Top 10 Ways to Bring Mindfulness Into Your Classroom

The Mindful Professional

For children to grow, succeed, and thrive in the care of early childhood professionals, those professionals need to be equipped with tools that allow them to be caring, responsive, explorative, playful and curious. A mindful educator is all of that and more.

Using Jon Kabat-Zinn’s definition of mindfulness as paying attention, in a particular way, on purpose, in the present moment and non-judgmentally.

We will explore the parallels found in the 4 Foundations of Belonging, Well-Being, Engagement & Expression, and HOW to bring mindfulness to life in 10 of the best, and most meaningful ways for young children.

This session will set the stage for successfully embodying and implementing what it means to be a mindful professional, and bring a sense of lightness to the early childhood classrooms that they serve.

Educators will leave this session with practical, mindfulness-based tools, resources & inspiration to plan and create experiences for their children across all developmental domains.

This session will be facilitated online via Zoom and you will receive a link the day before the session takes place.

About the Presenter:

Lisa Clarke has played various roles in the Early Childhood Professional community over the course of her life. As the daughter of an RECE and Childcare Operator, she has seen all sides of the industry and brings a unique perspective when it comes to owning your role as a role model within it. In 2015, Lisa founded laLa wellness, a yoga and mindfulness-based program for children in their early years. Through laLa, Lisa has trained Early Childhood Professionals all over Ontario and the United States and has made her way onto the bookshelves in Early Childhood Classrooms through her children’s book, I’m a Growing Yogi.

In 2020, Lisa’s opportunity to work with children in classrooms came to a sudden and devastating halt as a result of the pandemic. She took this time to re-imagine what her role in our world needed to look like, and from that, emerged the myAura method: practices to help early childhood professionals reclaim their stories, give them permission to express themselves whole-heartedly, and shift them towards greater self-awareness and mental wellness.

Lisa is now the owner of The Aura House, a multi-modality studio space in the heart of Downtown Brampton, offering yoga, meditation, dance, breathwork,, reiki & crystal healing practices in-studio and online.

For more information about this training and other professional development and training opportunities offered by York Region, please visit our Eventbrite Page or email capacitybuilding@york.ca.

York Region Children’s Services