![]() I had the students hook their ‘dendrites’ (fingers) to their neighbour’s ‘nerve endings’ (elbows) to show how pathways in our brain can grow and strengthen. With our fingers moving, we talk about how information moves from the dendrites through the axon and then can connect to other dendrites. Their fingers are the dendrites, their hand the nucleus, their forearm the axon and out from their elbow are the nerve endings. Sitting in a circle, I asked the kids to stretch out their arms. ![]() This seems like quite a sophisticated process to explain to children, but with a brief visual using our hands and arms as neurons they are figuring it out. Our amygdala can calm down and we can be more reflective in our thoughts and actions. When we practice deep breathing as a response to stress, we develop these practices as healthy habits. ![]() When we practice something everyday our brains become stronger by creating and strengthening neural pathways and connections. Why do we need to practice mindful breathing everyday? We are then able to think clearly and make more mindful choices. ![]() It gives our amygdala time to slow down its ‘fight, flight, freeze’ response and communicate with our prefrontal cortex. I love this lesson because students are able to connect what is happening in their brain when they breathe deeply and understand how it can help in becoming more mindful.įocusing on our breathing can help calm our bodies by slowing our heart rate, lowering blood pressure and sharpening focus. After discussing what it meant to be mindful, today we embarked on a very mindful practice: breathing. ![]()
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