BeWellEDU.com

I saw this online and thought it was so great.  Who can't find it in them to smile watching Big Bird sing Michael Buble!? Enjoy and happy Friday! #BeWellEDU

I am now about a month into my half marathon training, and the kilometers are climbing!  This week is proving to be a tough one, as my muscles are quite sore, and when I run I am having trouble getting a good stride due to tense muscles.  I will, however, keep trucking along!  If I am to be brutally honest though, I am struggling with a cold right now, and I am really trying hard to stick to my schedule.  It is hard when your ears are plugged, nose is running and chest hurst to say, "Let's go run a few kms!".  I am doing it though, and I am proud of myself for that.  My husband is also training for the same half marathon, and together we are reminding each other to run and stick to the schedule.  We are four weeks in and haven't missed a run!  With two months to go, and our long runs starting to increase to some long distances, we are heading into a tough couple of weeks.  I know we can do this.  We are met with obstacles everyday, whe...

Today is back to school day in our community and for both of my daughters.  This one is particularly hard because of my professional circumstances.  I would love to be back to school today too, welcoming kids and fellow colleagues, but it isn't my fate this year.  Over the past years, I have made certain choices in the name of wellness, and all of those decisions bring me to where I am today.  Don't get me wrong - I have grown so much in so many aspects of my life due to the decisions I have made in my professional life.  I am grateful for every step of it, but I won't lie and say that I don't wish I was in a school today. I constantly tell myself that if I have this blog about wellness, and I don't walk the walk, I am a fraud and full of $hit.  That is why I am vowing to add another piece to my wellness journey.  Since I don't find myself in a classroom this year, or in a school, I have to view this as a positive and a space in my life to work on my...

Browsing Twitter today, and I came across a tweet by @VirtualGiff .  Jen Giffen is known for her repertoire of awesome educational technology resources, and today she shared a resource created by @meagan_e_kelly .  Meagan's website, i-heart-edu.com has some great resources that she creates and shares, but the resource I came across today is one that will aide our students with mindfulness. Meagan is a classroom teacher 🍎 and she has created a set of calendars using Google Slides.  She has a weekly academic calendar to track assignments and projects, she created a monthly academic calendar, and a weekly project planning calendar (designed for goal setting), but her mindfulness calendar is the one that drew me in! 🗓 With this calendar, students are given suggestions for mindfulness, such as going for a walk, giving people compliments, going to bed early and even using no tech for a day!  I love all of Meagan's suggestions, and students have them listed in the ...

I had quite a serious talk with my daughter this weekend about mental health.  The topic of suicide was broached, and she was curious.  Reflecting on it now, I am so happy that I was able to have such an open conversation with my thirteen year old.  Mental health is a topic that we don't talk enough about - and when I say "we", I mean society. Unfortunately, I have known people who decided to end their life in this tragic way because they were struggling so hard with their mental health, that it seemed like the only way out.  We, who are left here on this earth  are left with an abundance of questions when we try to make sense of it all.  Questions and "if only" statements - and I am pondering whether the biggest "if only" is something that we can change, and hopefully save lives by doing so. "If only we talked about it." So often when we hear about someone being depressed, or that they took their own life because of depression, and our...

I challenge you, during this wretched time of year for teachers, to do something good for yourself. Between the stacks of marking, the report card comments, the prepping of final exams, wrapping up year end awards and parties, planning graduations of all kinds, and just, in general, being a teacher in May and June, I challenge you to treat yourself and be good to yourself...you deserve it! Let's take a look at what that can look like.  I offer to you my list of ways I have treated myself over the years in order to maintain some sanity in the last few weeks of school. 1. Spa it up!  Run a bubble bath one night with some nice salts, bubbles or anything of the like.  Remember to lock that door so as to not be disturbed, and be sure to light some candles and put on your favourite playlist and RELAX . 2. Cook your favourite meal. Have you had a craving for that one savoury meal that just puts a smile on your face?  Stop by the grocery store on your way home toni...

Lately, the topic of wellness has been a prevalent one among myself and several of my colleagues and peers.  This world in which we live can deal us incredible highs, and what may sometimes seem like insurmountable lows.  With so many strings pulling at us each day and multiple stressors and factors that play a role in our lives daily - sometimes we just need help, and that is OKAY. Recently, several people I know have been struggling to find their happy place, myself included.  I don't know if it is the weather here in western Canada (we have had a ton of snow fall recently, along with low temps), or if it seems like the perfect storm of personal and professional matters, but the question, "What do you do for self-care?" seems to have come up a lot lately.  I have been thinking about what I like to do for self-care, and what I could do more of in times when I am feeling like I could use a little more of it.  This is what I came up with: 1. Unpack your feeli...