classroom.

Emotion theory discussion (10 minutes)o Following the instructions/script on page 103-106 of A Still and Quiet

Place, facilitate a discussion on emotions. The ideas explored in this session may seem basic, but it is important that staff members realize that recognizing our emotions is one of the key aspects of choosing to respond instead of reacting. You should introduce the idea of the ‘refractory period’ to staff.

Holes and different streets discussion (15 minutes)o Read the poem “Autobiography in Five Short Chapters,” to your staff. It

may be helpful to project it via an LCD projector. The poem can be

found on page 112 of the book. When you’ve finished reading the poem ask your staff members to try to identify some common ‘holes’ they fall into. Ask them to think about the different realms of their life, professional (interactions with students, coworkers, administration), or personal (interactions with family and or friends) where they might experience holes. If people feel comfortable, they might share their ‘holes’ with the rest of the staff. Ask staff members to choose one of their common ‘holes’ and think of something they could do to avoid falling into these ‘holes’ in the future. There are worksheets available to help facilitate this activity on the A Still Quiet Place website (http://www.newharbinger.com/27572)

Yoga practice (10 minutes)o Calling upon the expertise of a qualified yoga instructor from our school,

we will engage in yoga practice emphasizing the ‘still quiet place’ that is so easy to tap in to through mindful movement. We will offer a short and gentle practice that will help staff members engage in mindfulness.

Singing bowl (1 minute)o Ring the singing bowl to signal to participants that the session has

ended and break has begun.

Break (10:15-10:35) Tea, coffee and water as well as fruit and muffins will be available in the

cafeteria. Please feel free to help yourself. While on break, try to remember to eat mindfully.

Session 6: Responding and Communicating (10:35-12:00) Singing bowl (5 minutes)

o Ring the singing bowl to signal to participants that break has ended and the session has begun.

Intentions/outcomes of session 6 (5 minutes)o Review the idea of falling into holes (responding vs. reacting)o Introduce the ‘kind heart’ to counteract ‘unkind mind’o Introduce body scan

Body scan (25 minutes)o To help staff members to become more aware of the physical

sensations they are feeling, as well as to help staff become aware of the physical manifestations of their emotions, introduce the body scan. A guided body scan can be downloaded from the book’s website to play to staff. Essentially, you want to ask staff members to slowly go through each of the parts in their body and notice how they are feeling.

Difficult communication exercise and discussion (25 minutes)o Using the cartoon provided on the book’s website, facilitate a

discussion regarding difficult communication. Ask your staff members to think of a time in the past week that they’ve had to have

a difficult conversation with someone. Using the sheet provided, staff members should first think about how they felt in that moment and what they wanted to happen as a result of this conversation. Encourage staff to really take their time to think about it. Next, ask staff to let go of their own feelings/desires and think about what the other person in the situation wanted. Once you have completed these steps, ask your staff to think of something they could do to avoid falling into ‘holes,’ basically how to avoid having to have the same difficult conversations. Once you’ve finished, randomly pair up your staff members to discuss their difficult conversations. If it’s too personal, ask them to share a less difficult conversation. Listening to each other mindfully, offer suggestions for how you could come up with creative solutions for the problem you were discussing.

Kind heart discussion (10 minutes)o Following the prompts on page 126-127, ask your staff members to

engage in a brief loving-kindness meditation where they will offer themselves the wish “may I be happy.” Once finished, debrief about how this felt and the difficulties staff may have experienced.

Mindful walking (4 minutes)o Ask your staff to wait until you have rang the singing bowl. When

they no longer hear the tone, ask them to get up, push in their chairs, and then mindfully walk to lunch.

Singing bowl (1 minute)o Ring the singing bowl to signal to participants that the session has

ended and lunch has begun.

Lunch (12:00-1:00) You have one hour for lunch. Please return to the library in one hour. Try to be

mindful of the time as we have a full afternoon scheduled!

Session 7: Communication and Love (1:00-2:00) Singing bowl (1 minute)

o Ring the singing bowl to signal to participants that lunch has ended and the session has begun.

Intentions/outcomes (4 minutes)o Continue to develop the ability to respond vs. reacto Explore impulseso Introduce loving-kindness

Making rain movement practice (10 minutes)o To bring the energy back up following lunch, engage in this light

movement activity, which also asks staff members to be mindful. Form a large circle and make rain. This exercise is familiar to many, but if you’re unsure, please see page 135-136 in the book for instructions.

Impulses exercise and discussion (10 minutes)

o A lot of being mindful is being aware of our impulses. To help your staff to understand just how powerful impulses can be, go through the activity outlined on page 130-132 where staff members will be asked to avoid scratching themselves after hearing the word “itch.” Debrief following the activity using the questions from the book as a guide.

Hook report and debrief (10 minutes)o Using page 134-135 of the book as a guide, ask staff to think about a

time in the last week where they got hooked into a bad situation. Ask them to think about who was involved, their thoughts and feelings, actions, and possible alternatives to falling into the ‘hole.’ Debrief using the questions provided as a guide.

Aikido and discussion (15 minutes)o Review the 4 ways we can choose to respond to someone who is angry:

submissive, avoidant, aggressive, assertive. Using the activity outlined on page 137-140, demonstrate these responses to your staff. Have a discussion about the four responses. There is a tendency to believe that being assertive is always the best way to deal with a situation, but this is not always the case. Ask staff to think about how they reacted in a situation that went badly and what would have been better. Read to your staff the story, “a victim treats his mugger right” from the website http://www.npr.org. Facilitate a discussion about how you would react in this situation.

Loving Kindness (10 minutes)o Using the script on page 144-145, ask your staff to engage in some

loving kindness meditation. Prior to engaging in the practice you may want to review a bit of the history and rationale behind loving kindness as found on page 143-144 of your book. Debrief at the end using the questions on page 146 as a guide.

Singing bowl (1 minute)o Ring the singing bowl to signal to participants that the session has

ended and break has begun.

Break (2:00-2:15)

Session 8: The End of the Out-Breath Singing bowl (1 minute)

o Ring the singing bowl to signal to participants that break has ended and the session has begun.

Intentions/outcomes of session 8 (4 minutes)o Tie all of the previous components of the training together

Flashlight practice (10 minutes)o Using the script on page 151-152, lead your staff through a guided

meditation. The premise of this meditation is for staff to learn that we can control our focus.

Putting it all together: PEACE (15 minutes)o Complete the guided meditation using page 141-142 as your guide. This

pulls many of the aspects from your staff training together. Closing Sharing (remaining time)

o Open the floor to any comments, questions, or concerns that may have arisen from the past three sessions of mindfulness training. Allow the staff members to have their opinions and ideas heard. Ask the staff how they believe mindfulness can be utilized in your school and in their teaching practice.

Moving forward (remaining time)o Based upon your previous discussion you will have a better sense of how

to direct your school moving forward. You may need to leave this discussion for a staff meeting if there is not time or you believe you need time to debrief from the previous discussion.

Singing bowl (1 minute)o Ring the singing bowl to signal to participants that the session has

ended and the day has ended.