Awareness that a person has in controlling their mind, body, and what is happening around their environment at this time is a mindfulness method that can foster a sense of love, concentration, and skills in everyone who lives it.
Because in every level of development, humans often experience anxiety and lose control of their minds. This technique has become increasingly popular in recent decades among people, which provides the understanding to consciously pay attention to the present moment with a sense of acceptance without judgment.
Not only adulthood, mindfulness can be applied to children and adolescents to help them learn and define their future goals. As an international school that believes that student development can be fostered academically, socially, and emotionally, Global Sevilla inserts mindfulness programs into its curriculum.
What is the role of mindfulness for children? How does it apply, especially in school? Especially in Global Sevilla. See the full explanation below.
Definition Of Mindfulness
A scientist named Jon Kabat-Zinn who was influential in bringing mindfulness to the field of Medicine and society defined mindfulness as awareness that arises by paying attention to the goal, in the present moment, and without judgment (2018).
Suzy Yusnadewi in her book entitled "Tips To Be a Great Parent" maps mindfulness as a conscious mind that rests on scientific mechanisms, logic, rationality, and analysis (2013).
The way mindfulness works is on beta waves that produce full concentration in humans, in contrast to the subconscious that works on Alpha and theta waves, where the result is a feeling of sleepiness and confusion.
Mindfulness depicted in the brain can encourage skills that control the prefrontal cortex, such as focus and cognitive control. Its significant impact on children is the development of skills including self-regulation, judgment, and patience.
Commonly Used Mindfulness Methods
The application of mindfulness will be better if it becomes a daily routine, not just applied when experiencing stress. So it takes practice in every daily activity, examples of activities commonly done for children such as reading, playing, and eating.
The benefits of mindfulness can be trained through meditation. Meditation is the practice of training the mind or attention to be non-reactive and curious without judgment. Mindfulness is the quality we aim for, while meditation is a way to build that quality in ourselves.
Listening to clear instructions from a guide (or teacher) can help remind us to return to the present moment. The practice can begin with letting go of disturbing thoughts and choosing not to be so hard on yourself.
Benefits of Mindfulness for Children's Growth and Development
Through mindfulness, a person is taught to know the emotions or feelings that are being experienced, so as not to focus on the past and the future and thus miss the present. This is a way that can be taught in the classroom to foster awareness and control of the child.
Annaka Harris explains, "For children, mindfulness can provide a sense of relief from all the difficulties they face in life. It also provides beauty for them to be present at this moment", says the author, who teaches mindfulness to these children.
Basically, the human brain continues to develop throughout his life. The connections in the prefrontal circuits are formed with the highest speed occurring during childhood. Mindfulness seeks to encourage skills that are controlled in the prefrontal cortex. As mentioned earlier, focus and cognitive control.
This segment can have a particular impact on developing a child's skills, including self-assessment and patience at an early age. This answers the question of the effectiveness of mindfulness for children.
Jessica Morey, founder of Inward Bound Mindfulness Education, explains that mindfulness can empower primary and secondary school-aged teens to be skilled at facing challenges and also improve their understanding of the world and themselves.
This can be reflected in the attitude of such children, and adults need to give them space to figure out who they are and what they want to do in life.
Application of "Mindfulness" in Global Sevilla
In addition to academic achievement, Global Sevilla believes that mindfulness can build the quality of students to become characters that benefit themselves and the surrounding environment.
The implementation of mindfulness found in the global curriculum of Seville starts from kindergarten to high school level by helping students to be fully aware and grateful for what they are facing at the moment.
Students are trained to undergo activities with full awareness, such as starting the learning process in class with silence and relaxation, to entering the lunch hour with care and gratitude. Each week, students are allowed to practice focusing on their breathing to make it easier for students to complete tasks and facilitate daily activities.
We have an activity called a Day of Mindfulness, where we get together to celebrate the importance of being mindful in everyday life. With full awareness and focus on conscious actions throughout the day, from walking to sitting and playing.
On that day, we invite everyone to slow down, be present at the moment, and pay close attention to every sensation that arises. This brings us into a state of calm, relaxation, and comfort amidst the hustle and bustle of daily activities.
To know more about the application of mindfulness, you can contact us at Global Sevilla by clicking on the following link Global Sevilla contact.