A few minutes into the Read 180 class taught by Scott Buresh at Mannheim Middle School, half the students walk to the computers in the back of the classroom while the rest start on workbooks at their desks. The students then mostly focus on their work.
If this sounds unremarkable, Buresh assures that it is not.
“This group was a very rough group of students,” Buresh said. “Arguing, making fun of each other, poking each other, lots of ADHD behaviors, drumming and tapping, name calling.”
These eighth-graders enter his course ranging from non-readers to those who read at no more than a third-grade level. At least part of the difficulty was an inability or unwillingness to focus.
“Before, it was a cycle going backward,” Buresh said. “They didn’t think they could do it, didn’t want to try, got in trouble.”
What’s helped has been a short meditation exercise created by a company called Calm Classroom.
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A former social worker brought the idea to the attention of school administrators during the 2013-2014 school year. After representatives of Calm Classroom came out, a couple teachers tried it. This school year, around 30 teachers are using the exercise, said Assistant Principal Laura Moore.
Today, Buresh briefly describes the schedule for the class and then switches off the overhead lights. Some of the dozen students lay their heads down on their desks. Others just sit.
“Feet flat on the floor,” reads Buresh from a printed sheet.
“Focus on breathing. Let your whole body be still. Bring your attention to your head, bring your attention to your shoulders, bring your attention to your hands, bring your attention to your knees …”
In all, Buresh reads for perhaps three minutes. Students are then told they can raise their heads at their own pace.
Buresh isn’t concerned with whether the students concentrate on the words. He estimates about one-third do the exercise, one-third don’t and the final third swing either way.
“It’s about relaxing before you begin (working),” Buresh said. “About sitting calmly and focusing. There has been a lot of growth in some of these students.”
Brandon Rios didn’t care for the exercise when it was introduced last school year.
“I thought it was dumb,” Rios said. He has since changed his mind.
“Usually I talk a lot and make noise,” Rios said. “Since I started doing this my scores started going up a lot. I’ll probably get out of this classroom soon.”
Ryan Sons, a former self-described “troublemaker,” had a similar experience.
“I thought it would be boring,” Sons said. “I didn’t want to do it.”
Like Rios, he changed his mind.
“I’m pretty relaxed,” Sons said. “The teachers like because I don’t get in trouble. I get better scores. I can read better.”
“I like it,” said student Carla Garcia. “It gets your stress. You don’t stress too much in school.”
Assistant Principal Laura Moore said many students arrive at school with some degree of stress.
“I think students have stress at home,” Moore said. “They come in with a social situation with friends. Maybe something was said on Facebook. Something was said the night before and they come to school with that baggage. This gives them time to calm down.”