JGW Update 9/17/26 - The New MindUP Program

Dear Parents and Caregivers,
We recently introduced to staff an exciting, evidence-based mental health program that can help our
students better engage in learning, learn to self-regulate their behavior, and improve their
attention skills and well-being. MindUP is a classroom-based program that teaches children
strategies guided by the fields of neuroscience, mindful awareness, cognitive flexibility, and
positive psychology to support success in the classroom and life. We will visit classrooms to introduce this to students beginning next week.

MindUP was created collaboratively by university scientists and school-based educators.
The program helps children understand the ways brains work and how their thoughts and
feelings affect their behavior. It has five goals:
1) To foster a cohesive, caring classroom climate
2) To foster focus and mindful awareness
3) To build emotional literacy
4) To increase positive qualities such as perspective-taking, empathy, gratitude, and kindness
5) To increase optimism, well-being, and resiliency

A signature practice of the program is the MindUP Brain Break. The MindUP Brain Break is
a simple mindful breathing and listening exercise that is practiced three times per day. This
activity can help foster attention and self-regulation.

MindUP provides a collection of online materials designed for families to practice MindUP
strategies at home. These materials are designed to complement the school program and
can be paced along with children’s learning in the classroom. You can access these
resources for free here:

For further details about MindUP, please visit www.MindUP.org. If you have questions about
the program or would like more information, please feel free to contact your child's counselor. We are excited
about the potential this program holds for helping our classroom become a community of
more engaged, focused, and optimistic learners!
Sincerely,

The JGW Counseling Team
Holly Deluca, Ashley Greene, Ryan Guild, Maria Reynoso, and Alicia Wallace