Meditation Breaks in School Can Improve Students' Mental Health

Georgia elementary school students say meditation helps them “relax” and feel more confident in their schoolwork

Students in Georgia say they feel more “peaceful” since their elementary school began meditation breaks during the day.

Third-graders at Roberta T. Smith Elementary School in Rex, Ga., take mid-day breaks to listen to a meditation recording, and practice doing a “shark fin” — tracing their thumb from their forehead to their heart.

The practice, the students told the Associated Press, is working.

“It made me feel peaceful,” Aniyah Woods, 9, said.

“You can relax yourself with the shark fin, and when I calm myself down, I realize I am an excellent scholar,” Malachi Smith, 9, said.

The elementary school is a part of Clayton County Public Schools, which has linked with GreenLight Fund Atlanta to pay for the mindfulness program, provided by the audio program Inner Explorer.

Related: New Study Finds Physical Fitness Can Improve Mental Health in Children and Young Adults

“When you look at the numbers, unfortunately, in Georgia, the number of children of color with suicidal thoughts and success is quite high,” GreenLight Fund Atlanta’s executive director Joli Cooper told the AP. “When you look at the number of psychologists available for these children, there are not enough psychologists of color.”

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A recent report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control said “Black students were more likely to attempt suicide than students of other races and ethnicities” — and specifically pointed to school interactions as crucial.

“Schools play an important role in promoting student mental health. Feeling connected to others at school is a powerful strategy to protect student’s mental health,” the CDC said.

The agency advocates for classroom-based “mindfulness activities” — such as “mindful breathing, meditation, and mindful movement, such as yoga,” according to one report from the agency. 

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And the CDC says it’s working, as classroom-based mindfulness can “lower ratings of anxiety ... among elementary-aged girls. The agency reports "fewer self-reported symptoms of anxiety among high school students, lower levels of self-reported depressive symptoms and negative coping behaviors (e.g., disengagement, denial, substance abuse, self-blame) among middle school students.“

It's also giving students the tools they need before they're in a mental health crisis — as some studies have shown that meditation may be as helpful as medication when it comes to anxiety.

“It’s a stigma with being able to say you’re not OK and needing help, and having the ability to ask for help,” Tolana Griggs, Smith Elementary’s assistant principal told the AP.

She continied: “With our diverse school community and wanting to be more aware of our students, how different cultures feel and how different cultures react to things, it’s important to be all-inclusive with everything we do.”

Related: 10 Things to Try for a Quick Mental Health Boost

“We know that our teenagers and adolescents have really strained in their mental health,” CDC Director Dr. Mandy Cohen told the AP.

“There are real skills that we can give our teens to make sure that they are coping with some big emotions.”

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