The MindUP Curriculum: Grades 3-5

My favorite Mindfulness curriculum! Such a great, well rounded curriculum. It’s also very easy to use and adapt to your needs.

I was looking for something that would tie my classroom management strategy neatly into a single package but have not found that magic missing piece. My school district uses several different programs (Capturing Kids Hearts, Kids at Hope, and some of the schools use Make You Day). I like to share with my students WHY it is important to Choose Kind (from the book Wonder (our first read aloud of the year). I have tried incorporating things from Whole Brain Teaching and even Kagan Strategies but it all seemed so disjointed.Until now!!! This book teaches the students about the brain and how different parts of the brain respond to different things. It teaches students how they respond to stress and why. It teaches them to recognize which part of their brain is in control and then asks them if that is truly the part that should be in charge OR if there is a better decision that they should be making.As if that is not enough, the author took the time to tie each of the lessons to CCSS standards so teachers can justify the use of it in the classroom. There are additional books (literature) you can use as read alouds to help make each topic come to life. Each unit is meant to last 2 weeks and the book is designed to be taught over the course of the year. I love how it ties in the sense and some great science lessons.This is excellent for your ADHD, Shy, and students with anger issues. I cannot wait to begin to use it this upcoming school year.

I just started implementing this curriculum in December and found it to be a wonderful addition to my classroom's morning meeting routine. I love the alternative activity. suggestions included with each lesson. I was concerned that my combination 5/6 class might have difficulty "buying in" to this program, however they've really enjoyed it. I think the content and activities are appropriate with this age rage and not too "immature" for them.

This curriculum is just what I need to help my fourth grade students begin to understand the way their brains work, and learn how to regulate their emotions. I love the way that it directly teaches brain science to students, and they love it too! I like the reproducible worksheets that are provided, as well as the brain facts poster. Although, I do find myself creating a lot more visuals (posters, powerpoints, etc) to supplement so that I am not just stuck reading or lecturing aloud to my students.I took one star off because the lesson plans are kind of confusing and not what I was expecting based on the description. I saw that there were 15 lessons and thought that it would be perfect to implement lessons once or twice a week. However, this curriculum expects you to set aside time almost every day if you want to teach the full curriculum within one school year. The lessons are actually made up of several parts that are meant to be taught over a 2-week period.

This curriculum is amazing. There is a wonderful show on Amazon Prime Video about how this curriculum is used to assist veterans with PTSD and students that have difficulty regulating their emotions. I use this in a general education classroom and it has changed lives, mine included.

The (Goldie Hawn) Foundation supports the group the researched and developed this easy to follow format for teaching students mindfulness with no religious underpinnings. Helps children to have presence of mind for better decision making. Most effective introduced with younger which. Am a social worker at a school for students with disabilities, including emotional ones. The best things I can describe is that the kids are interested when I do the activities with them, the seem to relish understanding how their brains work and they understand the reasons to become mindful.

Not as user friendly as I had expected, but good content. I wish it was more formatted for actual classroom lessons, similar to Second Step. You need to supplement with many other visuals to really engage the students. I like the poster that is included.

This integrates with all curricular areas. It is exactly what we have been looking for to integrate The Olweus Program (AntiBullying) that is used in our school. It is a most positive, emotional , hands on tool for building relationships among students. Our teachers had just experienced a workshop on the brain and the research about how we and our children learn and process. This ties into the brain research on a most practical level in the classroom. I would highly recommend this book for School Counselor, Teachers, Administrators at this grade level.