Mindfulness in Teaching: Be Where Your Feet Are

I had not heard of this phrase until this weekend when I was preparing for my book club about the book,  Teach Happier This School Year.  The author, Suzanne Dailey, noted that she and her girlfriends play a game called “Where are your fee?” in which they send each other photos of their feet to check in with each other about what they are doing and how they are feeling. This game helps each person consider where they are in the present moment.  It helps them reflect and shift their attention. It’s a gentle reminder to “Be where your feet are.”

I know that when I’m where my feet are, I do a better job whether it’s at school or home or even on vacation.  Recently, I’ve been trying to be where my feet are when I’m eating.  I often am rushing about stuffing food in my face and not even realizing or tasting what I’m eating.  So, I’ve been making a concerted effort to slow down, prepare food carefully, present it beautifully for myself, and then eat mindfully.  I enjoy doing this and it has made a difference in how full and satisfied I feel, which will help me not to overeat.  Making time for myself in this little way is hugely important.  I usually take this time at breakfast, which sets up success for the entire day.

My work has always been in schools, and schools are very busy places.  You would think that both students and teachers are “where their feet are,” but often they are millions of miles aways.  Schools have become more and more hectic.  We are cramming more and more things into the precious daylight hours we have.  This does not make us more efficient, successful, or happy.  In fact, it is robbing us of the joy of teaching and learning.  In the last couple of years, I have intentionally brought mindfulness into my teaching practice.  I start with myself – become aware of what I’m doing and why – and then adjust my actions to become more in sync with my students.  As I slow down and narrow my focus, the student follow suit.  The classroom becomes less hectic and more relaxed.  That is not to say there is not activity.  Actually, there is a steady buzz of student talking, doing, and learning, but it is purposeful.  The students slowly learn to ask themselves, “Where are my feet?”  and then adjust their attention accordingly.  I’ve used many good books as mentor texts to help the children become more self-reflective.  Susan Verde’s I am Peace, Eline Snel’s Sitting Still Like a Frog, and Thich Nhat Hahn’s A Handful of Quiet are all book that help students center their focus on what is truly important.  I’m happy to add another book to my collection and that is Julia Cook’s Be Where Your Feet Are! which is in verse form and will immediately grab young students’ attention. I’m hoping that with repeated practice, my colleagues and I can bring much needed calm into our teaching and into the lives of our students.

This past week, I’ve been regularly asking myself, “Where are your feet?”  And often they have been in so many different places that definitely did not match what I was doing at the time.  I know I tend to multi-task, thinking that this is the best way to get things done.  I do get lots of things done, but I notice it is at the expense of my mental health.  So now, I ask myself another question, “How will your feet feel at the end of the day?”  Most times the answer is “Frazzled.”  That is not the feeling I want to achieve.  I want to feel confident, competent, and at peace.  I have found that asking myself, “Where are your feet?” has helped me regulate and adjust so I can achieve that peace at the end of the day.

No matter what you do in life – teaching, business, service, at-home-parent, retiree – I hope you ask yourself, “Where are my feet?” and if they aren’t with you, that you go find them, and put them together with your whole self so that you can feel more present, grounded, and successful.

WHERE ARE YOUR FEET?  BOOKS FOR ADULTS:

Be Where Your Feet Are by Scott M. O’Dell

You Are Where Your Feet Are by Kevin Craggs