5-4-3-2-1

These days being healthy is as much about your mental health as it is about your physical health. 

5 people to follow

1. Dr. Stuart Shanker - Dr. Shanker is the self-regulation guru. If you want to learn about how stress affects adults & kids, he's your guy. New to this? Check out the 7 Day Self-Reg Challenge to learn more.
2. Kristin Wiens - Kristin Wiens embodies self-regulation; she is one of the most peacefully passionate educators I have ever met. She creates beautiful graphics about self-reg and inclusion that she shares widely via social media and on her website. Her pro-d sessions are super informative and engaging - I don't think I've ever blown bubbles in pro-d before!
3. Dr. Elisa Song - A self-described "holistic mama doc" Dr. Song posts tons of information about keeping kids healthy using both conventional and naturopathic means. While not specifically focused on the classroom, Dr. Song's advice is relevant to anyone who works with kids.
4. The P.E. Geek - Jarrod blogs and hosts a podcast all about teaching P.E. and he shares a lot about integrating technology in to your P.E. class. His ideas are best suited for middle and high school students so if that's you - give him a follow!
5. Joey Feith - AKA The Physical Educator, Joey shares a ton of ideas, including games, skills posters, visuals and more. Looking for a new game to play? Check out his extensive list of  standards-aligned games or listen to his podcast on the way to work. More of a visual person? Joey also has a vlog where he shares tutorials and tips to help you be the best PE teacher you can be!

4 Apps/Websites to Check out

• CASEL - Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning
• Sport for Life Canada
• Calm App - free for educators!
• Go Noodle - brain breaks for your classroom

3 Things to Try

1. Start your day outside - our brains benefit from fresh air and physical activity and many of our students don't get this in the morning. Create a morning routine that gets your class out and playing in the fresh air first thing to wake them up and get them focused!
2. Invite a chef in to your class - One of the most fun activities I've ever done was to invite a chef to come and prepare some simple snacks with my class. Over the course of a few days, we learned how to make hummus, smoothies and dips for veggies. The kids loved it and learned a lot about healthy eating!
3. Create a self-reg drawer - Fill a drawer or cart with fidget toys (Tangles are my favorite), gum, hard candy, headphones, colouring books and pencils, crunchy snacks and more. Ask your class what helps them stay focused and on task and include it! Yes, you will need to teach them how to use these tools appropriately and yes, they will likely over use them at first but in the long term you will have those kids who need it reaching for the tools they need, when they need them. Win!

2 Quotes to consider

Self-regulation refers to how well we manage stress, how much energy we expend, and how well we recover. - Dr. Stuart Shanker

A healthy outside starts from the inside. - Robert Urich

1 question to answer

How do you promote being healthy in your classroom? Do you focus more on physical or mental health?