Mindful Meditation Comes to Telluride Mountain School

17 Nov Mindful Meditation Comes to Telluride Mountain School

Mindful Meditation Coach and TMS counselor Kate Spina leads a meditation session at Telluride Mountain School

It’s not easy to be a kid these days. With the cell phone beeping every two seconds and the daily schedule packed to the brim, it’s no surprise that the youngest members of our community find it hard to settle down and breathe. With that in mind, The Telluride Mountain School has added yet another exciting component to its dynamic program. Students at the school already develop critical thinking, aesthetic expression, and ethical behavior through the school’s challenging academic and experiential learning program. But this fall, they’re also learning how to be mindful.

School counselor Kate Spina, CSW, who was trained with the Mindful Schools team in Oakland, is teaching Telluride Mountain School students how to be more aware of the actions and emotions. In doing so, she hopes to help students to better manage their stress and to reach their best, academically, emotionally, and intellectually.

The Mindful Schools curriculum is broken into sixteen fifteen-minute lessons which is ideal for integrating into the school day.  Students learn many skills including mindfulness of breathing, cultivating appreciation, and mindful test taking.  As Mindful Schools website states: “We use a simple but powerful technique called mindfulness to teach children how to focus, manage their emotions, handle their stress, and resolve conflicts. Instead of simply telling children to do these things, we show children how — through direct experience. It allows children to make wiser decisions in the heat of the moment, rather than only in retrospect.”

By teaching students to respond rather than react we see more harmonious classrooms, enhancing the students ability to learn.   Kate started her work this fall with Telluride Mountain School’s 5th and 6th graders and has already seen the students thrive while cultivating these new tools.  “There is such value in giving students a space to really see the choices they have.  It is a joy to watch them fully embrace and engage in the process.” Kate plans to modify and share her curriculum with every class, making mindfulness a key part of the Telluride Mountain School culture.

Emily Durkin, the 5th/6th grade homeroom teacher at the Mountain School has been amazed by the changes in her students: “They’re more attentive and less distracted. I look forward to seeing more of our students benefiting from this program.”