A school decided to replace detention with meditation classes and the results have been fascinating.
Robert W. Coleman School in Baltimore, US, has a ‘Mindful Moment Room’ where kids are taught about mindful meditation and breathing exercises.
Since setting up the programme two years ago, the school has not issued a single suspension.
“It’s amazing,” Kirk Philips, the coordinator at Robert W. Coleman told Upworthy.
“You wouldn’t think that little kids would meditate in silence. And they do.”
The meditation scheme is part of an after-school programme in America called ‘Holistic Me’.
The school works with a local non-profit organisation called the Holistic Life Foundation to bring experts and behavioural professionals in to help the children.
Since the children have responded so well to the meditation sessions, a schedule of after school classes has now also been laid on for children who aren’t in detention.
The kids are encouraged to take the lessons they learn about meditation home with them and use them in daily life.
One 11-year-old said about the programme, according to Hello Giggles: “This morning I got mad at my dad, but then I remembered to breathe and then I didn’t shout.”
And it isn’t only one school that is seeing the benefits of the programme.
A nearby school, Patterson Park High, also used the mindfulness programme and said suspension rates dropped and attendance increased.