3 Simple Ways To Integrate Mindfulness and Social Emotional Learning In Music Class

Social emotional learning in the music room is gaining traction. It helps students express themselves and builds connections. Both of these things are important life skills. Social Emotional Learning is a very broad topic, so I will be focusing on a few basic strategies that you might implement right away in your music classroom. We will be learning about embedding Mindful Listening, Mindful Breathing, and Mindful Movements into your warm-up routine and as brain breaks for your students.

There are 3 essential questions for the presentation:

• What is social emotional learning?
• What is mindfulness?
• How can I incorporate them into my music lessons when I am already pressed for time?

The following video, originally presented during The Music Crew Virtual Conference 2020, is only 16 minutes long. I hope you will take those few minutes to watch. The time stamps below will help you skip directly to a point of interest.

0:00  Introduction & Definitions
1:46 CASEL Competencies
3:10 Mindful Breathing
3:30 Mindful Breathing Exercise for Singers
6:20 Self management and self control definition and movements
9:24 Continuous movement: flow, weight, space, time
10:10 Brain Break Resources
11:45 Adding music to mindfulness activities, mood in music
12:30 Benefits of Embedding Mindfulness as it applies to music

Find a handout containing the mindful listening script, mindful breathing script, links and a free resource example by clicking the image below.

Share your successes and challenges with incorporating social emotional learning and mindfulness activities in your classroom in the comments or send me an email!

Musically yours,