- Unlike other MiSP curricula, it is not required that those training to teach .breathe have an existing mindfulness practice, but it is crucial that they are willing to engage in introductory mindfulness practices both during the Teach .breathe course and beyond.
- Guidance and support on this practice will be given both during and beyond the Teach .breathe course.
Please note:
- Experience of working or volunteering with groups of children aged 10-14 years of age is essential as Teach .breathe is not a course which teaches the classroom teaching and management skills needed when working with groups of young people.
- If you are new to mindfulness, we would also encourage you to attend our online taster sessions, and deepen your understanding of mindfulness through reading and following the practices in Mindfulness: A Practical Guide to Finding Peace in a Frantic World prior to attending the Teach .breathe course.
Attending and participating in the Teach .breathe course
The Teach .breathe course involves a one-day intensive training.
Participants will be taught the lessons in ‘real time’ by an experienced MiSP trainer. There will then be opportunities to discuss the pedagogy of each lesson and how it can best be taught to a group of young people in different settings. There will also be opportunities to work with other participants guiding them, and being guided by them, in the brief mindfulness practices from the lessons. The day will also include some longer formal mindfulness practices to help support you in further developing your own mindfulness experience.
At the end of the day, participants will hopefully feel nourished, confident and ready to teach the lessons to young people. They will also be part of a network of .breathe teachers, supported by Mindfulness in Schools Project and will leave with access to all the materials they need to teach the course in the classroom.
Please note:
- Full participation in all aspects of the course will allow you to leave feeling confident in the .breathe course and in your ability to teach it to young people.
- It is crucial that .breathe is taught safely and with integrity. In very exceptional circumstances a trainer may have concerns about a participant’s engagement in or readiness to go on to teach the .breathe course to young people. In this case, the trainer will discuss this with the participant with a final decision about whether or not the participant should be certified as a trained .breathe teacher left in the hands of the Lead Trainer.
- Full attendance on the days’ training (including mindfulness practices) is required for full certification and access to .breathe teacher materials. While we appreciate that unavoidable situations might occur resulting in a participant missing a part of a training course, e.g. serious injury or a family member being taken ill, the decision as to whether or not the participant is then allowed to continue with the course will be at the trainer’s discretion. If a significant section of the day is missed, the participant will be asked to attend the equivalent day(s) in question on a future Teach .breathe training course and will incur an additional fee.
- NB Applicants from outside of the UK must: Meet the above prerequisites and be able to speak and understand English to an Upper Intermediate Level, i.e. be able to interact fluently with native speakers, communicate effectively and understand everyday conversation in the English language.
Ongoing commitment as a .breathe teacher
Being a .breathe teacher is not just about teaching mindfulness. If mindfulness is to become a beneficial part of education for young people moving through the transition from primary to secondary school, it is vital that the highest standards of professionalism and integrity are maintained by the teacher. We believe that this is in the interests of all those teaching mindfulness and the young people learning it. We ask that anyone applying to train to teach .breathe commits as far as is possible to the following and agrees to continue to adhere to these standards on an ongoing basis:
Personal Mindfulness Practice
Having learned some basic mindfulness practices allows you to:
- Teach mindfully
- Embody mindfulness
- Model mindfulness to young people
- Guide practices with awareness
Teaching Mindfulness to Young People
- Ability to engage pupils in a classroom setting
- Good class management skills
- Good communication skills
- Willingness to inform and include staff and school senior leadership in the mindfulness work in the school in which you are teaching.
Agree not to train others nor share the course materials to enable others to deliver the curriculum.