(taken from WholeLifeChallenge.com) Option 1: "Stop and See the Beauty" Notice the Beauty in Life Every Day This WeekSimple Instructions:
Why Is This Practice Important? Like so many of the other things we might rush past, beauty is one of those things that doesn’t typically wind up at the top of our priorities. There’s a reason people say, “Stop and smell the roses.” We don’t often do it! But the world is as beautiful as you make it. By taking the time each day to notice the beauty in the things around you, you get to live in a beautiful world. Your appreciation of something is what makes it a beautiful thing. And beauty can be found in the simplest things. This is not a practice in aesthetics. This is a practice in getting in touch with what touches you. By setting out to capture beauty every day, you’ll put yourself on the lookout for it. You may also find that your camera roll becomes a place to look back and appreciate what you have created. For More on This PracticeThis week on the podcast, Andy spoke with Peter Himmelman — singer, songwriter, composer, painter, and author. Andy brought Peter on to talk about creativity, since he’s mastered it in his life and has written a book full of exercises to help others learn to foster it in theirs. For Peter’s thoughts on the relationship between “seeing the beauty” and finding our creative side, click through to the podcast and jump to 46:08. Option 2: Fill Your Digital "Jar of Awesome" A “Jar of Awesome” is a mason jar or something like it where you can drop notes about the awesome, amazing, great, or even good things that happen, that you are grateful for in your everyday life. This week, your Jar of Awesome will be digital. Simple Instructions:
Why Is This Practice Important?
We are bred for discontent. It kind of sucks, but it’s kind of true. Notice how no matter how good something gets, there’s almost always a “yeah, but…” lurking not far behind? Very little is good enough for us humans. Whether it’s because we believe it or because we don’t want to appear arrogant, it’s rare for us to celebrate for more than a moment the things that bring us joy or pleasure. What’s the last thing that you considered a success? Something athletic, a promotion at work, or a hard-won accomplishment in something? It’s never long before that success becomes status quo — before you’re looking ahead for the next thing to consider a success. There really aren’t things that are successes or failures. There are only moments. In fact, you can’t have what you would consider a real success without having some of what you would consider failures. Each and every moment can be appreciated, if you practice — the awesome, the amazing, the great, and the good. Even your “failures.” All it takes is an attitude of gratitude.
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(Taken from Whole Life Challenge) Perform an Act of Kindness Every Day This WeekSimple Instructions:
Watch this video for an explanation of this Lifestyle Practice from Whole Life Challenge co-founders Andy Petranek and Michael Stanwyck. Why Is This Practice Important?
No one is an island, yet it’s easy to feel you’re alone in the world — like nobody cares about the things that matter to you, like you’re left to take care of things by yourself. It doesn’t have to be this way. In truth, it would be impossible to get by in the world without the often-unseen kindness of others. Much of what makes our lives better is the small demonstrations of care that people express through their everyday actions: the held door, help with a flat tire, a quarter for the parking meter. By putting your attention on what others need, you contribute to the kind of world you’d like to live in — a place where needs are met through connection and kindness. The good news is you get to live in that world, too, ultimately receiving the benefits of your actions. So take a moment each day this week to be kind to another, and you’ll notice the more you act with intentional kindness, the more you’ll see it happening all around you. Entries include Brainstorming and Thinking Maps Notes, charts, short paragraphs Sources Pictures, photographs, sketches Artifacts from inspirational visits to museums, performances, etc. Thinking & reflection o Explanations of how the research was used in the project to reach your goal o Challenges/difficulties faced o Questions to ask Sokola and answers received Available sources may include
Experts--Think of teachers, family members, & neighbors that you know who can help you. Call organizations and businesses as well. Print sources—books, magazines, & newspapers Internet resources—both from search engines & databases Video and audio recordings—depending on your project this might include documentaries, television shows, movies, music, etc. This Personal Wellness Mini-Project will be a practical exploration in which you will consolidate and share your understanding of your chosen area of health and wellness. This mini-project is designed as an independent learning experience and will assesses your skills for self-management, research, and communication. It encourages you to connect classroom learning engagements with personal experience and to develop your own interests for lifelong learning.
The aims of this mini-project are to encourage and enable students to:
You will address your personal wellness mini-project objectives through:
You will document your thinking, research process, and development of your initial ideas by developing an outline of a challenging but manageable short-range goal. Example goals include the development of original works of art, models, business plans, campaigns, blueprints, investigative studies, scientific experiments, performances, fieldwork, narrative essays, courses of study or learning engagements, films, computer programs, and many other forms of work. Criterion A: Students define a clear goal for the mini-project, based on personal interests. Students identify prior learning and subject-specific knowledge relevant to the project. Students demonstrate research skills. Criterion B: Students develop criteria for the product/outcome. Students plan and record the development process of the project. Students demonstrate self-management skills. Criterion C: Students create a product/outcome in response to the goal. Students demonstrate thinking skills. Students demonstrate communication and social skills. Criterion D: Students evaluate the quality of the product/outcome. Students reflect on how completing the project has extended their knowledge and understanding of the topic. Students reflect on their development learners through the project. Turn Off All Forms of Media During Your MealsSimple Instructions:
Watch this video for an explanation of this Lifestyle Practice from Whole Life Challenge co-founders Andy Petranek and Michael Stanwyck... Why Is This Practice Important?The practices and traditions we have around food can give us energy, connect us to our community, and even define who we are. Our eating practices also have the potential to affect us in negative ways.
Given how important eating is to our existence, it’s amazing what short shrift it gets in modern life. It’s never a surprise to see someone triple-tasking – eating, while trying to be with someone at the table, while texting someone else between bites and live conversation. We eat standing up, settle for fast food, “grab a bite” when we have time, and answer emails while we lunch. We’ve largely disconnected from that which nourishes our body and our soul. And we’re paying the price, both physically and mentally. This week you will not simply change your “diet.” You will explore a different relationship with food, with your community, and with yourself. You may see what it’s like to have eating play a totally different role. What if meal times were became opportunities to re-energize? To recover? Or to commune, with yourself, with family, or with nature? What if meals were truly the times of nourishment on all levels? Imagine what it would be like if the time you spent eating fed more needs than just the grumbling in your stomach. For More on This PracticeTraver Boehm is what you might call an expert on “no media meals.” He spent most of 2016 disconnected from electronics due to spending 28 days in the wilderness, another 28 days in total darkness, and a month studying meditation in Big Sur, California. For Traver’s thoughts on the practice of eliminating electronics during mealtimes, click through to the podcast and jump to the part at 1:02:28.
Exercise and Stretching:
There are all sorts of ideas about what kind of movement is best - but for this challenge, the idea is that you are moving - period. There is tremendous benefit from all sorts of movement... running, weight training, swimming, yoga, walking, hiking, biking, and pure play to name a few. Explore your options and develop a habit of daily movement... (For those of you who have a smart phone or a fitness tracker... 2000 steps is equivalent to 10 minutes of active movement). Several of you reflected about using your study breaks as an opportunity to fit in 5-10 minutes of stretching - and how it made a BIG difference in your concentration! Lifestyle: This will change each week, so even if it isn't something you could see yourself doing for the long-run, give it a try for 7 days and see how you feel at the end of the week. Leave a comment for 1 of the following questions from the Berne Brown TED Talk on The Power of Vulnerability: • Brown references cultural constraints of vulnerability, such as the gender differences she mentions. Thinking about your own culture, what gets in the way of people being vulnerable? What are solutions to overcoming that? • How can your friends and family support you when you are putting yourself out there? • Think about a time when you noticed someone showing vulnerability. How did you feel during that situation? To what extent do you view them as brave or courageous? Below is an excerpt from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/lifelong-success-starts-with-sel-ngandu-price-baron: Six simple strategies to develop social and academic aptitude: 1. Help students know themselves.Even young children can practice self-awareness! Classroom routines like "morning circle" or "connections and reflections" offer a safe setting in which students learn to name their feelings and identify their strengths and challenges. 2. Have students stand in the shoes of others.The crucial thinking skill of taking other perspectives supports academic success along with social competence. Students of all ages love to practice it -- through games, role-plays, or debates. 3. Teach students to seek and give feedback.Being receptive to useful feedback sets children up for lifelong learning. Even younger students can look at exemplars of excellence, and see how their own work could improve. 4. Practice listening.We all learn more when we listen well. Are we tuning out? Jumping to conclusions? Interrupting or dismissing ideas that we don't share? Young people think more deeply and communicate more clearly when we explicitly teach, practice, and assess listening skills. Bonus: Teachers who listen know more about their students! 5. Teach collaboration.Those who start to work with others early will use those skills throughout their academic, work, and personal lives. When we regularly model, practice, and assess collaboration, children learn to share the mic, make plans with others, take on a role, and come to solutions together. 6. Treat mistakes as opportunities.In the old days, perfection got the praise. Then neuroscience showed us that we learn more by risking a mistake. Teachers can instill this mindset early by treating every mistake as an opportunity. That habit develops curious, creative, and motivated learners who will thrive and contribute, regardless of what their futures hold. DANIEL PLAN: Friends "Community has the power to change our overall health more than any doctor or clinic." Week 1 LIFESTYLE Practice...Earth day is Saturday! As the final day for our Environmental health and wellness mini-unit, I have a large listing of articles, blogs, and videos on 'environmentalism'... by the end of class, I would like you to set a challenge (or a few) for yourself to work toward loving our world a little more. Whether it be attempting to go paper-free in your kitchen, or simply decluttering a space and donating the things you do use to be re-used and up-cycled, please be ready to share your results in a brief comment posted here before the end of our next class (Physical Health and Wellness with Ms. Harmony Adams - Program Manager, Health and Nutrition at Samaritan's Purse. |
THUNDER Whole Life Challenge!Block D Health ClassPhysical. Archives
May 2017
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