JAE third grade teacher Mrs. Rebecca Pagnotta has been teaching her students virtually and came up with a unique way for them to connect with one another while at home, as well as connect to their own thoughts, behaviors and feelings.
Mrs. Pagnotta introduced mindfulness bottles – colorful, small jars filled with water, food coloring and glitter that serve as visual metaphors for the students to express their emotions. While in her classroom, she chooses a different color each day of the week and together she and the students breathe in and out to relax their bodies and minds. She also presented them with an emotional check-in chart that indicates high energy, low energy and a preferred balance that ties into the awareness practice.
“Many of my students have created their own mindful bottles and eagerly share them with me and their classmates,” she said, and added that the other students plan to create their own bottles soon.