Review: ClassDojo (Learning about how and why we think!)

As I have written about on my Blog in the last few weeks, I have been battling a bit of anxiety in my life. I have been learning about how I think and why I think the way I do. 

Right about the time that I was really working on what to do and how to deal with this anxiety in my life, I was contacted by the people at ClassDojo and asked if I could share about what they do on my Blog. 

I did a little research and was BLOWN AWAY by this program. 

Folks, you need to check this out!

ClassDojo’s mission is to give teachers, parents, and students the power to create incredible classrooms. Founded in 2011 and based in San Francisco, California, ClassDojo is a communication platform that helps students build important life skills while creating a simple way for teachers, parents, and students to share what’s happening during the school day through photos, videos, and messages. Today, 90% of K-8 schools in the U.S., as well as a further 180 countries, have joined ClassDojo. To learn more, visit: https://www.classdojo.com/ or Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

• Here is a link to the first video in the Mindfulness series from ClassDojo. 
• Here is more information on ClassDojo. 
• Here is a link to the ClassDojo store. 

ClassDojo joined forces with Yale (I mean -- the Yale) to bring mindfulness to millions of kids around the world.

Folks, this is really good stuff. It is teaching your kids how to think and how their brain works. I have realized, while watching these videos, that we do NOT teach our kids how to think or why we think the way we do! We don't do a good job teaching our kids what nervousness is and what good anxiety is.

Have any of you as a parent taught your kids any of the following things? I realize that I really haven't!

1. Recognize emotions: Paying attention to emotions - both one’s own and others - is a critical step toward building self-and social-awareness. Our facial expressions, body language, and vocal tones convey important messages, from, “I’m here for you” to “stay away!”
2. Understand emotions: Learning what caused your child to feel the way they do, and sharing the reasons why we feel the way we do as parents, deepens communication and builds mutual respect. Asking open-ended questions such as, “what happened?” or “what do you believe caused you to feel this way?”  helps to build this skill.
3. Label emotions: We use language to inform thinking and communication. Try using specific emotion words such as disappointed instead of upset, or peaceful instead of good. The more nuanced our emotion vocabulary becomes as parents, the more advanced our children become at effectively communicating their feelings.
4. Express emotions: Each home has an “emotional climate.” Creating a home where all emotions matter and can be talked about - the pleasant and unpleasant - helps to build trust, safety, openness, and authentic communication among all family members. As parents, we need to be comfortable discussing the full range of emotions with our children.
5. Regulate emotions: Each day, we are modeling both effective and ineffective ways to manage emotions. Be mindful of modeling “positive self-talk” (e.g., it will all work out) as opposed to “negative self-talk” (e.g., nothing ever turns out the way it’s supposed to”) will help your child to learn helpful, as opposed to unhelpful, ways to deal with emotions.

I want to encourage you to do the following:

• Watch the videos on youtube with your kids. They are really great. This is not scientific mumbo jumbo. This is about great skills that I think we usually overlook.
• Talk to your student's teacher and see if they have this program in their classroom or school!

As a homeschool mom, I am so excited to share these videos with my kiddos. JB and I have tried to work with our kiddos on how they think and why they think the way they do, but this gives us resources to back it up. Take the time to check this program out. I don't think you'll be disappointed. 

(And it doesn't cost a thing!)