OUR PROGRAMS INCLUDE:Wellness, Mental Health, and Social Well-Being Foundations

Comprehensive Wellness, Mental Health, and Social Well-Being Teacher/Staff TrainingWellness, Mental Health, and Social Well-Being Leadership Initiative

OUR MISSION OUR VISIONCulture drives results; leaders drive culture. Our mission is to equip teachers, staff, and administrators to effectively manage their own wellness, mental health, and social well-being to ignite their leadership potential and inspire a school-wide culture of collaboration, equity, positivity, and innovation.

Our approach leverages the principles of brain-based learning theory, relevant neuroscience, dynamic movement, breath, emotional intelligence tools, and sensory processing theory. Our instructional materials ensure results by equipping teachers, staff, and students with practical mindfulness strategies, movement sequences, breathing exercises, neural integration techniques, and social-emotional learning activities that are easily integrated in classrooms, one-on-one, and in after-school clubs and programs. This daily diet of wellness, mental health, and social well-being accelerates results throughout the school community, teaching all stakeholders how to apply learned principles into their lives consistently to foster positivity, collaboration, and optimal learning.

Building communities of wellness, mental health, and social well-being that ignite human potential.

FOUNDATIONSIN OUR FOUNDATIONS WORKSHOPS PARTICIPANTS WILL:

MINDSETNeural Integration Techniques

Communication SkillsGratitude, Appreciation, Kindness

Social Emotional Learning

AWARENESSMindfulnessMovement

BreathEmotional Intelligence

RESPONSIBILITYChoice

Intention/Vision/PurposeCommitment

Community Contribution

• Discuss professional challenges and understand the research-based application of our instructional practices as they address these challenges.

• Explore how the Three Keys to Ignite Potential directly address the mental health and social-emotional challenges in today’s classrooms.

• Examine emotional intelligence and the 5 Core Competencies of Social-Emotional Learning.• Understand current findings in neuroscience and how they apply to student learning, mental

health, and social well-being. • Review research that supports daily integration of mindfulness, movement, breath, neural

integration, and social emotional practices to enhance student performance, self-awareness, and self-regulation.

• Explore the Seven Dimensions of Wellness and Mental Health.• Understand the science of stress, overwhelm, and anxiety and the impact on our students and

ourselves. • Engage directly in mindfulness, breathing, movement, and SEL activities that can be

immediately and easily integrated into the classrooms, in 1 to 5 minutes, to more effectively manage stress and anxiety, and support more optimal learning for our students.

• Leave with short, brain-based student lesson plans, between 5 and 15 minutes, to support student understanding of techniques and tools, their benefits, and the science.

• Discuss how to apply the tools learned to school culture to help cultivate a community of wellness, mental health, and social well-being.

Education Alive’s™ proprietary Multi-Dimensional Wellness model and the Three Keys to Ignite Potential provide essential tools and strategies for fostering ongoing wellness, mental

health, and social well-being in our classrooms and our schools.

Our engaging, interactive FOUNDATIONS workshop can be presentedin 1 ½-hour, half-day, or full-day formats. This workshop is packed with practical tools and

strategies participants can immediately apply personally and in the classroom.

COMPREHENSIVE TRAINING

Practice teaching lessons plans and activities to gain confidence.

PRACTICE

EXPERIENCEExperience brain-based lesson plans, mindfulness, movement, breath, and SEL activities you can use with students immediately.

INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALSOver 60 Brain-Based Learning Lesson Plans with options for short, easily integrated lesson planning (5 to 15 minutes)

Breathing, Movement, and Mindfulness Strategies (1 to 5 minutes)

Social Emotional Learning Activities

Daily Integration Ideas

Illustrations for Techniques

Student Handouts (including an 8-page Gratitude, Appreciation, and Kindness Journal)

Classroom Posters

Pre- and Post-Assessments and Feedback Questions

Suggested Implementation: 6 full days (30 contact hours) or 5 full days (25 contact hours with 5-hour non-contact)

Our comprehensive training includes an 8-unit instructional manual, classroom posters, student handouts, and the Education Alive™ emotional intelligence card deck.

The Comprehensive training can be implemented in a one-week intensive or over the course of the school year. We custom design all of our programs to meet the unique needs of your school and your team.

Emotional Intelligence Development Lessons and Activities

EXPLOREExplore the theory and neuroscience to support understanding and application of instructional practices both personally and with students.

Explore the Multi-Dimensional Wellness model and experience the Three Keys to Ignite Potential.

Plan implementation for daily integration of practices and lessons into your classroom or student sessions.

PLAN Learn ways to apply tools and strategies to reduce personal stress and overwhelm, cultivate more time/life balance, and deliver tools effectively and authentically to your students.

LEARN

All materials are aligned with NYS Benchmarks for Mental Health and Social-Emotional Learning

Internal and external stress has a significant impact on every dimension of our lives: our wellness, our mental health, and our social well-being. In this workshop, we explore the Seven Dimensions of Wellness, learn how to apply the Three Keys to Ignite Potential, and experience daily practices, tools, and strategies that support us to deal more effectively with stress and overload. These small shifts have a significant impact and bring more energy, more presence, more potential, and more innovation into our work and personal lives.

Culture drives results; leaders drive culture. In order for our schools to build cultures that support wellness, mental health, and social well-being, teachers, staff, and administrators must examine their own health and wellness, assess emotional intelligence, explore strategies based in neuroscience, and experience mindfulness practices to ignite their leadership potential. This workshop is highly interactive, incorporates brain-based learning techniques, and utilizes discussion, group exercises, focused visualization, emotional mastery exercises, and constructive collaboration. Our mission is to foster positivity and support all participants toward effective, efficient, and inspired leadership.

LEADERSHIP

Workshops are customized and designed to meet the needs of your District. Program length can vary from full-day workshops to ongoing 6 to 10-month initiatives.

8-UNIT INSTRUCTIONAL MANUALOver 60 short, detailed lesson plans and activities, 9 Classroom Posters, 24 Handouts, Audio CD for Breath and Movement, Pre- and Post Assessments and Feedback Questions for each unit

EDUCATION ALIVE INSTRUCTIONAL MANUAL & SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIALS

*EDUCATION ALIVE™ Emotional Intelligence Activities Card Deck: activities to strengthen self-awareness, inner resilience, and emotional intelligence. 60 emotion cards, 8 breath cards, 14 move cards, 5 communicate cards, 4 reframe refocus cards, and 15 activity ideas included.

PRICINGComplete Kit: $449 Includes Manual, CD, Handouts, Posters, and Card Deck

Manual, CD, Handouts: $389.00(Does not include Posters or Card Deck)

Card Deck: $99.99

Posters: $45.00

*Materials designed for Grade 3 to Grade 8 and are aligned with the NYS Mental Health Education and Social-Emotional Learning Benchmarks. Activities are easily modified for K-2 and Highschool.

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The Mechanics of BreathStress In Our BodiesWhat is Yoga?What is Mindfulness?How Do I Learn?Focus, Concentration, and BalanceCourageous CommunicationCultivating Community: Appreciation, Gratitude, and Kindness

Unit One: Unit Two: Unit Three:Unit Four: Unit Five: Unit Six: Unit Seven: Unit Eight:

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Diane is a sailor, mother, teacher, motivator, entrepreneur, coach, yoga teacher, mindfulness trainer, and wellness consultant. She has been a successful small business owner and consultant for the past 25 years. Her life’s path has been one of continual learning and discovery and has always been about inspiring others to take risks and believe in possibility. She is passionate about building communities to educate, support, and ignite human potential.

The formation of It Takes A Village Wellness is a result of her passion, bringing together all of Diane’s work under one roof. Through It Takes a Village Wellness Diane delivers wellness

programs and workshops, teaches private yoga and delivers mindfulness training. Through A Woman Alive Diane offers transformational coaching and women’s wellness retreats with a focus on women entrepreneurs and women in transition. EDUCATION ALIVE™ Wellness Programs were created to help schools and businesses create cultures of wellness and mental health. Diane developed a proprietary multi-dimensional model of wellness and mental health. Her work with individuals, schools and businesses emphasizes the growing need for us to explore the many dimensions of our own wellness, empower ourselves with tools for self-awareness, cultivate emotional IQ, and foster a mindset of possibility. Diane is an explorer in the field of neuroscience and transformation and a prolific writer. In 2019 she launched DiscoverLivingAlive.com, a blog focusing on our youth and education, mindfulness, movement, and the transformative power of understanding ourselves and our brains.

Her past endeavors include owning Artful Events, an event planning company, and as a consultant to not-for-profits. Diane was also the founder and owner of the Telamon Community Center, an after-school program in Medway, MA, that served special needs families offering a home-like environment, whole foods, yoga classes, and community events.

Diane holds her M. Ed. from Ohio State University, attended the premiere coaching training school, Coaching Training Institute (CTI), and is an experienced yoga teacher (E-RYT) with over 5000 hours of teaching yoga and mindfulness to both children and adults. She holds additional certificates that support her work providing tools and strategies to cultivate multi-dimensional wellness, mental health, and social well-being in our in our schools, businesses, and communities.

DIANE’S STORYFounder It Takes A Village Wellness, A Woman Alive and Education Alive™CTLE Sponsor NYS, Professional Development, Wellness Speaker/Workshop Leader, Yoga and Mindfulness Educator, Transformational Coach and passionate sailor.

OUR REFERENCES

“Great tips on how to manage time and stress. I felt a huge weight lifted off my shoulders after this workshop!”

The units are organized in a comprehensive way and focusing on a breath, movement and social-emotional activity within each unit makes it incredibly easy to implement in the classroom. Diane is knowledgeable about mindfulness techniques and has her heart and mind completely committed to helping others feel that same value and commitment to mindfulness in their life. She is truly a professional and wonderful to work with. Fantastic program! Allison Giannusa, 6th Grade EnglishPort Jefferson Middle School, Port Jefferson, NY

Over the course of the last three years, I have been fortunate to follow Diane’s journey from a wellness coach, to a highly-regarded architect of a Mindfulness/Wellness curriculum that our school system has been waiting for.

Diane has not only lived by the principles and practices that she teaches her clients, but she has created a system for putting them into play in our schools. In the educational climate of 2019, teachers and school administrators have been waiting for such a curriculum to be available to them; one that teaches students how to be present, to be mindful of themselves and others, and one that teaches them how to handle their many stressors; Diane has brought it to life with Education Alive.Danielle Turner, Ed.D., Director of Health, Physical Education and AthleticsLocust Valley Central School District, Locust Valley, NY

Diane L. MacDonald provided all of our classroom teachers from K-5th grade with a professional development session. Each cohort of teachers participated in a half-day session in which they were inspired by Ms. MacDonald to take care of their own physical and mental health, so that they could then attend to their students with the healthiest disposition possible. Ms. MacDonald also provided all teachers with practical tools to support and develop students’ social-emotional skills.

Ms. MacDonald has been a pleasure to work with as her openness, passion, and knowledge was very well received by our staff. Many teachers began incorporating the learned techniques immediately. We look forward to continuing our partnership with Ms. MacDonald.Dana Raciunas, Assistant PrincipalPS110 Monitor School, Brooklyn, NY

Our 6th grade teachers and students have been very fortunate to work with EDUCATION ALIVE™. Diane L. MacDonald is knowledgeable and engaging. The coursework is relevant and helped our teachers gain important instructional and behavioral tools to use with students immediately. We have had positive feedback on EDUCATION ALIVE™ from teachers, students and parents.Jessica Schmettan, Executive Director of Curriculum and InstructionPort Jefferson School District, Port Jefferson, NY

I have had the opportunity to work in partnership with Diane MacDonald over the past two years. Our goal was the development and implementation of a program for middle school students focused on promoting Movement, Breath, and Mindfulness in our classrooms. Ms. MacDonald provided professional development for our teachers, teacher assistants, and administrators on all related topics. She also provided sessions for parents, community and Board of Education members. Ms. MacDonald is passionate about her work and was a leader in making our project successful. As a result, we are excited about continuing our partnership with her as we work together to meet the needs of our students, staff, and parents.Paul Casciano, Ed.D. SuperintendentPort Jefferson School District, Port Jefferson, NY

“Diane consistently presents wonderful ideas and her workshops are always full of useful information and

always fun.”

In their book, The Whole-Brain Child, Tina Payne Bryson and Daniel J. Siegel, write “Integration takes the distinct parts of your brain and helps them work together as a whole... that is what integration does: it coordinates and balances the separate regions of the brain that it links together. We want to help our children become better integrated so they can use their whole brain in a coordinated way. For example, we want them to be vertically integrated , so that the physically higher parts of the their brain which let them thoughtfully consider their actions, work well with the lower parts, which are more concerned with instinct, gut reactions and survival.”

Dr. Hilde L. Mosse, author of The Complete Handbook of Children’s Reading Disorders, concludes that “movement and stimulation of balance greatly assist attentional disorders and improve reading.”

John J. Ratey, MD of Harvard Medical Schools and author of Smart Moves, states, “Exercise is really for the brain, not the body. It affects mood, vitality, alertness, and feelings of well-being.”

Carla Hannaford, in her book Smart Moves: Why Learning is Not All In Your Head, reveals powerful research in the area of movement, saying, “movement activates the neural wiring throughout the body, making the whole body the instrument of learning.”

In The Health Promoting School: International Advances in Theory, Evaluation, and Practice, students who acquired strategies in breath, movement, and mindfulness shared positive results. 88% said they had a more positive attitude about themselves, 96% said they were

acting kinder toward others, and 76% reported using breathing techniques to help them focus.

Twenty individual studies are discussed In Katherine Weare’s report, Evidence for the Impact of Mindfulness on Children and Young People. Among the findings are the physical changes to the brain promoted by breath, movement and mindfulness. She states, “Brain imaging studies are showing that mindfulness meditation reliably and profoundly alters the structure and function of the brain to improve the quality of both thought and feeling. It produces greater blood flow to and a thickening of the cerebral cortex in areas associated with attention and emotional integration.”

Weare goes on to say, “The (twenty) studies also show that adolescents who are mindful, either through their character or through learning, tend to experience greater well-being, and that being more mindful tends to accompany more positive emotion, greater popularity and having more friends, and less negative emotion and anxiety.”

In The Science of Breathing, Sara Novotny and Len Kravitz, discuss the mechanics of breathing, stating that when breathing moves from involuntary to voluntary, meaning we engage intentional breathing strategies and rhythms, we can increase focus and maintain awareness while reducing distractions.

Eric Jensen, father of brain-based learning, has conducted prolific research in the area of movement and academic performance. In his formative book, Teaching with the Brain in Mind, he challenges educators to move beyond the old model of “sit and git.” Rather, his research presents a wide-range of evidence to support the correlation between movement and learning. As Jensen states, “the evidence has become a groundswell… movement and cognition are powerfully connected.”

R E S E A R C H

Mental Health& Social-Emotional Learning Benchmarks

Our brain-based lesson plans, tools, and activitiesemphasize and teach the FIVE CORE SEL COMPETENCIES (CASEL 2017)

Education Alive programs and materials meet six (out of 8) NYS core recommendations to promotemental health in the educational setting:

• Positive routines and practices: physical activity, exercise, play, good nutrition, regular sleep habits, stress management skills, and caring relationships.

• Institute efforts to reduce stigma around mental health.• Foster warm and caring relationships.• Promote positive school climate and culture.• Support development of social-emotional skills and help-seeking behaviors.• Develop support for school staff for their own mental health and wellness.

Self-awarenessSelf-managementResponsible decision makingRelationship skillsSocial awareness

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GET IN TOUCH646-546-0644

DIANE L. MACDONALD, M ED, E-RYT, RYS, NLP CP, RCYTCTLE SPONSOR NYS

Diane@Education-Alive.com

Education-Alive.com

Schedule a Discovery Meeting:https://ItTakesAVillageWellness.as.me/EADiscovery