Do you remember what it felt like to start school after a summer vacation?

I grew up in the era of looooonnnnnggggg summer breaks. From June to September.

Back then, school never started until after the Labor Day weekend.

I remember returning to school as a time of mixed emotions.

Anticipation. Anxiety. Excitement. Uncertainty.

A cascade of emotions and thoughts flowed through my mind as I walked up the hill to my school. Emotions and thoughts that I didn’t know what to do with.

I didn’t learn about meditation until my senior year in high school. But, that’s not the case for many students these days.

Schools across the country are offering programs in mindfulness for students and teachers. One of the pioneers in this movement is Daniel Rechtschaffen, Marriage and Family Therapist. Daniel is a leading voice in the movement to bring mindfulness into the educational system. He is the author of The Way of Mindful Education and The Mindful Education Workbook. He organizes the annual Mindfulness in Education Conference and Teacher Training at the Omega Institute and is  the founding director of Mindful Education, a mindfulness and social emotional learning platform for educators.

Daniel works with schools, teachers, and systems around the world. In our conversation, we explored the deeper dimensions of mindfulness in education.

What he shares isn’t just for those in the classroom. The principles apply to you and your own spiritual practice. Daniel offers ways of playfully bringing mindfulness into daily life of children you love (including the child within you).

Daniel Rechtschaffen dialogue from Wisdom Heart on Vimeo.

What are some of your reflections?

What does this dialogue suggest to you about:

Mindfulness? Learning?

Please share your reflections in the comments.

Author: Eric Klein 

Image: Todd Fahrner/Flickr 

Editor: Renée Picard