Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

Tune In

Developing inner awareness

Find Out

The benefits of mindfulness

Take Action

Connecting inner awareness to the seasons

Tune In: Developing inner awareness

Preparation

Use this activity as a ‘mindful entry point’ for focused attention in your classroom. It can be used at the beginning, in the middle, or at the end of a lesson. Where possible, share these practices outside.

Step 1

Take students outdoors to a natural setting and discuss how nature provides opportunities for focused attention and being fully present in the moment.

Explain to students the purpose of mindfulness: Mindfulness is a method for nurturing our minds, understanding their current state, and making thoughtful decisions about how to engage with them.

Step 2

Lead your students through a guided mindfulness exercise using the audio recording below.

Cool Australia · Nature Of Mindfulness: Guided Meditation 3 - Secondary

Audio recording: The Nature of Mindfulness: Guided Meditation 3 (https://on.soundcloud.com/yVBN6iDPo8Y2WFyL9)

You may like to simply play this recording for your students, or if you would like to run the guided mindfulness exercise yourself, you could listen to the audio in preparation for this activity, as it provides a model for how you can run the session yourself using the script provided below. You can modify this activity to suit your students and local environment.

Take your place in your space, choosing to sit perhaps against a tree or lie down on your back.

Let your legs stretch out beneath you, with your arms resting beside you. Remembering that this is your time and your space to just be. There is nothing you have to do, nothing you have to achieve, control or change.

Practice being aware, moment by moment. With your eyes softly resting, let your eyelids gently close so that you can notice sounds.

Be curious to notice what sounds are happening around you.

Man-made sounds, like cars. People, balls bouncing.

The sounds of nature. Birds, the wind, dogs barking.

Now begin to bring your attention home to your body, just letting it settle, remembering that this is a practice of kindness, time and space to give your body a break, letting your body and mind return to its natural state.

Noticing your feet now, with every breath, feeling them becoming soft and loose. Let the softness spread all through your feet, from the toes to the heels, spreading through the ankles and beyond. Rising up through your calves and shins to your knees and all the way through to your hips and back.

Notice your hands now, with every breath feel them become soft and loose. Let the softness naturally spread through all of your fingers, through your palms, up through your wrists, and flowing through your forearms, elbows and upper arms.

Allow the softness from your feet and legs, hands and arms to spread almost like the dry earth soaking up fresh rain, as if your body is like a sponge, soaking up the softness and warmth along your back and into your tummy.

Up through your chest and beyond. Through your neck and into your face, through your chin and jaw, through your cheeks and into your mouth, letting your tongue be soft so it feels like it is floating in the space in your mouth.

Notice that every out-breath is a calming, clearing breath that helps the softness spread.

As all of your body returns naturally to being quiet and still, there is space and time to notice feeling deeply connected with nature. Belonging to nature and the cycle of the seasons inside your inner world, inside your body now.

Imagine the warmth and light of summer, a time to bask in the softness and warmth inside you, just like lying in the sun on the sand by the sea.

Connect now to the qualities of autumn, the shedding of excess, the release and letting go of the old, as any old stale thoughts and feelings inside you begin to soften and dissolve.

Settling down into resting deeply, the quiet hibernation of winter, as you deeply rest in this safe, quiet inner space

As you gradually bring your awareness back to return to your day, notice the feeling of freshness, vitality, and the newness of spring. Time to connect to all the possibilities that life has for you and all the possibilities that you can bring to your life

When you are ready, take some big deep breaths and return your attention,

Opening your eyes back to the space that you are in.

Find Out: The benefits of mindfulness

Step 1

Conduct a class discussion about how students felt before, during and after the meditation.

Did their attention wander? Were they able to bring their attention back to the meditation practice?
How did they feel emotionally? What did they think?
Have they noticed any changes within themselves, in others or in the class as a whole?
Would the activity feel different if it was conducted inside the classroom?

Mindfulness is a way of life that involves paying attention to the present moment, non-judgmentally. It is a state of awareness that provides an opportunity to tune in to your thoughts, emotions, bodily sensations, the environment and other people. Research has shown mindfulness can help develop resilience, kindness, empathy and compassion. You may like to check out this factsheet to learn about the benefits of mindfulness and the importance of mindfulness for young children to help guide your discussion.

Take Action: Connecting inner awareness to the seasons

Step 1

Divide the class into small groups, assigning each group a different season and providing each group with an A3 sheet of paper.

Step 2

Ask the groups to create a collage or artwork that represents their assigned season. Encourage them to incorporate images, colours, and symbols that capture the essence of that season. Students should work in silence, quietly writing and drawing on their shared artwork to communicate and build upon each other's ideas.

Step 3

Facilitate a class discussion on how the different seasons can influence our moods, activities, and perceptions. Encourage students to reflect on how they personally connect with each season and how mindfulness can deepen their appreciation for the natural rhythms of the year.

You might like to invite students to share their reflections with the class if they feel comfortable doing so, fostering a sense of community and shared learning.

Naturally Mindful: Connecting to the Seasons

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