Wellness Wednesday Week of June 1-5 Hopes and Wishes

Hi everyone,
Wow, can you believe we made it to June!  Amazing!

I have two read alouds for you this week.  The first is from a book called I am Human by Susan Verde.  This is one in a series of books that talk about empathy - looking at things from another persons point of view and compassion - a strong feeling of sympathy and a wish to be helpful.  Both are topics we work on together all year long at school and are especially important right now.

After the read aloud which you can find here, complete the Roll and Respond activity below shared by a school counselor I really admire, Counselor Keri.  You will need a pair of dice to complete it and you could write your answers down.

Find our Human Connections with Each Other:
Roll the dice and respond with someone else or write your answers down.

1.  Share a unique quality about yourself.
2.  Share something you learned recently.
3.  Share one of your big dreams for the future.
4.  Share something that you are curious about.
5.  Share a time or situation when you feel or felt afraid.
6.  Share a time or situation when your heart feels or felt heavy or sad.
7.  Share a time when you moved on from a hard situation or experience.
8.  Share a time when you showed compassion to another human.
9.  Share a time when you helped someone get what they needed.
10.  Share a time when you listened to another human's fears, concerns, or feelings.
11.  Share a time when you apologized to another human.
12.  Share why you are full of hope for the humans of the world.

The second read aloud is all about my wishes for you as the school year winds down.  Please check out I Wish You More, by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld here.  You can also complete this activity which we often do at the end of the school year.  Have a grown up take a photo and share it with me over email @ suzannef@mpsvt.org.  Check out the final lessons from Kids Yoga with Ms. Winters on the UES Social Emotional Learning site as well.

I wish you more sunshine, laughs, fun, time with friends and creativity this summer.  I hope to see you all very soon!  Be kind to each other and yourself.

Wellness Wednesday Week of May 25-29 Mind Bubbles

Hi everyone,

Wow, we have almost made it to the end of May.  We can do this!  Here is my read aloud for the week and I have included a Mindful Kids activity as well.  Be on the lookout for a special surprise during the videos.

Listen to the read aloud here.

Check out this Mindful Kids Activity here and 

click on read more below to see some other ideas.

Week of May 18-22 Wellness Wednesday #6

Hi Everyone,
I hope you are able to soak up some of this beautiful sunshine we are having this week.

1.  Please check out my new weekly lesson below

Listen to a read aloud of Scribble Stones by Diane Alber here.  

Wellness Wednesday Week of May 11-14 Nobody Hugs a Cactus

Hi friends,

Here is a read aloud for the week.  As you are listening to the story think about how an act of kindness can change how you feel and how it might change the way someone else feels about you.  I hope you enjoy the story.

Nobody Hugs A Cactus Read Aloud

Check out the ideas for activities below ...

Spreading Positivity Art Project - Final Slideshow!

Here is the final slideshow of all of the Spreading Positivity artwork! Thanks to all of the artists of all ages who created art to share with the community and the world. Special thanks to Montpelier musician Paul Boffa, who wrote the song "Share the Love" with UES first graders a couple of years ago (those students are currently in third grade!) and was happy for this song to be included in the slideshow. Enjoy and have hope!

Week of April 13-17 Wellness Wednesday

Hi Mindful Students,

Here is a video that another school counselor, Counselor Keri, made and gave me permission to share with you.  I thought some of you might be having worries these days with school being closed.  I hope you find all of the activities in todays Wellness Wednesday lesson helpful.

Remember to practice calm breathing whenever you have a worry and the more you practice the easier it is to stay calm and worry less.

And of course a story from Mrs. Francke

The Worry Box by Suzanne Chiew

And a Mindful Activity to try

Please share pictures of your worry boxes you make with me via email @ suzannef@mpsvt.org.

I would love to hear if you are using the journal idea from last week to write in as well.  Have a great week everyone, remember to breathe and know that we can do this!