your hearts to not only your own children but to our many friends so that they too could feel love and supported along the path of life.
—Michele M. Rivers Murphy
I thank Chris and Michele for their leadership in demonstrating the power of mindfulness practices to generate in schools that healing balm for which students hope and dedicated teachers search. I am honored to have been able to join with them to write this book to provide educators with the research that substantiates the vital power that integrating mindfulness practices into their pedagogy has for mitigating the impact of trauma and mediating learning so the innate potential of their students can surface and flourish.
This book is also dedicated to my husband, Howard, whose constant love and support enable me to stay focused on my passion, my drishti—building the confidence of teachers to inspire all their students to believe in, value, and demonstrate their innate potential for high achievement and contribution to our society.
—Yvette Jackson
In the production of this book, several interns and colleagues reviewed drafts at various stages of development. Thanks to Meghan Wenzel and Effie Cummings for their assistance with editing, and the following interns who assisted with background research: Mahnaz Ahrary, Sheri Brick, Rachel Kelly, Morgan Grant, Tess Renerie, Joanna Marzano, Andrew Davis, Madison Rogas, Dana Asby, and Marah Barrow. Thanks too to Linda Clearly, Cheryl Karoly, Melissa Patschke, Jillayne Flanders, and Nancy Phenis-Bourke for their early reviews. Additionally, Paul Liabenow was instrumental in making recommendations to ensure that our practical examples were embedded throughout; Paul also provided support for our research and helped us maintain a network of principals who learned with us, as we put the pieces of this puzzle together. Midway through our writing process, we also met Maud Schaafsma, a brilliant strategist, who helped us connect some of the dots between trauma, mindfulness, and community building.
While writing this book, we engaged in related research. Our thanks particularly to Melissa Patschke, Jillayne Flanders, Sue Mullane, Kate Retzel, Chris Dodge, Brian Aikens, Matt Bergey, and the teachers at Royersford Elementary School, Lee Elementary School, and Orange Elementary School for the hours spent in meetings and classrooms piloting many of the recommendations that are included in our approach to mindfulness.
We are also grateful to our editors at Solution Tree, particularly to Amy Rubenstein, for her editorial eye and how she helped us weave our insights into a powerful plan for schools, and to Tonya Cupp, who led us through the final editorial production process.
Solution Tree Press would like to thank the following reviewers:
Cathy Alland
Mathematics / Options Teacher
Twin Groves Middle School
Buffalo Grove, Illinois
Lisa Borowski
Mathematics Coach and Interventionist
North Greenville Elementary School
Hortonville Area School District
Greenville, Wisconsin
Terese Brennan-Marquez
Director of Counseling and Student Wellness
Castilleja School
Palo Alto, California
Vicky Galloway
Counselor
West Middle School
Sioux City, Iowa
A. Blaine Hawley
Principal
Red Pump Elementary School
Bel Air, Maryland
Diane Langworthy
Guidance Counselor
Woodland School
Warren, New Jersey
Sarah Trevino
Professional School Counselor
Mason Crest Elementary School
Annandale, Virginia
Kylie Warner
Second-Grade Teacher
Truman Elementary School
Kansas City, Missouri
Visit go.SolutionTree.com/behavior to download the free reproducibles in this book.
Table of Contents
by Paul Liabenow
Education of the Heart Through Mindfulness
Mindfulness Practices: About the Book
With Mindfulness, Imagine Compassionate Communities
2 The Journey—Healing Along the Way
Through Mindfulness and Compassion Comes Healing
This Is a Conscious Shift to Reach All Students
Mindful Reflection
3 Our Brain and the Mind-Body Connection
Function Junctions of Our Brain
Emotional Toll of Stress Responses
