May 29, 2026 (Perth, ON) – Students at The Stewart School have written and illustrated a book on mindfulness activities that will help them, as well as their families and school community, practice strategies to feel calm, focused, and ready to learn.
Throughout the year, students have been exploring a range of popular calming activities, including Butterfly Hug, Go To Your Favourite Place, Mindful Snack, Buddy Breathing, and Mindful Walk. Their teacher, Cara Dean, introduced these strategies to help students build awareness, manage emotions, and develop skills for maintaining focus in their daily routines.
Dean was inspired by the UCDSB’s Mindful Educators workshop held in June 2025. Combined with resources from School Mental Health Ontario, these supports helped guide classroom learning and empowered students to explore mindfulness in ways that felt meaningful and accessible.
“Mindfulness is about helping students slow down and be present in the moment,” said Dean. “They’ve been paying more attention to their thoughts, behaviours, and actions. By focusing on compassion, respect, and being intentional, we can support students in feeling more balanced and connected. It’s about supporting their overall well-being.”
As their learning continued, students had the opportunity to collaborate with their Grade 5/6 reading buddies to bring some of these strategies to life with the creation a mindfulness book, all written and illustrated by the student teams. Each page reflects student voice, creativity, and personal connection to the strategies that resonated most with them. The result is a collection of eight activities that showcase what students have learned with strategies on how others can use these in their own daily lives.
The colourful books were delivered to the classroom last week, and the students were excited to hold their work in their hands and explore the pages.
“I got to make my own page about going to my favourite place,” said Grade 1 student Alice Clark. “When you feel excited, it helps you calm down.”
Bryer McGregor is a Grade 5 student and helped his reading buddy develop their page using Canva, an online graphic design tool. “It was really fun to go into the computer lab and help the Grade 1s make the books.”
Each Grade 1 student received a full colour book printed by a local printing company. They also donated two copies to the school’s library, in hopes that other students and families will enjoy the benefits of their favourite calming strategies.