This document outlines an introductory session on reflective writing and mindfulness practices for teacher training. The session introduces concepts like metacognition and mindfulness, and includes activities to help participants reflect on their progress in the program and learning approaches. Participants complete questionnaires, engage in mindfulness exercises like focusing on a sweet or picture, and create a paper fortune teller. They discuss how to use reflective practices and adapt mindfulness activities for their subject areas. By the end of the session, participants learn terms like metacognition and mindfulness, and most are able to explain how to apply these concepts, while some can create an action plan.

1. REFLECTIVE WRITING RECAP
Introduction to Teaching a Specialist Subject

2. IN THIS SESSION YOU WILL…
• Think about how you are feeling about the
programme
• Consider the practice of mindfulness for reflection
• Explore metacognitive practices for reflection
• Update your reflective blogging groups

3. BY THE END OF THIS SESSION YOU WILL
BE ABLE TO…
All – Identify where you feel you are on the programme
Most – Explain where you are and how you will move forward
Some – Create a ‘smart’ action plan to put this into practice
All – Explain the terms ‘metacognition’ and ‘mindfulness’
Most – Explain how to put these concepts into practice
Some – Adapt these practices to their own teaching
Look at the traffic lights sheet to see what you already know…

4. JUMPSTART JOURNAL
What are YOUR goals for today’s session?
Take 2 minutes to write down what you want to
get out of this session.

5. WHERE ARE YOU?
• Look at the jelly baby sheet.
• Imagine you are one of the characters.
• Where is your character on the page? This
reflects where you see yourself in terms of
the course at this moment.
• Colour in your character & write the date
next to it. You can use this to reflect on
during the course to track your feelings
about your development.

6. HOW COULD YOU USE/ADAPT THIS
RESOURCE FOR YOUR SPECIALIST SUBJECT
AREA?

7. METACOGNITIVE INVENTORY
• Mark the statements as true or false on the
inventory.
• Score yourself at the end.
• What does this tell you about your learning?
When you have finished, put the sheet to one side.
We will revisit this.

8. MINDFUL PRACTICE
• Mindfulness – a type of meditation practiced as part of many
spiritual & religious practices.
• Brought into science as a stress reduction tool by Jon Kabat-Zinn
Ph.D, University of Massachusetts Hospital, as a tool for
controlling chronic pain
• Can also be used as part of cognitive behavioural therapy to help
manage stress, anxiety & depression as well as other mental
health issues
• Used for reflection, it helps us to focus
• Further reading:
• A Mindfulness Guide for the Frazzled, Ruby Wax, 2016
• Mindfulness for Teachers: Simple Skills for Peace and
Productivity in the Classroom, Patricia A. Jennings, Daniel J.
Siegel, 2015

9. MINDFULNESS ACTIVITY 1
• Take a sweet
• Pop it in your mouth
• Take time to explore the sensations
• Notice how it feels (texture/weight/shape)
• Notice how it tastes
• Notice how your mouth feels
• If you feel any other thoughts intruding, acknowledge
them and re-focus on the sweet

10. MINDFULNESS ACTIVITY 2
• Look at your picture
• Take time to explore the scene
• Notice how it looks (shapes, textures,
colours)
• Notice how it makes you feel
• If you feel any other thoughts intruding,
acknowledge them and re-focus on the
picture

11. MINDFULNESS ACTIVITY 3
• Using the instructions given create a
paper ‘fortune teller’
• Take your time, be creative, focus on
the task

12. HOW COULD YOU USE/ADAPT THIS
RESOURCE FOR YOUR SPECIALIST SUBJECT
AREA?

13. Metacognitive
about thinking
meta cognitive

14. METACOGNITION
THINKING ABOUT OUR THINKING
• Complete the approaches to learning questions
• Consider the activity you just completed (fortune
teller). Does your learning approach to that activity
match with the findings from the two metacognitive
questionnaires you have completed?
• How useful is it to consider the way you learn?
• How useful would it be for your learners to consider
the way they learn?

15. • Consider the prompts and reflect on your practice
• Use this as a stepping stone to writing a reflective
blog entry
GUT LEVEL TEACHER REFLECTION

16. NEW BLOG GROUPS
• Find the people listed in the opposite group to you.
These are who you will be blogging with this year.
• Remember, a minimum of one blog post every two
weeks.
• Post developmental feedback on the posts of others.
Remember you are their critical friend. Make feedback
comments on posts every two weeks.
• Remember to include reference to wider academic
reading, and the Professional Standards.

17. WE SAID:
BY THE END OF THIS SESSION YOU WILL BE
ABLE TO…
All – Identify where you feel you are on the programme
Most – Explain where you are and how you will move forward
Some – Create a ‘smart’ action plan to put this into practice
All – Explain the terms ‘metacognition’ and ‘mindfulness’
Most – Explain how to put these concepts into practice
Some – Adapt these practices to their own teaching
Look at the traffic lights sheet to see how far you have moved…

18. JUMPSTART JOURNAL
DID YOU ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS FOR
TODAY’S SESSION?
If so, how? What is your next
move?
If not, how can you address this?

19. NEXT WEEK
• We will start Curriculum & Professional Issues