Mindful Moments Blog

Post gone viral

Mindful Moments Blog

Who Needs a Laugh?

by Ashley Patek on Mar 20 2020
In the face of COVID-19, Generation Mindful spreads some light-hearted humor with a post for parents that went viral.
Mom and daughter in Calming Corner

Mindful Moments Blog

Reducing Toddler Tantrums

by Alex Petrou on Mar 17 2020
One family’s journey using time-ins to manage their toddler's big feelings, going from 33 to 3 tantrums a day in just one week.
When Your Child Fears The Coronavirus: 8 Tips for Taming Anxiety

Mindful Moments Blog

When Your Child Fears The Coronavirus: 8 Tips for Taming Anxiety

by Ashley Patek on Mar 05 2020
As a parent, what do you do when your child has fears that feel out of their control - things like viral outbreaks and global warming? Learn 8 tips for taming fears and anxieties through connection.
6 Tips for Using Yoga to Support Social-Emotional Inclusion

Mindful Moments Blog

6 Tips for Using Yoga to Support Social-Emotional Inclusion

by Ashley Patek on Feb 29 2020
Sierra has struggled to cultivate language for how her disability impacts her own social-emotional development and how it impacts her experiences at school. This struggle has been a barrier to Sierra’s ability to create positive relationships with her classmates.  
Teacher using PeaceMakers cards during circle time

Mindful Moments Blog

Teaching Academics and Social-Emotional Skills in the Montessori Classroom

by Ashley Patek on Feb 03 2020
Emily Canibano, a Montessori teacher with a classroom of 16 students ranging in age from 1.2 to 5.5 years, was looking for a way to teach social-emotional skills in her classroom, both in feeling emotions and in the safe expression of them.
Children sharing feelings with SnuggleBuddies during classroom morning meeting

Mindful Moments Blog

Morning Meetings and Connecting a Classroom

by Ashley Patek on Jan 30 2020
A the school counselor shares how her school transformed its classroom culture by using SnuggleBuddies plush toys to teach students about their emotions. 
Self portraits from Bloom360

Mindful Moments Blog

Teaching The Whole Learner: School Spotlight on Bloom360

by Ashley Patek on Jan 27 2020
Bloom360 Learning Community, a nonprofit school in southeastern Wisconsin for Learners ages 5 to 21 with neurodiverse needs, based their entire 2019/20 school year curriculum themes around the PeaceMakers themes of Power, Joy, Balance, Love, Peace, Intuition, and Forgiveness, and the outcomes are inspiring.
Pregnant mama showing her bump in nature

Mindful Moments Blog

From Classroom to Home: One Teacher's Journey to Positive Parenting

by Ashley Patek on Jan 23 2020
After maternity leave, I decide to shift from my role as a teacher of an academic classroom to that of teaching our “one and only.” My full momma heart told me that I would nail it. I mean, how hard could it be to teach one child when I had taught so many?
The Day My Son Told Me Mad Is Bad

Mindful Moments Blog

The Day My Son Told Me "Mad is Bad"

by Ashley Patek on Jan 03 2020
When our children believe that unpleasant emotions are "bad", they become unsafe to feel those emotions. However all emotions are sacred and useful. Here's why. Read more.
Two children sitting outdoors

Mindful Moments Blog

How One Child Learned To Manage His Emotions By Watching His Sister

by Ashley Patek on Nov 15 2019
With the use of the Time-In-Toolkit and SnuggleBuddies Plush Toys, one child learned how to manage his emotions by modeling his older sister.  
When Partners Disagree: Tools For Parenting On The Same Page

Mindful Moments Blog

When Partners Disagree: Tools For Parenting On The Same Page

by Ashley Patek on Nov 11 2019
Parenting disagreements are not uncommon, especially with so many different parenting ideologies out there. So, how can parents get on the same page?
An open letter to you, my toddler: "I get It."

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...
Spanking Children Is Still Common and Still Harmful

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. 
Juggling Big Emotions

Mindful Moments Blog

Juggling Big Emotions

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...
child behavioral charts

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.
calming spaces for 8 year old girls alike

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

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.
With my ears and my whole body, I listen

Mindful Moments Blog

With My Ears and My Whole Body, I Listen.

by Alex Petrou on Oct 28 2018
Feelings Friday #27: "With my ears and my whole body, I listen." Let's bring this mantra powerfully into our lives and our children's lives as well.
I am a leader

Mindful Moments Blog

I Am A Leader

by Alex Petrou on Sep 28 2018
1
Want to know what I am doing with my hands and WHY and what this cool exercise has to do with leadership? Feelings Friday #23: I am a leader from Generation Mindful on Vimeo. Tune in to this week's Feelings Friday and let's take connection into everyday life with our kids practically and playfully
Creative Way to Reinforce the Sort of "Connected" Leadership

Mindful Moments Blog

Creative Way to Reinforce the Sort of "Connected" Leadership

by Alex Petrou on Aug 24 2018
This week's mantra is "I am a leader!!!", because each of us is called to lead in our own way...from the inside out.