Gratitude!
Hello friends, and welcome to this month's Peace of Mind newsletter. As we have been revising our curriculum guides over the last year, we have added in more lessons on gratitude practice. Why? To help kids build the skills to cope with the social and emotional impact of the times we're in. Research shows that regular gratitude practice builds resilience, increases happiness and generous behavior, and results in better health. How do you and your kids practice gratitude? We'd love to hear about it!
In this issue: Try a Peace of Mind gratitude practice with your kids (or friend or partner!); meet two new Peace of Mind schools; register for upcoming Peace of Mind community events; new Parent resources; and our gratitude for you!
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Our brain's negativity bias can help protect us from danger, but it also can prevent us from having a balanced perspective on our lives. Peace of Mind founder Linda Ryden shares a gratitude practice that helps us focus on the small, good things that happen in our days. This practice doesn't make bad things go away, but it helps us remember to notice and remember the positive experiences, too.
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Our friends at the Fund for the Future of Our Children (FFC) provide $250 grants for Title I schools adopting the Peace of Mind Curriculum. We are pleased to welcome our two most recent FFC grantees: Rose M. Gaffney Elementary School in Machias, Maine and Breckinridge-Franklin Elementary School in Louisville KY!
Janis Whitney, Second Grade Teacher and Leadership Team member at Gaffney E.S., reached out to us about the grant. They are planning to implement Peace of Mind in Early Childhood through 8th grade to support over 300 students this year. We're excited!
Shelby Doyle, Mental Health Practitioner at Breckinridge-Franklin E.S., is planning to invest in the PreK-5 counselor bundle to support the school's Mindfulness Club for 2nd through 5th graders. We love this creative approach and look forward to hearing how it goes!
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Please join us for our Community of Practice this month, co-hosted by Robin McNair, Restorative Practices Coordinator for Prince George's County MD Public Schools and COSEM Chapter leader for Prince George's County MD, Mia Donovan, COSEM Chapter leader for Baltimore County MD, and Dave Trachtenberg, Mindfulness facilitator and Restorative Justice educator at American University. Find out more and REGISTER HERE.
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Right after our Community of Practice we're headed up to Teachers College at Columbia University to be part of the Collaborative for Spirituality in Education Conference again this year. On Sunday 10/23, join us for:
- Our newest Peace of Mind workshop called "Act it out! Using Experiential Learning to Help Kids Apply Mindfulness to Challenging Emotions, Resolve Conflicts Peacefully, and Reckon with Social Justice."
- The "Waking up to Peace (of Mind)" Panel including Peace of Mind Founder Linda Ryden.
The Conference is free and there is a virtual option, too. FIND OUT MORE HERE.
Next month, join us at the Annual NAEYC Conference in Washington D.C. We'd love to see you there!
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We heard you! Our newly revised Peace of Mind Core Curriculum for Early Childhood includes letters for parents/guardians at the beginning of every unit. We are developing unit letters for our Core Curriculum Guides for Grades 1-2, Grade 3, Grades 4&5 and Middle School as well. If you would like access to these letters, please contact us!
Thanks to our grant from the HTCC Social Justice Title Committee, we have free Early Childhood Bundles to share with Title I schools. If you are interested, please contact us!
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THANK YOU!!
We are tremendously grateful for the renewed support from the Bender Foundation! Their recent grant helps us to build our capacity to provide professional development and new resources for Peace of Mind educators and school communities. So very grateful for their ongoing financial support and inspiration!
A very big warm thank you to the Gosnell Foundation, our newest funding partner. Their recent very generous grant supports all aspects of Peace of Mind's mission and helps us develop the resources that will support educators for years to come. We are grateful!!
A big thank you, too, to the Healthier, Greener, Kinder Foundation for inviting us to be part of their upcoming "Friendraiser!" If you are in the DC area, consider joining us!
And as ever, we send our gratitude to all of the educators, parents, guardians, and community members who prioritize the social and emotional well-being of our students. With your help, we can help our kids face challenges in their own lives and in the world with the kindness, courage and compassion that will make our world a better place.
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Cheryl, Linda and The Peace of Mind team
In peace,
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