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Mindfulness as an intervention for depression and anxiety.

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“paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally” (Kabat-Zinn, 1994, p.4). Mindfulness has been used as a recreational and educational tool in schools in recent years. “children and young people, undergo experiences of information overload as their attention is ceaselessly solicited from multiple sources.” (O’Donnell, 2015, p.190) Mindfulness has been a way of teaching children how to focus their minds and become more focused learners who are able to be both critical and objective. Mindfulness has also been a tool for creativity and holistic learning. “In education, we do not spend enough time in the present. We do not reflect enough or put children (or ourselves) in situations where awe and wonder are normal responses. True involvement, deep engagement in a subject or an activity, often takes us out of ourselves into a zone where time does not matter so much and distractions or current worries lessen. As teachers, we need to seek ou...
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Using mandalas to reduce anxiety.

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Hello fellow bloggers, today I will be looking into the use of mandalas to reduce the feeling of anxiety. I am interested in this topic as I have seen it in practice and have been surprised by the impressive results.  The Oxford dictionary defines a 'Mandala' as a circular figure representing the universe in Hindu and Buddhist symbolism. Carl Jung, a Swiss psychiatrist, explored the psychological effects of mandalas. He discovered the mandala ‘in his efforts to relieve suffering – both his own and that of patients in psychotherapy’ (Cornell, 2006, p 140). 'In such cases, it is easy to see how the severe pattern imposed by a circular image of this kind compensates the disorder of the psychic state- namely through the construction of a central point to which everything is related. This is evidently an attempt at self-healing on the part of Nature, which does not spring from conscious reflection but from an instinctive impulse.' (Jung, 1991) The mandala...
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The value of creativity in Primary Education.

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“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.” Albert Einstein Hello everyone, today I will be discussing the importance of creativity. This word is thrown around in primary education often relating to the arts, although it is an important part of all subjects. What is creativity and why is it valuable to encourage children to be creative? Creativity for Robinson is “the process of having original ideas that have value” (Robinson and Aronica, 2015: 118). We are born with this ability but whether this ability flourishes or is diminished can be affected by the way children are brought up. Creativity is observable in the actions of primates, other mammals and birds, but it holds a very special place in our own species (Kaufman and Kaufman, 2015) In animals, it seems confined to the actions associated with finding food, ma...
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What is the value of nature connectivity in Primary Education?

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Hello fellow education enthusiasts, in this blog I wanted to investigate how bringing children closer to nature has the potential for positive outcomes. My interest sparked when working with children, I have observed how each individual child in a group responds to going outdoors, the majority of which is positive. They showed excitement when told that we were going to look for insects, birds and animals. The children had lots of interest in nature and were constantly asking questions and talking about what they were seeing. This is a clear sign that above everything else, children tend to enjoy outdoor play and learning. Especially when it involves interacting with nature. I have seen quieter children becoming more confident and engaging more in sessions and socialising with peers more than they do when inside. This has also been observed by Pascal and Bertram, where they have stated that the involvement shows evidence of deep learning. “The children demonstrated high levels o...
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