Stop, Breathe & Think is a mindfulness, meditation, and compassion-in-action curriculum. Using the Stop, Breathe & Think workbook, students are introduced to an understanding of peace, and then the curriculum unfolds as a three-step process:
- Mindfulness: developing awareness of ones’ body and thoughts in order to foster self-awareness;
- Broaden Perspective: extending awareness to ones’ relationships and environment to develop self regulation;
- Compassion in Action: bringing awareness and a broadened perspective to the circumstances of others in order to develop empathy and social competence.
Each Stop, Breathe & Think workbook includes a mandala blueprint (to record personal expressions to the curriculum) and activity worksheets. Compassion-in-Action engages students in service learning projects that address a community need in their classrooms, on campus or within the wider community.
Documented studies have shown that the use of mindfulness and meditation increase emotional regulation, social skills and an ability to orient and harness attention. They are also shown to decrease anxiety, depression, and reduce conduct and behavior-related problems. Studies have demonstrated that an understanding of mindfulness and meditation support closing the achievement gap in schools[1] and helps to reduce high school drop-out rates. Our own student and teacher feedback has demonstrated that our programs influence a student’s life most profoundly.