Life coaching for reflective & mindful teachers

1. Life coaching for reflective & mindful teachers «Με τη συγχρηματοδότηση της Ευρωπαϊκής Ένωσης» Eleni Xanthakou

2. Designing your professional development map Erika Osváth www.oup.com/elt/teaching-adults

3. Get to know your teacher-self

4. record your class or your training session • Videoing is particularly useful because after overcoming the initial hurdle of watching oneself teach, you can observe the reaction of your students. It offers a wonderful opportunity to notice the effect of your body-language and position in the classroom on the students and the whole learning process, something that is difficult to be aware of otherwise.

5. Apply the self-awareness technique • Use a table to make notes of some of your personal characteristics, and then consider the ways in which these would influence your thoughts, words or actions in the classroom.

6. ask a colleague to come and sit in your lesson • It is essential that it is you who decides the agenda for the observation, because no one could know better what you need at that moment than yourself.

7. ask your students regularly • Ask students how they feel about specific tasks, activities or the lesson as a whole. • Opening up to them as observers can also be an exciting self-awareness practice

8. Identify the teacher you would like to become Write a letter from your future self to your present self.

9. 20th March, 2024 Dear Erika, I’m writing to let you know that I have become a great teacher. Now I can … I have also learnt how to … … … … I have managed to do these because you … … … Thank you for helping me become the teacher I am today. With love and respect, Erika

10. draw yourself as a teacher • in the context where you would like to be, • what you would like to do, • who you would like to work with exactly, etc. in five years.

11. Reflection task Suppose you were a fruit. Reflect on the kind of fruit you would be.

12. Reflection task:The magical shower Ideal for meetings, stressed day, a break in the office

13. Contact with floor: essential for grounding, body center, stability • Open chest: improves breath and sight • Open position: makes people more cooperative, open to experience • Closing eyes (optional) • Need to think of color in advance: Left part of brain/logic needs to work before the experience • Body scan with colored water: A sense of purpose, not just relax but focus and connect so as to get energy for the lesson • Options: Do it with the ‘sea’ or a ‘lake’ The magical shower tips

14. In the bath…(Think of color) • Stand with knees bent in a dignified position • Secure contact with floor: toes, knees(grounding) • Flex your knees (flexibility) • Open your chest (dignity/sense of decency) • Process in the corridor/Open a few doors • Set temperature of water • Smell of soap/ texture of soap: creamy, soft • Body scan with transparent water: head, neck, arms, hand, backup/down, legs, feet toes • Water turns to favorite color • Quick body scan with colored water (energy) • Turn off tap. Grab a fluffy towel. • Have a look around. Enjoy. Go outside the bathroom. • Slowly invite people to stretch, move body parts. • Wake up. The magical shower

15. The Ecological System Theory Bronfenbrenner Urie

16. The Five Environmental SystemsThe ecological systems theory holds that we encounter different environments throughout our lifespan that may influence our behavior in varying degrees 1. The Micro System The micro system's setting is the direct environment we have in our lives. Your family, friends, classmates, teachers, neighbors and other people who have a direct contact with you are included in your micro system 2. The Mesosystem The mesosytem involves the relationships between the microsystems in one's life. This means that your family experience may be related to your school experience. For example, if a child is neglected by his parents, he may have a low chance of developing positive attitude towards his teachers. 3. The Exosystem The exosystem is the setting in which there is a link between the context where in the person does not have any active role, and the context where in is actively participating. 4. The Macrosystem The macrosystem setting is the actual culture of an individual. The cultural contexts involve the socioeconomic status of the person and/or his family, his ethnicity or race and living in a still developing or a third world country. 5. The Chronosystem The chronosystem includes the transitions and shifts in one's lifespan. This may also involve the socio-historical contexts that may influence a person. One classic example of this is how divorce, as a major life transition, may affect not only the couple's relationship but also their children's behavior.

18. SWOT Analysis Leads to reflection of self & neutralizes the negative as sometimes you cannot change but have to adapt so that you create.

19. SWOT Analysis is a useful technique for understanding your Strengths and Weaknesses, and for identifying both the Opportunities open to you and the Threats you face.

21. Positive Psychology24 personal strengths in education Christopher Peterson

22. Wisdom and knowledge:creativity, curiosity, open-mindedness, love of learning, perspective, innovation • Courage:bravery, persistence, integrity, vitality, zest • Humanity:love, kindness, social intelligence • Justice:citizenship, fairness, leadership • Temperance:forgiveness and mercy, humility, prudence, self control • Transcendence:appreciation of beauty and excellence, gratitude, hope, humor, spirituality The organization of the 6 virtues and 24 strengths is as follows: http://viacharacter.org

23. The Perma model of well being Dr. Martin Seligman

24. The PERMA model of wellbeing • The PERMA model of wellbeing is the most recent evidence-based model of what supports people to have positive wellbeing, resulting in flourishing and thriving. It was developed by Dr. Martin Seligman and is based on significant research; the model outlines five pillars that contribute to positive wellbeing. • Positive emotions • Engagement • Relationships • Meaning • Accomplishment • Resilience – the core output of the above five pillars https://fowinsights.com/insights/wellbeing/perma-model-wellbeing/

25. The PERMA model and school How to: Feel good and do good /Balance Regenerate yourself with resilience Why? School is a platform for training School is a tool that brings you somewhere If school is seen as a diploma, it is time limited and demotivating

26. Tip:Visualize your objective/success as it provides maximum motivation. V.A.K. objectives Visual Auditory Kinesthetic

27. Stress – a normal process based on physicsbut…eustress(positive stress)distress (negative stress) https://www.mentalhelp.net/articles/types-of-stressors-eustress-vs-distress/

28. The Correlation Between Stress and Performance https://examinedexistence.com/the-correlation-between-stress-and-performance/ The Yerkes-Dodson law states that performance increases with increased physiological or mental arousal (stress), but only up to a point.  When the level of arousal (stress) becomes too high, performance decreases.  Here is a graph of the Yerkes-Dodson law:

29. The Healthy Mind Platter Dr. Dan Siegel

31. As educators, we tend to teach to the logical left brain and ignore the emotional right brain. Creating an interconnectedness between the two can be a challenge but is an important key to creating a whole-brain child.

32. “Mindfulness is awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgmentally.” https://www.mindful.org/meditation/mindfulness-getting-started/ Jon Kabat-Zinn creator of the research-backed stress-reduction program Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR)

33. What do I do with tasks in each quadrant? • The higher part of the matrix is about what you are going to do in person: no one else can do it instead of you. • Important and Urgent • Do it right now and do it yourself. For example, if the house is on fire, this is highly urgent and important and the actions you take have to be quick and efficient. The tasks from this quadrant should go on the top of your list and need to be dealt with today. • Important and Not Urgent • You need to set the date for those tasks but they will be pushed for later. Tasks are personally done. It depends what you put here. Traditionally in the middle of the past century vacations as well as all your social life including relationships and family issues would go to this quadrant whilst nowadays we know that productivity depends on how you live and rest so definitely sleep and dates are not advised to be put here. On the contrary, typically planning is here. • The lower part of the matrix belongs to what you are not going to do, even if it sounds crazy at the first glance. • Not Important and Urgent • Delegate it. While you’re busy with the Important and Urgent tasks, Urgent tasks won’t wait anyways, even if they are less important than what you’re going to do personally. So find people to delegate those tasks to them. The simplest example: you need to paint walls at your new house but you won’t do it, you simply hire a couple of people to help you. Meetings? Find somebody else to hold them. Drop tasks that are not important in spite of their urgency here: those tasks are not a deadline, crisis or problem solving issues. • Not important and Not Urgent • This quadrant detects the garbage of your time-wasters. Forget about this. Some activities are not moving you to your goals. Some are imposed to you by people who don’t care, marketers first of all. Need to buy a latest gadget? Need to spend time reading online anecdotes? Probably not. Before starting this activity as yourself: is it urgent? Or important? If it’s clearly «no» in both cases, don’t waste your time.

34. The design thinking process https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/article/5-stages-in-the-design-thinking-process

36. Happy mapping