| We are putting our brains in the right spot as we explore this amazing machine. We focussed this lesson on trust and belonging. When we feel connected to others in a trusting relationship we are better able to use our prefrontal cortex to guide our thoughts and decisions. If we feel like we do not belong and we do not trust ourselves and the people around us then our amygdala pops out and then we see Glassman or Rockbrain! By studying the body we can gather greater insight into how to make the most of our relationships with others. |
0 Comments
"I'm prefrontal cortex-PFC for short. I help you solve math problems and get to know your favorite books and TV characters. Give me time to work and I can help you make friends, or make the best decision in a tough situation."
We studied this part of the brain yesterday in our Mindful Body Group. We puts brains into our body cutouts and we are designing a face to put overtop to identify ourselves. We started off with a book called "What Should I do?". It helps us to understand that the thinking part of your brain is called the cerebrum. Some areas of the cerebrum deal with facts. Other areas of your cerebrum deal with feelings. Most decisions deal with both the facts and the feelings. We make hundreds of decisions every day, from eating an apple or banana to whether you should let your best friend copy your homework. This is why it is so important to have some mindful tools in your toolbox in order to let facts and feelings come together to support your decisions. For example, breathing five deep breaths is an easy tool to pull out as it can go anywhere you go. Room 10 had a Circles workshop for some grade two students today. The Circles Program concentrates on personal space boundaries. It is important to respect personal space in every situation so that everyone feels safe and comfortable. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls6fHOfQnhQ has great little video called "So much Love" to help our children understand that HUGS can be awesome but we need to respect personal space even when we feel like a hug. "Respecting Personal Space Cool Tool" is also a catchy little video on personal space. Information:Kindergarten will be hosting beach day on Thursday February 26th. Everyone is invited to come dressed in their favourite beach attire. (Flip flops, hats, sunglasses, grass skirts etc) Looking forward to see everyone in their favourite beach wear. Hopefully this will help to usher spring in early!
Reminders:
Today we reviewed our amygdala in our mindfulness workshop. We reminded ourselves that the amygdala is tiny, like a couple of almonds. Do we let a tiny part of our brain make our day to day decisions for us? Do we want to live in our fight, flight or freeze space. Are problems typically big enough at school to invoke these powerful security guards? The answer is NO of course. Big 10 problems are for the amygdala!
We continued on our study of the brain by focussing on the HIPPOCAMPUS. The hippocampus is like a scrapbook in your brain. It saves all the important things from your ABC's to the names of the people in your family. When something happens to make you smile, your hippocampus saves that as a happy memory. A great tool for keeping yourself regulated is to recall a happy moment, take deep breaths and savour that happy memory when something is happening in your world that is causing you distress. If you are frustrated at school, you can take a mindful moment. Close your eyes, take deep slow breaths, go to a happy memory and stay there for a minute or two. When you come back to your situation, use self talk and tell yourself "I can handle this, I can do it, I will be OK!" Go to youtube and check out "How does your memory work/headsqueeze", good for all ages. Also: Hippocampus Humor/pbs.org/sciencenow, "How the Brain Saves Memory" Grade 3 and older might be interested in: "What happens when you remove the hippocampus" Caution: it may be a little graphic for our younger viewers, best to preview it We have begun our Mindfulness Body Study in Room 10. Fifteen students were asked to participate in this study. They can be Mindfulness leaders in their classrooms! Today we studied the AMYGDALA. That is your body's security guard. Your amygdala is there to keep you safe. It reacts FAST. If there is serious danger, it will help you run, freeze, or fight back. Today we chose icons to represent our security guards. Some chose the Hulk, Superflex, Supergirl, Minecraft Characters, Enderdragon and some other creative ideas. We drew and colored the characters to help us understand that we all have our amygdala but HOW we react dictates how well we succeed in life. We watched a video "Calm Down and Release the Amygdala" that you can find on Youtube. I recommend watching it with your family if you would like to know more about your body's security guard!
We are having a great time in room 10 with all of our visitors. We sure enjoy having our friends volunteer to be buddies, build structures and generally get on board with whatever new tasks we are developing. Thank you friends!
We are studying the brain this month. We will be learning which part of the brain acts as our SECURITY GUARD and which part of the brain holds our MEMORIES. Do you know? Stay tuned... We are also delving in to a body research project. The human body is the most amazing machine ever!!! |
AuthorI am Lauren Purkiss, teacher at Prince of Wales School. I work out of Room 10 as Lead teacher for the Bridges Program as well as a Learning Leader for the school population. I have three children of my own, two boys ages 24 and 21, as well as my daughter, 16. My passion is to support our reluctant learners and their families. My door is always open. Come for a visit anytime. Archives
June 2018
Categories |