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October 2019: Points To Ponder

10/29/2019

October is the season for self-reflection and re-birth, a time for harvesting and new beginnings. It is a time for reflection, balance and inner harmony, a time to let go of old hurts and worrisome patterns, creating more space for things that nourish our health and well-being.

Take a few breaths each day and breathe. Smell the scents of nature. Take a few minutes and do NOTHING.

Today’s children live in an intense society filled with images of violence, unhealthy competition, hectic schedules, pressure to succeed prematurely, and unrealistic expectations to behave like miniature adults.

Kids are kids and they need years of innocence for exploring, fantasizing and creating in a secure and nurturing environment. The challenges of raising children to succeed in this ever-changing, fast-paced world are significant. Since they learn by our actions and listen to our words, children need to see adults take time to nourish themselves.

Together as a community we need to realize that we must actively and attentively prepare our children socially and emotionally to live in the society we have created.

Here are just a few examples of some common phrases in today’s society. I invite you this autumn to use the energy of the season and take time and reflect on what your actions and words are exhibiting to our future leaders:

“I am stressed”

Stress is normal –Life is a gift, be grateful for all the moments in your life. Each moment presents to you an opportunity to change an inefficient pattern or to bring you joy; be present to the unfolding of each day. Always know you have a choice on how you respond to a situation, that you have the means within you to act in ways that are truly supportive to your well-being. You have more than enough to make your day a wonderful day.

“I am so busy”

Busy is natural –Making time in your day to relax and enjoy just being with the people you love, letting those moments take on a life of their own, is important as are mindful listening and mindful speaking. Don’t glorify the word busy; realize those are simply choices you make and can always choose a gentler, quieter path. Always make your happiness the most important thing for you.

“I don’t have time”

There aren’t enough hours in a day –Be grateful to have a set of brand new 24 hours ahead of you each morning and you can choose to make it a wonderful day.   Act in ways that support your health and well-being, listening to the voice of your social and emotional intelligence within you.

“This is my week”

Life is about structure and sameness –It is important to nurture your curiosity, to explore, to find what you are passionate about, what it is that makes you unique, as that is what you are here to do in this lifetime.   Sampling new things throughout your life is important as you are an evolving being. As humans we have the capacity to learn new things until our last breath; learning and curiosity are what will keep you young. There are many wonderful things in life that are just waiting for you to discover.

“Where’s my phone?”

To relax you need to be with a group of people – Always take time to enjoy just being with yourself. Those will be essential moments in your life as your greatest wisdom will come to you during those times when you stop and listen to your intuitive self. This gentle voice is always there for you to listen to as it acts from a place that is paramount to your health and well-being. Happiness is not found through others, it is an inside job.   Your soulmate is within you.

Bring more awareness this autumn season to your own balance and inner harmony; realize you have more than enough to make each day a wonderful day. Then watch it ripple out to everyone you hold dear and beyond.

Points to ponder…
I’m curious…what would happen if tv shows held less value and social media was about stopping by and visiting each other and sharing a cup of coffee/tea or calling that person on the phone to hear their voice so we would be present for them completely.

If we lived by a framework that made our happiness and well-being the most important thing, I wonder what might happen to the labels that we so readily want to put on ourselves and others to define or classify them… especially our future leaders.

Walk with me,

Marianne Knox

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September 2019: Peace + Awareness = Learning

10/29/2019

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Scientific developments in a number of fields point to a similar argument –how well students do in school can be determined by how well they are able to self-regulate. Some theorists believe that self-regulation should now be considered a more important benchmark of educational performance than IQ.

So what is self-regulation and what does it look like for your child in the classroom?

When feeling calm, focused and alert and having the skill to know that one is calm and alert; understanding how a relaxed internal state goes hand in hand with our external state. Having this optimal state allows students to view the task at hand through their higher brain function, allowing them to work at a task to the best of their ability
When one is stressed, having the expertise to understand what is causing that stress; to be able to advocate for themselves and take any actions needed to support their health and well-being to be able to move forward to learn in the best way possible.
The ability to recognize stressors both within and outside the classroom and how they affect their academic performance and well-being both externally and internally; having the environment to be able to take the appropriate measures to support themselves to deal with the stressors and to be respected as being the best advocates for themselves.
Understanding how stressors take them out of the area of the brain that supports learning and consequently puts students in a survival state. Acknowledging that when children are in their survival brain it needs to be respected and until they are feeling safe (in their view) learning will not be a priority.
Having the desire to deal with those stressors. To have the desire you need to have tools so you don’t keep repeating the cycle of being overwhelmed and helplessness. Knowing you will be respected, listened to and given what you need through educational empowerment to move forward in a healthy way.
The education of strategies for dealing with those stressors is key. Without knowledge of how we are naturally wired and strategies to deal with self-regulation through stressors there is no growth in self-regulation and it turns inward building up negatively affecting a person’s future health and well-being.

Having strategies allows students to recover efficiently and effectively from dealing with stressors and empowers them to support their health and well-being and work to the best of their ability with what they understand to be true each moment for their day.

The better we understand the complex biological and experiential interactions involved in self-regulations, the better we can design classroom/home practices that will enhance a student’s self-regulation and mitigate the cascading effects of initial challenges.

So compelling is this vision that one might go so far as to argue that if IQ was the major psychological construct of the 20th century, in the 21st century it will be self-regulation; for unlike IQ, this new lens gives us hope that by providing children with tools to promote their self-regulation, we can significantly alter their educational –and life trajectories.

Come walk with me,

Marianne Knox

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August 2019: Our Children Are the Most Precious of Stars

10/10/2019

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They are the utmost resource for the future of society.

I believe ensuring a beautiful future requires that we offer all our children “holistic education”.

Holistic Education is where every single person is able to flourish and take responsibility for his or her own well-being and that of others, to create of world characterized by interconnectedness, awareness and joy.

Two superpowers that greatly support this vision and empower our children need to be valued and adopted through education:

1. Educating children to understand how their brain and body are naturally wired to process information through Neuroscience. Discovering that learning is not all in their head and that learning is a whole body experience.

2. Showing them how to tap into a wealth of natural gifts that are within them through Mindfulness. This inner knowledge will open a gateway for them to be able to process information in a way that assists them to learn with curiosity, ease and joy.

Mindfulness and Neuroscience are beautifully interwoven. It is about being present with and to your inner experience as well as your outer environment.I believe blending these two superpowers will allow children to have meaningful relationships, be caring and compassionate to themselves and others, do well in school, work efficiently, be responsible, and feel good about who they are.

I invite you to open your curiosity to learning more about these two superpowers and how you can bring them into the lives of our most precious of stars.By doing so you will soon discover that it will not only enrich the lives of your children but yours as well through an increasing sense of wonder and seeing greater potential in all aspects of life.

The deepest of discovery is realizing that when you tap into these superpowers they carry with them a great gift “the rippling effect”.

This rippling effect reaches outward touching more people that you can imagine, benefiting every living being.Thank you for using your time to read my blog.

Walk with me,
Marianne

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October 2019: Points To Ponder

September 2019: Peace + Awareness = Learning

August 2019: Our Children Are the Most Precious of Stars

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