
Episode 20: Reinventing break and dinner times
Dinner time and break time is a chance for children to blow of some steam and have a run about, right?.. Hang on.. Is that right? Or is it a time where many feel anxious and unsettled? Where the fast pace and demands to join in with games and run about can be the opposite of what they actually need. A time when they find themselves in trouble because they are struggling to manage the chaos that break time brings.
The truth is we need to reinvent break and dinnertime and acknowledge that some children need that time to self-regulate. To be calm and gather their thoughts. To refocus and just be still for a moment before the lessons and the pressure starts again.
In this episode, we will explore the reasons why free play at break and dinner time don’t work for all children and how you can begin to implement ways for the children to use the time to find ways to regulate themselves and process their morning. Ready to move into the afternoon.
If you told me after a hard morning to go and run around outside it would be the last thing I needed. I’d want a quiet peaceful cup of tea for 10mins to collect my thoughts. If we can acknowledge that for ourselves then we need to begin acknowledging that for our children.
The Path Meditation is a 7 minute guided Meditation, let me know what your class thinks.