Mindful Moments Blog
Mindful Moments Blog
The Trauma-Aware Classroom: We All Need Compassion
by Guest Author
on Oct 29 2019
I am a teacher. In order to associate with the trauma of my students, I become aware of my own trauma.
Mindful Moments Blog
Six Benefits of Using Child-Led Learning
by Alex Petrou
on Oct 29 2019
Child-led learning. The thought of it can seem downright scary. Here are six benefits of using child-led learning with your young children...
Mindful Moments Blog
An open letter to you, my toddler: "I get It."
by Suzanne Tucker
on Sep 14 2019
2
I get it. I get all of it. The screams, the tears, the tantrums. Your bottom lip drops and your eyes brim with emotions. Sometimes you even turn away from me.
That one rips my heart in two. Then the sun will peek through and the smiles will come...
Mindful Moments Blog
Spanking Children Is Still Common and Still Harmful
by Ashley Patek
on Sep 13 2019
Research has shown the long-term effects of spanking on a child's mental, emotional, sexual and behavioral outcomes. And the impact of these negative childhood experiences can directly influence and run the narrative of our adulthood. Read more.
Mindful Moments Blog
Creating a Calming Corner for Small Spaces
by Ashley Patek
on Aug 26 2019
Calming Corners of all sizes and styles are celebrated because what matters is that you opened the box. Here is how to make a calming space for small spaces.
Mindful Moments Blog
by Jessica Zodicoff
on Aug 20 2019
As a seven-year-old girl, I remember my grandpa coming over for the holidays and juggling whatever fruit he could find in our kitchen. He taught me to juggle using not lemons, but just three tissues. The fruit was too big for my little-girl hands, but like a set of training wheels, I practiced with those tissues until...
Mindful Moments Blog
Why Using A Behavior Chart Is Ineffective
by Ashley Patek
on Aug 14 2019
Before you decide to add to or continue using behavioral management charts, let's take a closer look at the undesirable side-effects. Read more.
Mindful Moments Blog
Foster Families Are Making It Safe For Kids to Feel
by Alex Petrou
on Jul 29 2019
One foster family shares how they are managing emotions on a daily basis in raising their five children.
Mindful Moments Blog
Blue Dolphin and Green Hummingbird Are Perfectly Imperfect
by Ashley Patek
on Jul 16 2019
A manufacturing inaccuracy of Generation Mindful's SnuggleBuddies gave rise to a beautiful lesson: we are all perfectly imperfect.
Mindful Moments Blog
What Two Young Boys Taught Their Grandma About Anger
by Alex Petrou
on Mar 02 2019
I gave SnuggleBuddies to my grandsons while they were visiting for Christmas to help them learn about feelings, but what happened next surprised me.
You see, that Christmas morning, we had a situation, one that caused my dog to get very, very sick. My dog had gotten into some chocolate candy.
My grandson tried to comfort our dog with the things that comfort them. Hank the elf, their SnuggleBuddies Red Bear and Orange Fox, blankets, and a balloon.
When I found out that my husband had left the chocolates out where the dog got into them, I was furious.
Having to deal with a sick puppy is bad enough, but to make matters worse, I have a rare neuromuscular condition (Myasthenia Gravis) that greatly affects my activity and breathing, and extra activity lands me in bed and on my noninvasive ventilator.
I knew from past experience that a dog eating chocolate results in a very ill pooch with lots of cleaning up and a special diet.
I wanted to enjoy our visit with the kids and the holidays...but I was angry.
I knew my husband did not intend for this to happen, and I did not want to be in a bad mood for the evening while my family was visiting. But I was!
That was when my daughter suggested the boys ask NayNay (me) if she wanted to “do her feelings”.
They were excited about that and ran to get their SnuggleBuddies to share with me.
Everyone listened and supported me as I went through my feelings.
I began to feel better, and it dawned on me that I was actually setting an example for my grandsons.
I also realized that had my grandsons and their SnuggleBuddies not been there, I wouldn't have talked about or worked through my angry feelings that quickly.
I just love those things; they are so cuddly! I ordered myself a Red Bear. And don't tell, but Red Bear has already helped my husband with some of his feelings too.
As a grandma, I love Generation Mindful. It makes me feel like I can really add to my grandson's lives in a lasting way. They live 15 hours away, so I don’t see them in person often. But it is so important to me that they know I SEE THEM!!!
Sometimes my grandsons call/facetime me to tell me their sad or mad feelings...and I think, I can do this! I can be there for them.
Despite any amount of distance or disability, I can listen.
_____________
Generation Mindful creates tools, toys, and programs that nurture emotional intelligence through play and positive discipline. Join us and receive joy in your inbox each week.
Mindful Moments Blog
Calming Spaces for Muggles, Wizards and Eight-Year-Old Girls Alike
by Alex Petrou
on Jan 30 2019
Wisdom. Emotional intelligence. Maturity. These words typically conjure up the image of someone older than you. Perhaps it’s someone you know and revere for their persistent nature and kind soul. That person for me is Elizabeth: an 8-year-old I’ve only just met. Older than me? Not by a long shot. A person from whom I could learn from? Absolutely.
Elizabeth and her mom reside in St. Louis, and I was lucky enough to speak with them very recently about their enjoyment of their products from Generation Mindful. Not only was it encouraging to hear they were well-loved already, but there was a tone in this young girl’s voice that stopped me dead in my tracks: she was fully embracing the mindfulness mindset, and was already self-aware enough to speak with me about her own growth and life today.
Elizabeth answered the phone when I called and did so with so much gusto that I thought I was speaking to her mom, Tracy, instead! We chatted Harry Potter, and our shared love of his adventures and magical stories bonded us immediately. She, without a doubt, is a Gryffindor: she was happy to share this fact with me, and even pointed me in the direction of the sorting hat if I wanted to do so myself. I assured her I’m a longtime Hufflepuff and noted that we work well together. She reminded me we all can.
The mother-daughter duo then proceeded to tell me more about the magical Calming Corner they’ve set up in their basement, in a little room below the stairs: just like a certain big-feeling boy Elizabeth and I both know quite well.
It was previously used for storage, but once they received their posters and toolkit from Generation Mindful, their collective lightbulb went off and they just knew that space would be better used as Elizabeth’s very own Calming Corner. In it, she’s incorporated her toolbox of helpful things: some stuffed poodles, some coloring utensils, a small pad for her drawings and doodlings.
She tells me that it makes her happy and to feel calm, and her mom also chuckles and notes that she’s spoken with the poodles a time or two when she needed to vent as well; and that it really, truly helps them to have that space.
Making an area an inviting haven for comfort, peace, and love means it will be used. It will be loved, and much reflection and growth can happen there as well. Sometimes we need a place that is all our own, with tools made with those big feelings in mind.
Dumbledore famously said to his protege Mr. Potter, “Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean it is not real?”
We can’t help but agree.
_____________
Generation Mindful creates tools, toys, and programs that nurture emotional intelligence through play and positive discipline. Join us and receive joy in your inbox each week.
Mindful Moments Blog
by Alex Petrou
on Jan 05 2019
If you were to think back to who or what you really needed as a kid, what would that be?
Mindful Moments Blog
by Alex Petrou
on Nov 17 2018
Are we raising a generation of pansies? The short answer is 110% no. We don't have to be scared of children with big feelings.Big feelings can be a gift.
Mindful Moments Blog
Teaching Emotional Intelligence and College Students as Change-Makers
by Alex Petrou
on Nov 13 2018
Dr. Meghan Gillette, a professor in the field of Human Development and Human Studies at Iowa State University, shares the latest research on nurturing emotional intelligence in children ages 5 to 12, how she uses Team-Based Learning and her insights on teaching social and emotional skills to the next generation.
Mindful Moments Blog
A Positive Classroom Environment Helps Kids Succeed In School and Life
by Alex Petrou
on Oct 21 2018
Students who have stronger relationships with their teachers invest more time in academics, earn better grades, report being more satisfied, and behave in more prosocial ways as they transition from childhood into adolescence.
Mindful Moments Blog
by Alex Petrou
on Oct 20 2018
Let's SING! Join me and let's see if we can find the fun in the chaos. Together.
Mindful Moments Blog
To Calm My Body, I Breathe Deep, Gentle Breaths and Pretend to Blow Out A Candle
by Alex Petrou
on Oct 12 2018
To calm my body, I breathe deep, gentle breaths and pretend to blow out a candle. Join me as we talk through the not often talked about facets of resilience and the places we get stopped along the way.
Mindful Moments Blog
I Trust The World and Let Love In.
by Alex Petrou
on Sep 21 2018
This week's video mantra is a powerful one, all about what happens in our bodies when we feel SAFE and what happens when we help children feel safe in the world as well.
Feeling safe...this is where true learning begins.
Mindful Moments Blog
I Show My Love, I Am A Friend.
by Alex Petrou
on Sep 14 2018
Feelings Friday #21 - I show my love, I am a friend.
Today we bust up a big myth holding us back from connecting fully with our kiddos, namely, that if we are friends with our children that we can't have boundaries or discipline them.
xo Founder, Generation Mindful
Generation Mindful creates tools, toys, and programs that nurturing emotional intelligence, connecting the generations playfully. Click here for weekly inspirations.
Mindful Moments Blog
Enhancing Emotional Development to Treat Child Depression
by Alex Petrou
on Sep 13 2018
A recent study shows that focusing on the parent-child relationship and enhancing emotional development may be a powerful and low-risk approach to the treatment of depression.
