Is Your Teen Experiencing Burn Out?

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Why does burn out happen?

Once teens reach High School they often feel an invisible pressure called burn out. We’ve all experienced getting burned out at work, or even in our home life when the sink is full of dishes over and over again. But what does burn out look like for a teenager and how can we help them get out of it?

If you’re not familiar with the signs, then a burned out teen is very likely to happen before you even realize it. One day our teen is communicating with us about his/her/their feelings and the next they won’t leave their room. Late nights spent catching up on studying invade on quality family time. While we may feel proud of our teen for taking on the extracurricular and advanced courses that are necessary for getting into a good college, we also have to realize that there can be repercussions for too much activity and not enough rest.

Our Upper School Academic Director Kaye Jacob’s understands this better than most, “This is a high-stakes time for many kids, but we do need to try to reason with them that they need to find a balance, that “more” is not always “better.”

3 signs your teen is heading towards burn out

1. Heightened anxiety and/or overwhelm. Anxiety can look different in everyone, especially teenagers. It can manifest as moodiness or unusual behavior when before there was a calm demeanor. Anxiety can also look like immune system fatigue, causing the teen to get sick more often or even start to have migraine headaches.

teen2. Not sleeping at night. Burned out teens can get so wired from all of their “to do” lists, extra courses, or/and after school activities throughout the week that when it’s finally time to rest, they can’t. Lack of sleep can spiral into a dependency on coffee or energy drinks so that they can be alert enough to make it through the school day.

3. Saying “no” to socializing with family and friends. Teens who experience burn out can’t relax enough to have downtime. They stop participating in family events or socializing with friends because they simply have nothing extra to give, or are trying to preserve their energy.

Burn out isn’t black and white

Burn out can manifest in our teens in so many ways. Maybe you see your teen taking on more honors courses than he/she/they can handle, or perhaps your teen feels overwhelmed with social stresses and wants to hide. There’s another even more subtle aspects of burn out, such as having a lack of support at home, and poor self care. Here are three teen meditationways you can help your teen normalize again.

3 ways you can help

  1. Teach stress management tools. According to the American Physiological Association’s survey showed that teens report their stress level during the school year far exceeds that of an average adult. At Maharishi School we have a tool for our students to manage stress built into their schedules every day, twice a day. It’s called Transcendental Meditation.
  2. Adopt new self care practices. Talk to your teen about what you do for self care. Self care practices can be a conscious time-out away from their daily life that helps them maharishi school student doing yogago inward and tune into their bodily needs. Some popular self care practices include; journaling, yoga, creative expression, exercising, spending time in nature, cooking/baking, reading, swimming, camping, watching a funny movie, etc. While it’s nice for them to have some alone time you can also come up with a list of self care practices that you and your teen can do together.
  3. Talk about mental health. Establish regular check ins with your teen so you can track to see if they’re moving in the direction of burn out. Don’t be afraid to tell them, “why don’t you take some time off school work tonight, I want you to be primed for a long life and I would like to see you pace yourself now.” Make them aware of therapy services that can be a private outlet just for them.

 

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The CBE Angle

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consciousness meditationWhat is Consciousness-Based Education (CBE)?

At Maharishi School, we believe reducing stress and improving brain function is absolutely imperative. Kids have so much on their plate, so many external pressures, and so much to balance. We believe it is essential to provide our students with the tools to address these stresses. As adults, it is understood that stress does not disappear, but we rise to function properly under that stress. Consciousness-based education revolves around that belief. We don’t just fill students heads with information, we systematically expand the container of knowledge, the student’s own consciousness. With this expansion, absorbing new ideas becomes simpler, friendships deepen, and you start to understand how you are connected to and interconnected with the world.

Why we use CBE

Imagine your day starting with time to clear your mind, focus, and calm your body. Imagine you get to start every day finding strength, peace, and understanding within. Imagine being given this tool as a child so that you are able to use it throughout life to manage stress, persevere, and succeed regardless of the situation.

Doesn’t that sound fantastic and useful?

This is the opportunity we provide our students through Transcendental Meditation, which is at the center of our Consciousness-based education.consciousness education Every single day, students and teachers at Maharishi School close their eyes for a few minutes to practice the Transcendental Meditation® technique and experience a state of rest that is deeper than sleep.

When your body is rested, powerful chain reactions are set forth. Blood pressure normalizes. Heart rates slow down. The brain gets more oxygen. Big problems become small problems and stress becomes manageable.

We call this Consciousness-Based education. Because expanding consciousness is a game changer.

 

To read more about our system of learning, click here.

To see how the Transcendental Meditation technique and our system of education helped prepare our alumni for success, check out our alumni profiles here.

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Private School Students that Do Yoga

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Yoga Asanas

At Maharishi School the underlying message in all we do for and with our students is this: everything you need to succeed is alreadymaharishi school student doing yoga inside of you. Teaching students yoga and meditate is an integral part of this curriculum; these tools will serve them for a lifetime.

Twice a day, every day, Maharishi School students practice their yoga asanas, then settle down to meditate for ten to fifteen minutes before heading back into the activities of the day. In addition to physical stretching and toning, asanas are an excellent way for kids to relieve stress. Yoga helps students to be more aware of their breath, and how breathing in different ways can enliven or relax the physiology. It improves balance, coordination, and posture. Yoga brings awareness and energy to every part of the body and teaches kids how to relax and recharge by tuning in to themselves.

Students leave yoga and meditation settled and focused. Maharishi School teachers and staff also do asanas and meditate, which prepares them to give their best to their students each day.

 

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Boarding School that Teaches Meditation

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Transcendental Meditation

To transcend, by definition, means to go beyond human limitations and to break boundaries. At Maharishi School, we teach you aA Maharishi School student practices Transcendental Meditation in Fairfield, Iowa. Photo credit Fotoveda. not feeling stressed meditation technique to break internal boundaries and to sink deep into yourself, to tap into your essence and live in a state of flow. Here, we believe that all parts of ourselves should be developed – the body, mind, heart and consciousness, and therefore the practice of TM® is required for all students. Our school day starts and ends with a few minutes of the Transcendental Meditation® (TM) technique.

Meditation Reduces Stress

When stress begins to melt away, that’s when the real self begins to emerge. At Maharishi School, we believe change begins within and we give you the tools needed to beat stress. We teach you how to transcend turbulence and to access that rich reservoir that is at the deepest level within.

TM® is a simple technique that is easily taught through one-on-one instruction by a certified teacher. It’s not a religion, philosophy or lifestyle. More than 340 scientific studies have been published in leading journals showing its efficacy in all areas of physical and mental health. It’s garnered the praise of distinguished institutions like the National Health Institute, American Psychological Association, University of Michigan, and American University.

To learn more, visit www.TM.org.

 

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How to Help Teens Work Through Daily Stressors

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Is it stress or anxiety?

Have you ever felt paralyzed staring at the big letter “F” on a paper or been told that you’ve got to turn your grades around quick or you won’t get into college? Teens face pressures today that may seem easily solved to adults, but can actually make or break the teen’s mental health. So what is the difference between normal every day stressors and anxiety?

According to the Mental Health Curriculum Organization, “The hallmarks of an anxiety disorder are persistent avoidance and withdrawal where it causes major impairment in your life. That’s more than just a stress response.”

 

How can parents help?

How can we expect our children to create healthy habits if we are not modeling it for them? By modeling stress-management we are able to show children what it looks like to assimilate through tough circumstances. Even though our instinct is to protect our children from “negativity,” sheltering them from it can promote the exact opposite. They could be left lacking in their ability to navigate the inevitable highs and lows that will come up in throughout life.

As parents and caregivers, we have an important part to play, by adopting our own healthy habits and helping children and teens find stress-managing strategies. These strategies can even be discussed in a group so that the teen can brainstorm their own ideas and implement them into the family’s stress management model.

  • Model healthy coping. Caregivers can talk authentically with children about how they’ve thought about and dealt with their own stressful situations.

 

  • Let kids be problem-solvers. It’s natural to want to fix your child’s problems. But when parents swoop in to solve every little glitch, their children don’t have a chance to learn healthy coping skills. Let your children try to solve their low-stakes problems on their own, and they’ll gain confidence that they can deal with stressors and setbacks.

 

  • Promote media literacy. Today’s kids spend a lot of time online, where they can run into questionable content, cyber bullying or the peer pressures of social media. Parents can help by teaching their children to be savvy digital consumers, and by limiting screen time.

 

  • Combat negative thinking. “I’m terrible at math.” “I hate my hair.” “I’ll never make the team. Why try out?” Children and teens can easily fall into the trap of negative thinking. When children use negative self-talk, though, don’t just disagree. Ask them to really think about whether what they say is true, or remind them of times they worked hard and improved. Learning to frame things positively will help them develop resilience to stress.

To read the NY Times Article about how to protect teens emotional well-being, click here.

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Adjusting to Covid Protocols in School

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The two month mark of being back at school is rapidly approaching. For some of our students this will be their inauguration for being back in a large-group setting for this first time in a year! You may be wondering how the students are handling all of this?

Our directors of the Lower, Middle, and Upper school as well as the boarding student supervisor reflect on how the kids are doing at this point in the year.

Kaye Jacob, Middle/Upper School Director

“This year we plan to launch a Middle School Student Council—and also hold regular MiddleKaye Jacob, Academic Director, Maharishi School
School assemblies. Our goal is to create as much opportunity for leadership experience, active
learning—and fun—as possible. We are also looking forward to being able to take students on
field trips—to outdoor locations such as Wilson’s Orchard as well as to museums and
performance venues, depending (of course) on our capacity to maintain Covid-safe protocols.

I think students are overall less anxious this year about the Covid protocols because they are accustomed to them and, more importantly, I believe that they are convinced that wearing masks and getting vaccinated (as the older ones have) actually have worked to keep our covid mask middle schoolcommunity safe and almost entirely Covid-free all last year. When students see the logic and meaning behind what they are doing, they tend to fall naturally into the routine of it. Not ONE student that I have seen so far has even hesitated to wear a mask–and wear it properly–so far this year.”

 

Lynn Shirai, Lower School Director

Lynn Shirai Lower School Director Maharishi School“The children are accommodating easily to our Covid protocols, and mask wearing seems second nature to them now. There’s a lot of handcovid mask lower school washing and social distancing going on also. Thank you for reminding your children of the importance of following all of our safety guidelines during this time. Everyone seems contented and so full of happiness being with their friends once again.”

David Pohlman, Boarding Student Supervisor

“Like previous years, the boarding students have shown great flexibility with adapting to the pandemic safety protocols. We saw this during the initial days of this school year when students had to follow an “isolation” procedure upon moving into the dorm. Students had to eatdavid pohlman boarding in their rooms and wear masks at all times when outside of their dorm room.
Interactions with others inside the dorm were limited, but encouraged outside. Each of these students needed to complete a final Covid test before joining everyone for regular activities, including in-person school.
We actually have fewer protocols in the dorm than when the pandemic started– mainly because we all have a better understanding of how the virus is transmitted than before.
For example, we no longer emphasize sanitizing surfaces as a strategy for prevention. Also, last year, we were able to have all but one dorm student fully vaccinated at the request of their parents. This year, we currently have a mix of vaccinated and un-vaccinated. We will need to consider what this means for the mask covid kidsliving environment and mask usage there.
Overall, the boarding students go with the flow and show respect toward each other and the safety guidelines we have established for the well being of everyone.”
To read our blog about “What the pandemic has taught us,” click here.

Want to read more about our Return-to-Learn plan, click here.

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What the Pandemic Taught Us

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Learning from a crises

With the Fall school year rapidly approaching, it seems like a good time to reflect on the past and what we’ve learned. One of the biggest lessons of the last year for parents and school administrators alike is how hard teaching is during a pandemic! Not only did teachers have to be creative and engaging in the classroom but the last year required them to become experts in newmiddle school pandemic mask technologies as well. The next hurdle for teachers to overcome was creating the strategies for getting students to participate in coursework from the comfort of their homes as well as in person. The challenges were endless but so we’re the rewards. Some of which might actually surprise you!

Online learning pros and cons from our teachers

I spoke with Maharishi School’s Third and Fourth-grade teacher Diane James about her experience, “I realized how deep my devotion and commitment was to have my students thrive academically and emotionally through this pandemic.  I moved into action and by the end of the year they truly ‘graduated” from their grade. I introduced Padlet, Google Classroom, Flipgrid, and Jamboard and surrendered to the technical genius of nearly the whole class to master each online program.  These programs connect the hybrid learning situation we were in. We danced and exercised every day.  We went outside whenever we could.”

The struggles that children experience in the classroom often indicate that a student may be having difficulties at home. In the case of the pandemic many members of our school community, students, and adults have experienced hardships.

Diane goes into further detail about this in her classroom, “I allowed myself to be vulnerable.  I cried in front of them (her students). I had to share the times I felt extremely sad and impatient.  I felt them as well. And yet, there was a class consciousness that said,” WE GOT THIS.”

David Pohlman is the Consciousness, Connections, and Life Skills (CCLS) teacher as well as the Residential Life supervisor for the boarding students at Maharishi School. Here is his reflection on what the pandemic has taught him.

“I’m impressed by the adaptable and responsible planning of our school leaders and my teaching colleagues who made a year of hybrid learning safe and successful. The students showed the same level of adaptability and responsibility and it created a sense of normalcy to the school year and whether in-person or online, the students progressed academically with hardly a blip.”

“When I see, too, the divergent responses to the pandemic on a national level, it has made me even more aware of the need to teach critical thinking skills to help students navigate the field of information and misinformation.”

I also talked to Kaye Jacob who is the Academic Director of the Middle/Upper School as well as an ELA and English Literature teacher. She goes into greater detail about the learning curve of last year, “It is by sheer determination, dedication, and professionalism that the Maharishi School teachers

kaye jacob administrator of maharishi school

and staff were able to offer a hybrid model of education for students, essentially letting them choose the mode of delivery that made them feel the safest, even if it meant (as it regularly did) teachers on Zoom calls at 10:00 pm at night with students in Korea, or accommodating just one or two students on Zoom in the classroom while attempting to create interactive, hands-on activities for those attending in person.”

“It was a challenging year, to say the least, and I honestly hope that parents and students appreciate the level at which we were able to ensure that students were, for the most part, meeting or exceeding the curriculum standards in all subject areas, across all grade levels–and even participating in activities, when it was safe.  It is a tribute of course to the resilience of our students themselves and their tremendous level of cooperation and even compliance with the safety standards we implemented, however restrictive they would have felt.”

The curve of online learning

mask pandemicA situation in which a student may be struggling can pivot quickly from containable to critical, especially if the student is already in a vulnerable group. What’s different about the last year for us is that our “vulnerable group” included every student, teacher, parent, and member of our community.

One of the biggest lessons of this past year is to be ready for the unexpected. This is why Maharishi School has put practices in place that ensure the safety of everyone.

We believe that in-person learning is the most effective and that the remote approach to learning is not ideal.  However, our desire is to support each family in the way they believe best supports their children which is why we are offering both learning approaches.

While some of our students have taken to screen school with aplomb and even a greater degree of confidence, others have reported that it is stressful and tiring to be on computers all day long—and that meeting their friends only virtually makes them feel their isolation more acutely.

Emphasize engagement

As an institution, we are committed to supporting our families and students.  Please communicate if your student needs time with our mental health counselor or if you need an alternative tuition payment plan.

“Learning is, or at least should be, a social activity, as students exchange ideas and contribute to activities, building on the divergent skills and aptitudes in the group. It is much more challenging to attempt to simulate that exchange through online learning, although I am amazed at how resourceful our teachers were this year at getting students to be active learners even online, through clever apps and features available to them.” -Kaye Jacob, Academic Director

 

Want to read more about our Return-to-Learn plan, click here.

To learn more about our academics or to contact a member of our admissions staff, click here.

Find out about our school events and student life, follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

How to Prepare for School: Fall 2021 Edition

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What should you expect?  And who decides?

The Maharishi School Leadership Team make the hard decisions that keep our school in a constant state of improvement. They provide a vision for our future and take the action necessary toRichard Beall execute that vision. When it comes to issues such as the covid pandemic, our Leadership Team gets its cues from a lot of different authorities:

  •        Iowa Governor Reynolds
  •        Iowa legislature
  •       Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
  •       Public Health officials
  •       Maharishi International University
  •       Our Board of Directors

Sometimes that input is informational; other times the decisions are made for us, like when the Governor closed in-person schooling in March 2020 or disallowed mask mandates in May 2021.

 

leadership team covid masksWhere do we get information from?

Our Leadership Team is monitoring CDC sources daily for COVID-related developments as we consider our options for 2021-22. We strongly recommend reading the Guidance for COVID-19 Prevention in K-12 Schools as a guideline.

In this guide you will find that the CDC recommends:

  • In-person learning
  • Vaccination
  • Masks for vaccinated persons

PLEASE NOTE: We have not adopted these recommendations at this point. Everything is still under consideration.

 

What can we prepare for?

At present we can foresee three different types of scenarios for the fall:

 

Scenario One: COVID cases decline, vaccination rates climb, masks become unnecessary. We’re pretty much back to “normal.”covid masks kids in mask

 

Scenario Two: COVID variants prove threatening, some precautionary measures continue, like mask wearing and social distancing.

 

Scenario Three: An upsurge of COVID cases, perhaps due to a variant, requires stronger preventive precautions, ranging from online-only classes to mask wearing mandates.

 

In other words, stay tuned. A survey will be sent to you in early August to solicit your perspective on the situation.

In the meantime, we are open to your input and will respond to questions, to the best of our ability.

 

 

To read about our Coronavirus guidelines, click here.

To learn more about our academics or to contact a member of our admissions staff, click here.

To learn more about school events and student life, follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

Consciousness, Connections & Life Skills (CCLS)

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What is CCLS?

This subject, originally called SCI or the Science of Creative Intelligence, has been part of the school since its inception and has gone through many changes over time. Eight years ago, there was a major overhaul of the curriculum based on alumni response. In 2018, the curriculum underwent a further change with the addition of SEL (Social and Emotional Learning) and Comprehensive Health lessons to the curriculum. The name of the subject changed from SCI to CCLS (Consciousness, Connections, and Life Skills) to reflect this change. To expand on the name: Consciousness (the understanding and experience of consciousness through Transcendental Meditation), Connections (between different areas of life; interdisciplinary), and Life Skills (practical skills useful to everyday life, including SEL and sexual health).

The mission statement of the school is: To create an innovative, consciousness-based educational environment, where students think deeply and become creative,project period maharishi school compassionate, contributing citizens of the world.

There are four components of CCLS that directly teach to this mission statement: SCI (Science of Creative Intelligence), SEL (Social and Emotional Learning), the Comprehensive Health Curriculum (called Rights, Respect, and Responsibility), and Positive Discipline. We also have incorporated Restorative Justice talking circles.

What is SCI?

SCI (Science of Creative Intelligence) is the study of creativity and intelligence and principles found in everyday life that allow us to make connections between different fields of study and human experience. SCI deals primarily with the experience and understanding of consciousness.

  • The experiential part of this subject is that all the students practice Transcendental Meditation as part of curriculum every day in the morning and afternoon. (Students begin practicing TM starting in 4th grade. From ages 4 to 10, the students practice a simpler technique that is preparation for sit down meditation. Included in this program is a series of yoga asanas (postures) and a simple breathing exercise which serves to prime the nervous system for meditation, pranayama.
  • The theoretical or intellectual component involves an examination of the nature of consciousness, the relationship of consciousness to the physical world and the laws of nature. This exploration of consciousness is age-appropriate and occurs at all grade levels throughout the school, beginning in Preschool with more concrete activities and becoming more complex and theoretical in upper school.

What is SEL?

SEL (Social and Emotional Learning) in our Upper School consists of five main competencies as formulated by the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL). SEL is implemented differently at various grade levels, including the Preschool, Lower School, Middle School and Upper School.

  • Self-Awareness: the ability to accurately recognize one’s own emotions, thoughts, and values and how they influence behavior.
  • Self-Management: the ability to successfully regulate one’s emotions, thoughts, and behaviors in different situations.
  • Social Awareness: the ability to take the perspective of and empathize with others, including those from diverse backgrounds and cultures.
  • Relationship Skills: the ability to establish and maintain healthy and rewarding relationships with diverse individuals and groups.
  • Responsible Decision-Making: the ability to make constructive choices about personal behavior and social interactions.

Comprehensive Health Curriculum

We use the K-12 curriculum from Advocates for Youth called Rights, Respect, and Responsibility. This curriculum includes age-appropriate lessons that cover a wide range of health areas, including relationships and consent, STDs and contraception, dating abuse, etc. In Preschool, the students are taught early consent, boundaries, and becoming comfortable with using anatomically correct words to describe their bodies. In upper school, we do a couple lessons a month and design our own slide presentations to supplement the materials.

Positive Discipline

Positive Discipline is designed to teach young people to become responsible, respectful, and resourceful members of their communities. It teaches important social and life skills in a manner that is deeply respectful and encouraging for children and adults. In the summer of 2018, the school adopted Positive Discipline as part of our professional development program and invited a specialist to provide in-depth training. Our overall goal for positive discipline is to culture mutual respect between peers and adults, and to make sure all children are heard, respected, and intrinsically motivated.

  • In Preschool, the focus is on conflict resolution, but also includes understanding feelings, recognizing their own voice, making sure every child is heard, and maintaining boundaries, with class meetings or circles to facilitate communication.
  • In Lower School, the emphasis is on classroom management and conflict resolution.
  • In Middle School, communication skills and conflict resolution are the main focus.
  • In Upper School, many aspects of Positive Discipline (such as effective communication and problem-solving skills) are covered in the SEL curriculum and practiced in the classroom. Upper school also utilizes Restorative Justice talking circles and practices, which are much in line with Positive Discipline.

 

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Meet Our New Teachers: Amie Saine

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Meet Alumni Amie Saine!

new teacher alumni amie saine

Amie leading a  yoga to class.

Amie was born in Gambia and moved to the United States when she was 14 years old to attend Maharishi School. After Amie graduated, becoming an alumni in 2015, she enrolled at Maharishi International Univeristy. There she completed her schooling in 2019 with a degree in business. Amie says,  “After graduating, I had a modeling contract with BMG model and talent agency in New York City. I moved to NYC for almost a year, but then I ended up getting very sick in January 2020. I decided to move back to Fairfield in February in order to focus on my health and live with my parents. Here, I am now teaching kids and having a lot of fun.”

Amie was also a teachers assistant for the fitness and health class at MIU where shea learned how important it is to have fun while doing physical activity. She explains “having fun motivates students that don’t feel comfortable to feel comfortable. In my P.E class I try to make sure my students are happy and excited while doing an activity because having total wellness is the main purpose of my classes.”

alumni teaching yoga

Teaching our students to do tree pose. 

Teaching with covid

While teaching during covid can be difficult, I imagine teaching a physical education class would pose many obstacles to overcome. Amie says, “To be honest, it is very challenging sometimes because most students forget that we are in the middle of a pandemic. Sometimes, when they are having a lot of fun, the students just want to touch and connect with their friends, but we can’t do that in these difficult times. We play sports that involve touching, so sometimes we have to get really creative with activities just to make it more 2020 friendly without physical contact.” Teaching the kids at Maharishi School brings Amie so much joy and we are so lucky to have an alumni like her to focus on the health and well being of our students!

To learn more about our academics or to contact a member of our admissions staff, click here.

Find out about our school events and student life, follow us on Facebook and Instagram.