Building healthy New Year habits with your students

Amy Malloy
Amy Malloy
Students sat outside on grass studying and smiling
Reading time: 3 minutes

Balancing mindfulness and planning ahead

Here we find ourselves already in a new year. I wonder if, like me, many of you might be wondering how that has happened. January is a time of year traditionally associated with analyzing the past and making resolutions for the future.

In the classroom this might also involve looking forward to assessments and exams at the end of the school year. Maybe you¡¯ve made New Year¡¯s resolutions that have already fallen by the wayside.?

The focus of this blog is learning how to stay in the present moment. So let's take a practical look at how to manage this time of year with your students and with ourselves as teachers (and humans), while also effectively planning ahead for the future.

Building healthy New Year habits with your students
Play
Privacy and cookies

By watching, you agree ɫèAV can share your viewership data for marketing and analytics for one year, revocable by deleting your cookies.

1. Mindfulness of daily habits

Mindfulness can be a broader concept than just focusing on the breath. We can also extend awareness to our daily habits and look at what is making us feel good and what is draining us. This helps us ensure our daily routine is actively supporting our mental health.?

Here¡¯s what you can do to help your students be more mindful of their daily habits.

  1. Invite your students to make two lists: one list of everything they do every day and another list of things that make them feel happy or relaxed. This can be a nice activity to try in English if you¡¯d like to work on daily routine vocabulary and likes/dislikes.?
  2. Ask them to see how many of the activities they named in their happy lists are also on their everyday lists.?
  3. Then ask them to see if they can find a time in their schedules to include one of their happy list activities on a regular basis. For example, they could add listening to their favourite song on their way to school to their everyday list.?

This activity encourages children to be more understanding of what makes them feel happy or less happy on a daily basis. In this way, we gently teach them to be more aware of their emotions and how to take an active role in supporting their own mental health and self-care. Ultimately, we teach them that the choices we make day-to-day are as important as a resolution for the rest of the year.

As they learn more mindfulness activities in school, these might even start to appear on their everyday lists too. This will protect their minds against everyday stress and assessment pressure.

2. Planting an intention seed

New Year¡¯s resolutions seem to play a large role in society, and it is interesting to notice how guilty we feel if we don¡¯t stick to them.?

We traditionally make resolutions at the start of a new year, but this is completely arbitrary - and it hasn¡¯t always been this way. In fact, the concept of setting an intention for the new year dates back to at least 4000BC. Back then, these resolutions were traditionally made in March, . But when Julius Caesar made the Roman calendar, he decided that each year would begin in January.?

The Romans felt it was more appropriate because the Roman god Janus represented new beginnings, endings, gateways and transitions. It¡¯s strange to think this ancient decision now affects how we run and organize our lives and our personal energy all over the world.?

January is actually a time when nature is still in hibernation, with trees bare and seeds still under the ground (in the Northern Hemisphere, at least). This can make it feel difficult to commit to fresh starts and, for some, feel overwhelming to look ahead.

So instead of resolutions, try inviting your students to simply set an intention of what they¡¯d like to feel or achieve over the course of the year. And rather than pushing for it or expecting it to happen straight away, invite them to treat it like a seed in a pot of soil which they are watering each day with one little step at a time.?

This might be a little bit of revision for a test every day, for example, or tidying their room once a week so it feels nice to play and do homework in.?

3. Mindful walking

A lovely way to get your students to connect with nature¡¯s calendar is to take them outside for a mindfulness walk. You could link it in with a class plan to introduce nature or town vocabulary, or organize it during lunch or break time for multiple classes together.

  1. Take students outside*. Invite them to stand quietly looking at the ground.?
  2. Invite them to notice the contact of their feet with the ground. Tell them to start walking slowly, noticing the movement of each foot as it leaves and then meets the ground again.?
  3. Once they are in a gentle walking rhythm, invite them to start looking around them, noticing the world around them. They should keep a gentle focus on the rhythm of their feet moving along the floor.?
  4. Once back in the classroom, invite them to spend five minutes writing down or talking about what they noticed on their walk (in English)

*If outside simply isn¡¯t an option for your school, you can try a mindful walk through the corridors.

This can be a really pleasant way to encourage students (and yourself) to notice what is going on around them in nature and to step outside of the timetable set for them as part of the school system. It helps their focus and perspective, reducing stress and reminding them how far they have progressed.

Staying present and planning ahead

I often have mindfulness students asking me how they can stay present while also effectively planning ahead. Hopefully, these three simple ideas demonstrate how we can actively use our focus on the present moment to improve and pace our future planning for exams and deadlines.?

By trusting in the process of calmly planting little seeds of intention and taking little steps to grow them, we can achieve just as much, if not more, than thinking six months into the future and panicking that we haven¡¯t yet achieved what we want to have done by then. Good luck.

More blogs from ɫèAV

  • A teacher sat at a table with young students working together

    What is Content and Language Integrated Learning?

    By Joanna Wiseman
    Reading time: 4 minutes

    Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) is an approach where students learn a subject and a second language at the same time. A science course, for example, can be taught to students in English and they will not only learn about science, but they will also gain relevant vocabulary and language skills.

    It¡¯s important to note that CLIL is not a means of simplifying content or reteaching something students already know in a new language. CLIL courses should truly integrate the language and content in order to be successful ¨C and success is determined when both the subject matter and language is learned.

    Who is CLIL for?

    CLIL can work for students of any age, all the way from primary level to university and beyond. So long as the course content and language aims are designed with the students¡¯ needs in mind, there is no limit as to who can benefit from this teaching approach. However, it is most commonly found in primary and secondary school contexts.

    What are the main benefits of CLIL?

    Many teachers see CLIL as a more natural way to learn a language; when a subject is taught in that language there is a concrete reason to learn both at the same time. And as students have a real context to learn the language in, they are often more motivated to do so, as they can only get the most of the content if they understand the language around it.

    Moreover, being content focused, CLIL classes add an extra dimension to the class and engage students, which is especially advantageous in situations where students are unenthusiastic about learning a language.

    CLIL also promotes a deeper level of assimilation, as students are repeatedly exposed to similar language and language functions, and they need to produce and recall information in their second language.

    Furthermore, it has the advantage that multiple subjects can be taught in English, so that students¡¯ exposure to the language is increased and their language acquisition is faster.

    CLIL also encourages students to develop 21st century skills, including the ability to think critically, be creative, communicate and collaborate.?

    What are the challenges of CLIL?

    As CLIL is subject-focused, language teachers may also have to develop their own knowledge of new subjects in order to teach effectively.

    They must also structure classes carefully so that the students understand the content of the lesson, as well as the language through which the information is being conveyed.

    And when it comes to classroom management, educators need to be very aware of individual student understanding and progress.

    It¡¯s therefore important to consistently concept check and scaffold the materials to be sure both the language and content are being learned.

    How can you apply CLIL to your class?

    It¡¯s important to have a strategy in place when applying CLIL in your courses. One of the key things to remember is that the language and subject content are given equal weight and that it shouldn¡¯t be treated as a language class nor a subject class simply taught in a foreign language.

    According to Coyle¡¯s 4Cs curriculum (1999), a successful CLIL class should include the following four elements:

    • Content ¨C Progression in knowledge, skills and understanding related to specific elements of a defined curriculum
    • Communication ¨C Using language to learn whilst learning to use language
    • Cognition ¨C Developing thinking skills which link concept formation (abstract and concrete), understanding and language
    • Culture ¨C Exposure to alternative perspectives and shared understandings, which deepen awareness of otherness and self

    Using a number of frameworks can help you prepare your lessons and make sure activities are challenging yet achievable for your learners.

    Bloom¡¯s Taxonomy, for example, classifies learning objectives in education and puts skills in a hierarchy, from Lower Order Thinking Skills (LOTS) to Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS).

    In the diagram below, you can see the levels increasing in complexity from the base up to the triangle¡¯s peak.

  • A teacher stood helping a student in a large classroomw with other students sat working

    How do different motivations change how students learn English?

    By Steffanie Zazulak
    Reading time: 4 minutes

    Students all over the globe learn English for many reasons. Some of these motivations may come from the students themselves ¨C perhaps they are learning because they are travelling to an English-speaking area, or they want to be able to converse with English-speaking friends and colleagues. Other reasons for learning could include meeting school requirements, studying abroad, or progressing their careers.

    As well as different reasons to learn English, there are also different goals. Many students are still focused on becoming fluent in English, and we are seeing an increase in people who want to learn the language for specific reasons. For example, immersing themselves in a particular culture or simply being able to order from a menu while travelling abroad.

    Teachers are focusing on these personal needs to help students achieve their actual goals. It¡¯s likely you¡¯ve already spoken to your students about why they want to learn English. Understanding this is important as different motivations can influence a student¡¯s attitude towards learning the language ¨C and it may be necessary for you to adapt your teaching strategies for different groups of learners.

    Teaching English to different groups of learners

    Let¡¯s meet some different groups of students, learn a little more about their motivations and explore whether different motivations alter how students learn English. You may recognise some of these learners in your classes.

    1. Adult learners

    These students are learning English for pleasure or personal reasons. It might be because of travel, social or family reasons or perhaps because a better grasp of English might assist them with their careers. There are also adult learners who could be learning English as an immigration requirement.

    For example, 23-year-old Alice decided to learn English so she could meet people and have more meaningful interactions with her English-speaking neighbours. She says: ¡°I was very shy and not very confident in speaking to people, but learning English helped me connect with others and meet new people. I have changed a lot.¡±

    A motivation like Alice¡¯s requires strong teacher support and peer motivation woven into structured learning. Alice can set her goals and with the GSE Learning Objectives map out what she needs to do to achieve them. Teacher encouragement and personal support ¨C and easy access to digital coursework, a social community of others all learning English, and small classes that emphasise conversation ¨C keep people like Alice engaged and motivated to achieve her language goals. ¡°I cannot do it without them¡±, she says.

    2. Professional learners

    These learners are typically in a more formal type of English programme and are learning the language to achieve specific career milestones, such as a promotion. Their employer might even be paying for their learning or they might be reimbursed for the cost of their lessons.

    Vincenzo is 33 and works as a Product Manager in Milan for an international organization with offices around the world. He says: ¡°I asked to take English classes as part of my professional development. My company chose an English provider and gave me a choice of group or one-to-one classes. I chose one-to-one classes as I¡¯m easily distracted.¡±

    Professional learners like Vincenzo succeed using a blended learning model of learning in class and at home that they can tailor around their lives. They have a strong motivation to succeed ¨C that¡¯s why learning at home works for them ¨C but step-by-step progress provided by the GSE Learning Objectives is also important to keep this motivation alive. ¡°I met with my teacher once a week where we would work on mistakes I would make while speaking English. He would also give me extra practice materials, like interesting games and videos to listen to in my own time, to help me really get a better understanding of the language,¡± Vincenzo says.

    3. Academic learners

    Learning English is a requirement for many school programmes and students will continue this at college or university. Many of these students will be learning English with a formal course that offers practice tests for high-stakes exams.

    Seventeen-year-old Subra is from Malaysia and learns English at school. Some of her family live in Australia and she is considering studying abroad to attend a University that specializes in health care. When she was young, she learned in a traditional classroom backed with tests that helped her see how she was progressing. Now she uses technology, such as her Android Huawei phone to practise her English but still needs the validation of regular testing to know she is on track.

    Subra?says: ¡°I am used to studying for tests as I prepared hard for exams to get into middle school and senior school, which was totally determined by test results.¡±

    Academic learners like Subra need to see demonstrable results to help them stay motivated and guide them to the level of English they need to achieve to get the required score on high-stakes tests. With the clear GSE Learning Objectives and a placement test, academic learners can map out where they are right now and where they need to be in order to reach their academic goals. These learners need encouragement and validation of their progress from their teachers to help keep them on track.

    Understanding student motivations will help you teach to their specific needs, thus helping them to stay focused and motivated in achieving their goals.