An introduction to mindfulness and flow in the K-12 context. Presented to Discovery STEAM Academy 10/10/17.

1. Well-Being
and Creativity
at Home and
in the
Classroom
DISCOVERING
MINDFULNESS
Morgan Appel, Director
Department of Education and BehavioralSciences
Extended Studies and Public Programs

2. DOWNLOAD THIS PRESENTATION
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3. Mindfulness is a state of active,
open attention on the present.
When you're mindful, you carefully
observe your thoughts and
feelings without judging them
good or bad. Instead of letting
your life pass you by, mindfulness
means living in the moment and
awakening to your current
experience, rather than dwelling
on the past or anticipating the
future.
LIVE IN THE PRESENT
Psychology Today, 2017

4. We tend to
believe in the
idea that the
best is yet to
come. As a
result, we often
neglect that
which is right
in front of us.
Anxieties over
an uncertain
future and a
fondness for
the past may
inadvertently
cause us to
ignore what is
right in front of
us and to truly
immerse
ourselves in
the present.
FUTURE
OBSESSED,
PAST
STRESSED

5. Creating a presentation about living in the moment and being
hyper aware of the present feels a bit counterintuitive—like
planning to be spontaneous in the future.
I am not a mindfulness trainer in any sense of the word, but do
understand its significance in education as we employ tenets of
positive psychology in support of the affective needs of
increasingly diverse students.
One expert suggests that our students come to us in all sorts of
states (excited, anxious, preoccupied, just to name a few). And
if we view the classroom as an orchestra, we all have to tune
our instruments before we can begin to play. I tend to think of
mindfulness a bit like this.
DO YOU MIND EXPLAINING?

6.  Part of Positive Psychology: the scientific study of the strengths that
enable individuals and communities to thrive. The field is founded on
the belief that people want to lead meaningful and fulfilling lives, to
cultivate what is best within themselves, and to enhance their
experiences of love, work, and play. The Science of Happiness.
 Has much in common with and complements the Social Emotional
Learning Movement (that works from the outside in—Mindfulness,
conversely, works from the inside out: interiority)
 Mindfulness is not obscure, exotic or an ‘add on’. It is something we
(all of us) already can do, and goes by several different names.
Mindfulness techniques can be engaged to enhance these innate
qualities so that we are able to live in the present and be aware.
MORE ABOUT MINDFULNESS
Source: Mindful.org

7.  You don’t have to change. It isn’t about who you want to be, but
rather who you are, and focusing on who you are in the
immediate (intentionality of awareness and attention)
 Mindfulness (and flow, as you will see) serves as a catalyst for
creativity and innovation. It is about being aware (meta-
awareness) of perceptions and judgments
 Awareness enables us to move away from binary dualism
(like/dislike; is/is not; among others) and to better see fine
gradations
 Mindfulness is ‘brain-compatible’: impacts Executive Functioning
(planning, working memory, attention, problem solving, verbal
reasoning, inhibition, mental flexibility, multi-tasking and
initiation of monitoring) and regulation of emotions and behavior
MORE ABOUT MINDFULNESS
Source: Meiklejohn, et. al., 2012., Mindful.org

8. Mindfulness is
the basic
innate human
ability to be
fully present,
aware of where
we are and
what we’re
doing, and not
overly reactive
or overwhelmed
by what’s going
on around us.
Mindful.org
WE
ALREADY
ARE
MINDFUL

9.  Many techniques: mindfulness meditation is most common
 Initially direct attention to a specific focus (breath, sensation
or feeling): an attentional anchor
 As the mind begins to drift away from the attentional anchor,
the mindfulness practitioner intentionally returns to the
anchor
 The point is not to dismiss thoughts or feelings, but to
cultivate the ability to focus attention and ‘non-judgmental’
awareness around moment to moment experiences
 Intentionally attending to thoughts, feelings, bodily
sensations and sensory experiences without getting caught up
with thoughts about the experience (experience the event
without over analysis)
 Can be woven informally into activities and facets of everyday
life (eating, walking, etc.)
MINDFULNESS PRACTICE

10. The present moment is the only
time over which we have
dominion.
– Thích Nhất Hạnh
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

11.  Inner Kids Program (the new ABCs: Attention, Balance,
Compassion)
 Inner Resilience Program (cultivate inner lives by integrating
SEL and contemplative practice)
 Learning to BREATHE (using mindfulness-based stress
reduction programming)
 Mindfulness in Schools Project (based in England,
incorporates a variety of foci, including health and well being)
 Mindful Schools (SF Bay Area) – integrates mindfulness in K-
12 schools through direct work with teachers and pupils
 MIND Up: focuses on well being as a catalyst for academic
success
WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE IN SCHOOLS
Meiklejohn, et. al., 2012

12.  Reduced rates of absenteeism, rule infractions and suspensions
 Decreases in blood pressure for adolescents with elevated rates
 Decreased state and trait anxieties; enhanced social skills and improved
academic performance
 Higher quality sleep and increased self-esteem
 Improvements in emotional regulation; decreases in tiredness, aches and
pains; higher levels of social competence
 Reduced off-task behavior and increase academic behavior for behaviorally
challenged students
 Enhanced behavioral regulation and metacognition, higher levels of
executive control/functioning overall
 Reduction in problematic responses to stress (rumination; intrusive
thoughts; emotional arousal; among others)
EFFECTS: MINDFULNESS IN SCHOOLS
Greatergood.berkeley.edu

13. We know intuitively
that if you do not feel
a sense of confidence,
competence and
solace, it is virtually
impossibleto
concentrate on
anything else.
Neurochemistry
suggests that when we
are anxious or stressed,
adrenaline and cortisol
compels us to focus on
an immediate perceived
threat.
Enduring a seemingly
endless cycle of what
ifs makes creativity
and enthusiasm take a
back seat to anxiety
and fear. Mindfulness
helps us to attend to
living in our own heads
and oft rescue us from
progressive downward
spirals.
MIND
OVER
MATTER

14. MINDFULNESS ADJACENT: FLOW

15. STIMULATING LEARNING THROUGH FLOW
• Mihaly Csíkszentmihályi (1975, 1990)—also part of
positive psychology
• A Zen-like, intensive state in which an individual
becomes completely emerged in an experience
• “In the groove,” OPTIMAL EXPERIENCE, “In the zone”
• Time stops (almost a meditative state) or flies
• “Seeing the seams of the baseball” or “seeing the Matrix”
• Losing oneself so that one is so focused, s/he is unaware
of distractions, even bodily needs
• A universal and cross-cultural experience
• Connectivity between emotion, motivation and
internalization

16. TOWARD A STATE OF ‘FLOW’
 Balance between individual’s ability and level of difficulty in
the challenge (cannot be too easy or difficult or flow cannot
occur).
 Goals should be clear. Expectations are foreseen and goals
are attainable.
 High degree of concentration in a limited field of attention—
person should be able to focus and become deeply engaged
in the activity.
 A loss of self-consciousness is experienced (unaware of self
and what the self is doing).
 Sense of time transcendence (subjective experience of time
is altered—passes quickly/slowly/slow motion)
 Emerges from our neurochemistry and primal functions
(survival, solving problems, etc.)

17. ESTABLISHING FLOW
When in the flow state,
the brain is actively
seeking out information
from multiple sources
to engage in problem
solving activities.
That is where motivation,
Persistence and creativity
make their homes.
That is FLOW.

18. FLOW
 A ‘state’ of being
 Relationship with activity
 Indirectly practiced in
pursuit of an objective
 Attention to task
 Not something that can be
taught, but can be
influenced by activities
undertaken
 Cannot be scheduled (a
channel)
MINDFULNESS
 An ability that can be
cultivated
 Relationship with mind
 Directly practiced through
meditation
 Redirection of attention
inwards
 Taught using specific
techniques (intentionality)
 May enable/interrupt flow
state, but the reverse is not
true
MINDFULNESS AND FLOW:
TWO SIDES OF THE SAME COIN

19. You can do both,
but can you
really immerse
yourself in the
experience of
both?
Getting lost in
your playing and
forgetting the
existence of the
popcorn is
FLOW.
Pushing the
guitar to one
side to
concentrate on
every kernel and
savor each bite
is eating
MINDFULLY.
MINDFULNESS
VERSUS FLOW:
POPCORN AND
GUITARS

20.  Slow Things Down
 Set Kids Up for Success
 Stress is Contagious
 Mindful Play
 Mindful Dinnertime
 Mindful Brushing of Teeth
 Avoid the ‘Red Zone’ of Extreme Thought
 Reduce Emotional Flooding, so Brain can Process
 Help Children Befriend Themselves
 Practice Mindfulness as a Means to Regulate Emotion
MINDFULNESS AT HOME:
WHAT PARENTS CAN DO TO HELP
Mindful.org, Kidsmatter.edu.au

21. Part of the joy
associated with
the art of
painting lies in
the sensory
experience: the
smell and
texture of paint
and brush. The
visual
sensation of a
messy palette.
The scrape of
the brush
against canvas
and an entry
point for Flow.
MINDFUL
PAINTING

22. A wide variety of mindfulness resources can be
found at the Center for Mindfulness at UC San
Diego Health:
https://health.ucsd.edu/specialties/mindfulnes
s/resources/pages/default.aspx
Also includes a variety of videos available
through UCSD TV.
RESOURCES FOR PARENTS

23. QUESTIONS/COMMENTS

24. Morgan Appel
Director
Department of Education and Behavioral Sciences
UC San Diego Extension
9500 Gilman Dr., MC 0170-N
La Jolla, California
858-534-9273
858-534-9256 (FAX)
mappel@ucsd.edu
CONTACT INFORMATION