About the project:

Mindfulness methods are effective tools for improving mental endurance to stress events beyond the pupil's control.

Pupils are exposed to stress, from an earthquake, pandemic, wars, being separated from family to the fear of enrolling in secondary school, exams, and overall exposer to fast growing technology and media- world in which they are growing up and forming attitudes, habits and character traits.

Project is mostly focused on the needs of the pupils as well on the needs of teachers- mindfulness methods can empower them live in the present moment, focused on school tasks instead of various factors beyond their control that create permanent unrest. Mindfulness methods can not only help pupils with their academic but also with their social-emotional learning- better understanding of the world around them.

We believe that trough our programme we will motivate pupils to apply these methods outside of school, in their everyday life as well, thereby encourage them to faster integration into Croatian society and living more focused and calm life.

We hope pupils will be able to make a positive choices- spend time in nature with friends, enjoy and appreciate smaller things, know how to control their behaviors and emotional responses in greater manner- instead of escaping into addiction to movies, games and seclusion.

Programme aims:

• Promote wellbeing in our school community

• Offer school staff and pupils techniques to deal with challenges of everyday life

• Improve the school curriculum in the field of mental health for better integration of students from different cultures in school using mindfulness methods

• Strengthen and further develop mindful practices in our School

Courses Agenda :

Course A - Florence

Name: Happy Schools: Positive Education for Well-Being and Life-Skills Development – Ms Hraste and Ms Končurat

Place and date: Florence, form 26 till 30 September 2022.

Short description:

This contemporary educational approach is based on Positive Psychology, which is the scientific study of human flourishing and optimal functioning and focuses on strengths and virtues that enable individuals, communities, and organizations to succeed.

The course will introduce participants both to Positive Psychology fundamentals, presenting the most relevant international theories and references, and to Positive Education theories and techniques.

During the course, participants will also be introduced to mindfulness as an opportunity to train their minds, drive attention to present moments, relax, achieve goals, and boost a certain level of self-awareness.

Course B - Barcelona

Name: Mindfulness for Teachers: a Hands-on Approach ) – Ms Šarina and Ms Ivanović

Place and date: Barcelona, from 10 till 15 October 2022.

Short description:

This course has been created for teachers and staff who want to learn more about what Mindfulness is, how it can benefit both their students and themselves, and how it can best be integrated into their schools.

By establishing a firm foundation in their own self-practice throughout the course, participants will learn how Mindfulness can be cultivated in a practical, hands-on way.

Course participants will be encouraged to keep a journal of their experiences that will provide insight even after the course has finished, and help motivate them to continue their own practice.

By the end of this course, participants will have established their own Mindfulness practice, having experienced its benefits first-hand. Participants will leave the course with a toolbox of Mindfulness practices that they can use in their classrooms.

Course C - Barcelona

Name: Name: Resilience and Wellbeing Strengths for Teachers – Ms Postružin and Ms Manestar

Place and date: Place and date: Barcelona, from 7 till 11 November 2022.

Short description:

This course has been created for share and discuss the importance of teachers understanding and taking responsibility to develop their resilience strengths to help them navigate their way towards a heightened and more stable state of well-being.

Through exploring strategies such as emotional management, positive mind-set, changing the internal narrative, and building empathy and compassion, participants will discover how to rebuild resilience and render their life more enjoyable and manageable.

By identifying and analysing the strengths necessary for achieving well-being and behaving resiliently, we will collaborate to find ways of navigating emotional highs and lows in ways that promote mental, emotional, and physical health.

Course D - Malaga

Name: Name: Mindfulness to reduce stress - Promoting Mental Health and Wellbeing in School – Ms Ključarić and Ms Kaya

Place and date: Place and date: Malaga, from 23 till 27 January 2023

Short description:

The objective of this course is to provide a comprehensive development in children and adolescents, increasing their socio-emotional capacities, improving concentration, attention, and their typical interest and curiosity at their age, their innate capacity for emotional regulation, reducing stress and anxiety, facilitating interpersonal relationships, as well as their self-esteem, self-knowledge and self-confidence, improving kindness towards oneself and towards others.

After the course every teacher will be able to apply Mindfulness with the students in classroom by themselves.

Course E - Lagoa

Name: Name: Mindful classroom intercultural seminar: Introduction to mindfulness skills, techniques and strategies for teachers – Ms Tišma and Ms Đurić

Place and date: Place and date: Lagoa, from 12 till 17 March 2023.

Short description:

This program is designed for participants to be able to adapt and implement mindfulness techniques and strategies in a variety of school settings.

Participants will explore through experiential learning and conceptual understanding (neuroscience) what Mindfulness is and how to use different practices in lessons effectively that supports the health and wellbeing of student, improve concentration and focus, be calm and connected.

The participants will also learn to how maintain their own regular personal practice to reduce stress and teacher burnout and to improve efficiency.