SEL & Mindfulness in the Block Schedule

What is it?

Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is...

  • a set of skills needed for healthy human development

  • a wide range of skills covering the competencies of self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision making

Mindfulness is...

  • a state of awareness that is conscious, curious, and non-judgemental.


These tenets will be woven into our daily class time.

A Sample Class Schedule

(5 minutes) SEL/Mindfulness Activity, examples below...

  • Listen to a guided meditation (apps: 10% Happier, Headspace)

  • Sensory awareness exercise: notice 5 things you see, 4 things you feel, 3 things you hear, 2 things you smell, 1 thing you taste

  • Candle gazing meditation

  • Tense & Release

  • 5 Finger Breath: trace your hand and inhale as you go up a finger, exhale as you go down.

  • Yoga or stretching such as sun salutations or cat/cow

  • Take 5 deep belly breaths, concentrating on slowing the exhale

  • Journaling

  • Name your emotion (tool: The Feelings Wheel)

(10 minutes) Intro to class or demonstration

Sometimes this will be a quick recap of what we're working on, other times it will be a demonstration of a technique, or an introduction to a new project.

(25 minutes) Studio time

Uninterrupted time to work on your project.

(about half way through) Break

Motor break! Go to the bathroom, get some water, stretch...

(25 minutes) Studio Time

Uninterrupted time to work on your project.

(5 minutes) Clean Up

  1. Clean up your space

  2. Complete your daily cleaning task

  3. Help someone else

  4. Sit back down

(5 minutes) Closure

Before heading off to the next thing, we'll take a moment to debrief about the class through exit tickets, a turn & talk, or a quick group discussion.