Breathwork 5: Compassion
Dear Friend,
Welcome to Black History Month and our lesson plan entitled Breathwork for Compassion, practices for building competency in social awareness.
Students will:
- Learn to consider others’ perspectives
- Learn to recognize strengths in others
- Learn to demonstrate empathy and compassion
- Learn to understand and express gratitude
- Learn to identify diverse social norms, including unjust ones
Try this activity with your class!
Divide students into groups of 2 or 3 and ask them to discuss compassion and microaggressions with these essential questions:
- What are microaggressions?
- How do microaggressions make you feel?
- What do microaggressions look like in your life and relationships?
- How do you identify and respond appropriately to microaggressions?
- When you’re in social settings, do you find yourself getting swept into others’ energy?
- Think of a few examples of when you went along with the mistreatment of others even when you didn’t agree with it. How did you feel? What did you notice happening in your mind and in your body?
Examples of microaggressions in groups include:
- Sarcasm
- Teasing
- Mean jokes
- Snubs
- Insults
Whether intentional or unintentional, microaggressions communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative messages that target persons based solely on their marginalized group membership.
Breathwork Activity of the Week
Buzzing Bee Breath
Reset your nervous system and change your mood. Because our ears are connected to the vagus nerve, covering them and humming can instantly bring us out of the Fight or Flight Response and into Rest and Digest, fostering compassion for ourselves and for others.
- Sit with your spine tall.
- Inhale as you place your index and middle fingers over your ears to quiet down environmental sounds.
- As you exhale, make a humming sound during the entire exhale and listen to the sound.
- Keep your fingers over your ears and complete three rounds.
Movement Activity of the Week
Walking Meditation
Invite students to go outside or into a space large enough to stand in a circle. Ask the students to walk slowly in a clockwise direction, being mindful of each step. Slowing down the mind can build compassion for yourself and others.
Compassion is an introspective practice. Ask the students to turn their attention inward and guide them through noticing details:
- How does your foot land on the ground?
- Where is your body in space?
- What is the rate of your breath?
- What is the quality of their thoughts?
- Is it possible to coordinate your breath with your movement?
