Schools Are Embracing Mindfulness, But Practice Doesn't Always Make Perfect
When kids at Warner Arts Magnet Elementary School act up, they aren't sent straight to the principal's office. Instead, many students at the high-poverty school in Nashville, Tenn., go to the "BeWell" room.
The serene space is awash in sunlight and brimming with plants. There are yoga mats, toys, a lounging nook and soothing music drifting out of a desk speaker. In this room, teacher Riki Rattner, who is also trained as a yoga instructor, helps students practice deep breathing and check in with their emotions.
"Let's get you checked in and calming down. Taking care of you," she tells a fourth grader who walks in after a tiff in art class.
One in 5 American children , according to the National Institute of experience at least one serious stressor at home — like divorce, poverty or a parent's addiction — according to the nonprofit Child Trends.
