Sitting with Ourselves

Another great element of self-control is being able to be still with ourselves, in silence.

In mindfulness we have various practices which can aid us with learning to be still, be silent, and gain better self-control.

Inner Explorer … which we all have access to, every day, and we can send it home to parents too… has some silence practices.

Inner Explorer Daily Practice

Pre-K-1: Practice #10

1-4: Practice #15

5-7: Practice #20

These practices, which are titled Comfortably Quiet, encourage you to take small amounts of time to sit quietly with your own thoughts and feelings. 

They encourage you to explore your inner truths and wisdom to help you begin being your best self.

We can also introduce quiet mindfulness by helping our students engage more than one sense at a time.

You can start with asking your students to sit and listen to the sounds around them. Tell them that you will set a timer for one minute and during that time you would like them to be as quiet as possible so that they can hear the sounds around them. Ask them to notice a sound they have never heard or paid attention to previously. After you complete the minute have the students report on their findings.

You can also utilize the sense of sight during the quiet mindfulness. You can talk with your students about quietly observing the room and searching out a sight they have never paid attention to before. As the students search out sights, ask them to remain silent and take mental notes on the sights. Set the timer and allow one minute of time and then come back together to explore the findings.

I personally like to call this mindfulness Spiderman Mindfulness, telling the students they are using their spidy senses.

You could even use the sense of smell. This sense may take some preparation, such as, bringing in something that may have a noticeable smell. I do warn to have caution with this if you have anyone with breathing issues or sensitives to smell.

If you’d like to get creative, combine our Thanksgiving week blog with this one and do a mindful eating. Again, encouraging the quiet experience.

It can be difficult to sit in silence. 

I had a friend in college who would go running with me and talk the whole time. I liked to run in silence, utilizing the time to process thoughts and feelings and even plan out my day. My friend liked to run with someone to talk, engage, and build a friendship. 

My friend was in foster care for part of his childhood and he experienced a lot of silence. To him silence was not easy. It was not a way to process internally, but rather a reminder he was alone. 

Before beginning this mindfulness spend some time talking with your students about silence. Talk about the fear of the quiet. Be open with them and acknowledge the awkwardness, the uncomfortable moments, and sometimes the loneliness. 

Then talk with them about the quiet as an opportunity to help them process thoughts and feelings. Help them explore the ideas that silence can clear our minds and relax our bodies.

And as always, Practice With Them. Don’t be busy with other tasks. Sit in the silence with them.