with Christopher Willard, Ph.D.
So many of us know the value of mindfulness, but how can we really make mindfulness and compassion stick with the kids we work with? If you are looking for fun, creative and effective ways to share mindfulness with young people, this workshop will take a pragmatic approach to just that.
This practical workshop will focus on adapting mindfulness for individuals and groups of differing developmental and diagnostic backgrounds. Special emphasis will be placed on getting young people engaged in practice in their daily lives. We will also explore the importance of our own practice, deepening our own mindful self-care as caregivers.
We will explore the best wisdom and research for supporting a mindfulness practice by examining all angles, including creating a community of support around the kids. We will also examine best practicing for sharing practices together as well as encouraging independent practice outside of our time together. Attention will also be giving to engaging a range of mental health issues.
Mindfulness is more than just breathing, and so is this workshop. Participants should be prepared for an interactive workshop adapting and practicing a variety of mindfulness exercises using senses, visualization, movement, games, and more that can be practiced by professionals and kids of all levels of experience.
You will learn how to:
- Practice and adapt exercises for a range of diagnostic, developmental, cognitive populations.
- Identify a range of effective “buy-in” strategies to inspire practicing mindfulness in the real world.
- Recognize resistance as a roadmap rather than a roadblock to practice.
Christopher Willard, Psy. D. is a psychologist, educational consultant and author of multiple books on child development and contemplative practice. He has been practicing mindfulness for nearly 20 years. He currently serves on the board of directors at the Institute for Meditation and Psychotherapy, and president of the Mindfulness in Education Network. His thoughts on mental health have been featured in The New York Times, cnn.com, The Washington Post, Mindful, and elsewhere. Dr. Willard is the author of Growing Up Mindful (2016), Raising Resilience (2017) and other books. He teaches at Harvard Medical School. When not working, he enjoys time with family, travel, cooking, eating, reading, writing, hiking and any combination of these he can manage.