Physical education classes at Irvington Middle School have recently become more relaxed and quiet than usual. Instead of the sounds of basketballs, volleyballs and sneakers hitting the floor, students entered the gymnasium and sat quietly on yoga mats as Irvington resident Jennifer Mones brought a meditation lab to her school’s physical education program.
Mones, a meditation and yoga teacher with over 20 years of experience, founded Meditation Lab and began teaching meditation to Irvington High School athletic teams in 2017. She currently teaches mindful breathing techniques to approximately 10 public schools in Westchester. There are several Catholic schools in the area.
For Mones, the goal is for children to engage in mindfulness practices to better understand their own minds, and to encourage them to “slow down every day, unplug more often, and notice what they’re thinking.” “Learn to look seriously at the dolphins.”
During a recent class, Mones had students blow bubbles as a way to breathe and become conscious. She ended the session with a few minutes of guided mediation as her students relaxed on the mats.
Stuart Graber, a high school senior and pitcher for the varsity baseball team, has been taking meditation classes since middle school.
“I learned how to control my breathing, and it’s helped me in many aspects of my life. One of them was baseball, being able to control my breathing on the mound. ” he said.
He also feels that meditation has helped him trust his abilities in schoolwork, especially when taking tests in the classroom.
Gabriela Brenner, an 11th grade student who has also been taking Mr. Mones’ meditation class since middle school, said the biggest benefit for her was learning to focus on breathing to control stress and become aware of her emotions. That’s what I learned to do. she is a singer.
“When I sing, my breathing is directly related to my emotions and the sounds I produce, so it’s great to find ways to control it with more comfortable breathing,” she said. “You learn so much from it.”
Irvington Middle School Principal David Sottil sees value in allocating meditation time during class. He said he believes this will equip students with strategies they can use both in school and beyond.
“We focus on meditation as an example of a practice that can support students’ ability to detach from the many stimuli that exist in this world and work on their ability to focus the mind,” Sottil said.
For Mones, having six children has helped her understand the challenges that young people face in life. She has always wanted to teach kids skills like mindful breathing, mindful movement, and mindful mediation that they can take with them outside of the classroom and into the rest of their day while learning them in the gym. I will tell you.
“We can return to the calm, peaceful mind that has always existed beneath all the noise and distractions…that becomes our superpower!” Mones said.
