Mindfulness and Yoga in Schools A Guide for Teachers and Practitioners

CHAPTER 3: THE MINDFUL AND YOGIC LEARNER: 12 EMBODIED PRACTICES FOR SCHOOLS • 59

hard work toward long-term goals with an eye on self-care, compassion, and sustainability.
In private practice, at the university, and in my personal life, I have seen the negative effects
of passion and perseverance in the absence of sustainability and self-care. Mindful grit
allows for sustainability and balance while still honoring work toward possibility.
Mindful growing is also a new term that builds on Dweck’s work on growth mindset
(e.g., Rattan, Savani, Chugh, & Dweck, 2015). In mindful growing, there is a focus on a
mindset of possibility within the context of inquiry, choice, self-determination, and sustain-
ability. Further, the movement toward possibility (i.e., mindful development) occurs within
the context of the mindfulness and yoga tools of compassion and kindness. See Figure 3.3
for an overview of how mindful grit and mindful growing relate to the 12 principles of
embodied growth and learning. The figure also illustrates how the 12 principles inform
mindful and yoga practices and the key mechanisms of action (e.g., self- regulation, self-care,
and intentional, reflective engagement). Finally, Figure 3.3 illustrates how these practices
inform the goals and mission of education—that is, to support student learning of content
and learning tools; help students become personal architects of their own learning and well-
being; and graduate students who are creative and collaborative problem solvers ready to
work together and manage the issues facing our people and planet.

Principles of Embodied

Growth and Learning

Mindful Embodiment

• WORTH: I am worth the effort


• BREATH: My breath is my most
  powerful tool


• AWARENESS: I am mindfully
  aware


• PRESENCE: I work toward
  presence in my physical body


• FEELING: I feel my emotions in
  order to grow and learn Mindful and Y

oga Practices

(Self-r

egulation, self-car

e, and intentional, r

eflective engagement)

Embodied Self-Regulation

• INQUIRY: I ask questions about my
  physical experiences, feelings, and
  thoughts


• CHOICE: I choose my focus and
  actions


• SELF-DETERMINATION: I do
  the work


• SUSTAINABILITY: I find balance
  between effort and rest
  Mindful Development


• COMPASSION: I honor efforts to
  grow and learn


• KINDNESS: I am kind to myself
  and others


• POSSIBILITY: I work toward the
  possibility of effectiveness and
  growth in my life

The Practice The Goals

Ö Support student

learning of academic

content and learning

tools.

Mindful Grit

Mindful Gr

owing

Ö Support student in

creating a self-

determined path for

well-being (self-

architecture)

Ö Support student in

becoming a creative,

collaborative problem

solver

FIGURE 3.3 Overview of mindful grit, mindful growing, and the 12 principles in

context.