Percy's Blog - Mindfulness Day

Gateway School participated in Mindfulness Day today.   The whole school observed the day by sitting quietly this morning at 9:00 am, at the beginning of lunch, and just before dismissal. It was a wonderful way for our community to share a common experience amidst the general controlled chaos of the day. During our mindfulness training two years ago, the facilitators offered our staff a simple and effective definition to explain to our children what mindfulness is - "mindfulness is paying attention, on purpose, without judgment".

We decided to bring mindfulness to our school based on research that these simple practices helped students to reduce anxiety, stress, and impulsivity, and increased their attention, focus and empathy. Our goal was to create an educational environment in which we equipped students with the tools to manage their emotions, impulses, and bodies in order to help them access the curriculum and to build lasting relationships built on compassion and empathy.  

Two years after our initial training for students, I still hear students reflect on how they use this practice to calm their nerves before an important test, or manage their frustration with a sibling (and sometimes a parent). They write poems about mindful brooks leading into rivers and oceans. They walk silently through our life lab garden, appreciating the touch of the earth on their feet and the sound of the wind blowing the leaves of the corn stalks. These quiet moments of reflection, observation, and appreciation are rare in life, and especially so in the fast-paced life of a student. What we are offering them, I believe, is permission to slow down and acknowledge the beauty of the world around them.

Our hope is that Mindfulness Day will continue and grow into an annual event. The creators of the event indicated that they chose a day at the beginning of the school year with the hope of offering "people an invitation to shed old habits and learn new skills as they head back to school and to a more mindful frame of mind."

At Gateway our students get to practice mindfulness on a daily basis, and as it is a "practice" in every sense of the word, it was special today to experience something new --  done communally across all the grades at the same time.  For 5 - 10 minutes today we, ever so slightly, changed our community's frame of mind.

Many parents will have read the article in the San Jose Mercury News this week regarding the overall higher percentage of private school students opting out of immunization. The article compared students entering kindergarten at public, private and parochial schools.  You might be interested to know that only 4% of GWS kindergarten families opt out of immunizations (either partially or fully).  We respect the right of parents to make the decision that is best for their families and our Main Office keeps records on each child.  In the event of an outbreak we notify all families that their children have been exposed to a communicable disease.  Your child's safety is always our top priority. 

Did you know that your GPA is responsible for raising funds to host these wonderful Gateway events, such as:

* Back to School Potluck

* Welcome Coffee

* Fall Festival

* Grandparents Day

* International Day

A super easy way to help your GPA, that only requires 5 minutes of your time, is to register your credit cards and Safeway card with eScrip. By paying for your meals with your eScrip registered credit cards at restaurants like Dharma's, El Palomar, Kianti's, Hindquarters, Beach Street Cafe, and Gilda's, OR by shopping at Safeway with your eScrip registered Safeway card, you will earn money for your GPA!

Registration Instructions:

You can sign up today by visiting  http://escrip.rewardsnetwork.com/ and entering Gateway group number - 136926277. Join for the first time, or update your cards, both are important to make sure that your GPA is earning money.  Please enter every credit card that you use and your Safeway card, to make sure that your GPA receives the maximum contribution. And then you're done! You've just spent 5 minutes to help your GPA earn the money needed to produce Gateway community building events.

iPad Drawing:

Once you have joined or updated your cards with eScrip, print out your registration confirmation and use this as your drawing ticket. If you are already registered with eScrip, just print out the page with your account information. You can turn in your ticket to the GPA box in the Main Office OR bring it to the Fall Festival on October 14th. The drawing will be held live at the Fall Festival on 10/14. Each registered card gets an entry, so encourage your friends and family to sign up as well!

Please feel free to email Gateway parents and GPA eScrip coordinators Audrey Chavez ( alwint@aol.com) or Virginia Rodriguez (vmrodriguez@yahoo.com ) with any and all eScrip questions.

Thank you so much!