To Practice Mindfulness in the Classroom [S1 E27]

Today, we’d like to introduce you to

AMANDA WERNER

Teacher. Mom. Entrepreneur. Workshop teaching expert. Reader.

Friend.

I hope that at some point in your life you’re lucky enough to have an Amanda like this to call a friend. I (Amanda C.) met Amanda W. years ago and have cherished our friendship from day one. Amanda has helped and coached me for years as we jabber on and on about teaching, and from where I sit, Amanda is a brave teacher using new ideas in the classroom that YOU need to hear about. Namely: practicing mindfulness.

Today’s conversation is all about helping teachers (who desperately need it right now) find a little inner peace and bring it to their students, too. We hope you enjoy this episode and are inspired by Amanda’s genuine love for her students. I know we are.

A bit more about Amanda…

“I’m a full time 8th grade English teacher in the Bay Area. I have been teaching for 13 years and I'm constantly evolving, learning and growing with my students. I look at each new school year as an opportunity to support students in realizing their voices matter and that through reading and writing they can grow those voices and make an impact on the world around them. I started my meditation and mindfulness journey about 3 years ago when I was introduced to the HeadSpace app during a staff meeting! I was resentful at first about being forced to meditate during a staff meeting. It was awkward. But, a few weeks later, I decided to try it again and have continued meditating and incorporating mindfulness practices into my life and the school day ever since

I believe our education system needs a complete overhaul. Teachers and students need to feel that what they are doing in the classroom is important, that it matters to their lives and to society as a whole. Teachers and students need space to breathe, to reflect, to listen to one another, they need to feel safe being who they are and writing/speaking from the heart. I believe all students deserve a teacher who listens to them, who treats them as people before students and who strives to create the kind of environment I just described. It is my opinion that writing workshop and mindfulness practices are the way that we can achieve these vital components of a thoughtful and meaningful classroom.