Mindful Thoughts for Students: Nurture Your Mind, Flourish in Life

In this friendly manual, painter and yoga teacher Hooper (Mindful Thoughts for Artists) gives high school and college-bound readers useful mindfulness tools to help them succeed academically. With listening and writing exercises, stress management tips, and strategies for developing resilience and self-esteem, Hooper guides students through the many hurdles of the academic world. Acknowledging the “uncomfortable” nature of being “assessed, rated and compared with others,” she recommends focusing on one’s response to critique, checking expectations, and learning to be patient with oneself. Her advice hits on many of the distractions and difficulties young adults encounter, including social media and virtual learning. To that end, to improve online learning she suggests often moving around and stretching, changing one’s learning environment, communicating challenges to teachers, and giving oneself “permission to try and find a work-around rather than just suffering and accepting.” Hooper is encouraging (“Mindfulness can help us not only pause to celebrate our successes, but also to savour them”) while also taking time to validate concerns: “Being able to observe feelings of fatigue from a mindful perspective can help us to recognize when we really need rest.” Students will relish these practical techniques for intentional learning. (Apr.)