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PODCAST

Teaching With The Body In Mind

Teaching With The Body In Mind

Each week, Mike, Tom, Ross, and Joey reflect on the connection between moving and thinking. The discussions remind us that teachers should be supporting children"s bodies as well as their minds.

education education for kids

All Episodes

22:18

TWTBIM_0368 Literacy in the Body

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2026/03/31

Tom encourages us to consider the connection between physical play and literacy development. Where do children choose to read? In what position? Mike is thinking of how important physical connection is in building a love of reading. A love of books is built upon close physical connections with caregivers. Joey recalls how children actively engage with favorite books--grabbing at the pages and sitting tightly among friends. What about the physical skills that support literacy, such as eye tracking,

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22:11

TWTBIM_0367 Bouncing is What Tiggers do Best

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2026/03/24

Inspired by the 100th annivesary of Winnie the Pooh, Mike is thinking about the Tiggers of the world (and our classrooms). Can we enjoy our Tiggers or have we turned into judgemental Rabbits? How can we anticipate their presence and their needs?

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21:19

TWTBIM_0366 Notice and Reflect

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2026/03/17

How do you notice and reflect on the things children do? Mike recently created a list to prompt reflection on "seven daily things, plus one." Tom recalls listening to a child at play and discovering that they had a knowledge of open pit mining. Ross looks back on photos to reflect on children's interests and abilities. Joey sings the class "anthem" to help children notice and reflect on their own accomplishments. When it's all working, we can create a virtuous cycle where children are engaged in

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19:11

TWTBIM_0365 They Had a Good Day

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2026/03/10

Tom thinks simply telling families, "they had a good day," dispatches nothing. He challenges us to have a story to tell or a beautiful image of the child to share. Mike has observed how choosing photos to share with families offers teachers a chance to pause and reflect. Joey finds that broadly painting things as a "good day" washes over the challenges and hard work that are part of every school day. Ross points out that sometimes there have been lengthy conversations that have happened in the

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21:15

TWTBIM_0364 It's All Fun and Games Until Dysregulation

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2026/03/03

Ross takes us on a deep dive into the art of teaching. How do we respond when children's big play tips into dysregulation that takes over the group? Tom talks about taking responsibility when we decide to stop play. Joey reminds us that helping children stay regulated requires us to also be regulated, which can be hard to do in a chaotic environment. Mike thinks of a bell curve depicting regulation. Ideally, we can help children re-regulate before they slide over the top of the curve.

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21:03

TWTBIM Here Comes the Bad Guy

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2026/02/24

How does it feel when the bad guy shows up in play? The children are often eager to have the villain enter. Are we ready to welcome them?

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22:13

TWTBIM_0362 But That One Time...

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2026/02/10

Our brains are wired to remember "that one time" that the bad thing happened. How can we use our negativity bias to power reflection instead of restriction? What about when "that one kid" did that thing? Does that mean we never offer it again? To anyone?

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22:05

TWTBIM_0361 Focus and the Phsyical Environment

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2026/02/03

Mike reflects on how the physical arrangement of a space can support children's ability to focus and build inhibitory control. Cold puddles on the floor are a terrible distraction when children are trying to get cozy with a book. Classroom design that helps children find focus also helps children be themselves. Mike and Ross riff on how providing focus does not mean that children's experiences are limited to any one developmental domain.

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17:07

TWTBIM_0360 This Could Get Messy

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2026/01/27

Last week's discussion about beauty in conflict has Ross thinking about the mess that can also accompany conflict and the value within it. Tom has observed that children are engaged in continuous non-verbal negotiation, which can get messy. Mike makes a musical connection between mess and creativity. Joey wonders if we can learn to prepare ourselves for the mess and always have the right "cleaning supplies" handy.

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22:03

TWTBIM_0359 Conflict Can Be Beautiful

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2026/01/20

Squabbles over dinosuars, golden kitties or deeper issues are necessary and beautiful. When we rush in to solve children's conflicts, we make it all about us. Resolving conflict is an open-ended activity that can lead to creativity. Early childhood settings are a great place for learning to solve conflicts because they are usually low stakes.

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19:54

ENCORE EPISODE: When Help Isn't Helpful

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2026/01/13

We'll be back for real next week! Until then, one more from the archives: Ross is losing sleep after being too helpful. Did he take away a learning opportunity by attaching the wheels to a child's car? We offer help with the best of intentions, but perhaps our help sometimes undermines development. What kind of help do they need? (originally released June 2023)

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20:59

ENCORE EPISODE Hanging Out

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2026/01/06

Ease into the new year, with a relaxing conversation about hanging out. Tom asks the group to define hanging out--a social act of "being with" with no agenda, a relaxed feeling, open, and freeform. He wonders, is it worthwhile in the classroom? (Resounding YES) Ross points out that you don't have to set your plans aside to allow for moments to hang out, you can make space for both. Tom's wish is that we can slow down and appreciate moments of hanging out in our daily practice.

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24:16

TWTBIM_0358 Joining In

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2025/12/30

As Joey was reminded while crawling through cattails, joining in to children's physical play can give us insight, understanding, and joy. Mike recently learned the tricky balance spots in a playground obstacle course. And we all remember how much fun the kids had when Tom "fell" off the balance beam. Ross cautions—yes, but it shouldn't become about us. When do we join into children's play and how do we phase out?

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22:29

TWTBIM_0357 Relationships Foster Physical Learning

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2025/12/23

After watching a toddler scoot to wave goodbye to a classmate, Mike reflects on how social relationships provide motivation for physical learning. Prosocial connection is a powerful internal motivator. When we lose sight of that, our judgements and interference can become an impediment to learning.

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23:12

TWTBIM_0356 No Really, Let Them Move Inside

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2025/12/16

Ross does a check in with the ongoing conversation about creating the conditions to support physical play--indoors and ALWAYS. How do we get comfortable with this, plan for it, make the time, and make the space? We know that physical play is needed for healthy development so let's include it in our plans. Where might you find the cat mat and mouse house in your classroom?

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18:16

ENCORE EPISODE Sit Still!

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2025/12/02

We reached way back in the vault to September 2018: Are stillness and silence required to meet the goals of Circle Time? Mike leads a discussion about times that children are asked to sit still. Does the expectation that children "sit still" create a distraction from our true learning goals?

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19:48

TWTBIM ENCORE EPISODE Give Grandma A Kiss

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2025/11/25

While we're on a short break for the holiday, enjoy an episode from the early days about consent. There's more to talk about related to consent. During our day to day routines, how can we model respect for children's bodies and teach them about setting boundaries that make them feel comfortable?

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21:08

TWBIM_0355 Let's Rumble

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2025/11/18

Inspired by the new picture book, Let's Rumble, Mike leads the group back to their roots with a conversation about roughhousing with children. What does it look like and why is it so important?

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TWBIM_0354 Body Boundaries

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2025/11/11

The group has a big conversation about the complex topic of children's body autonomy in the school setting. There are so many different contexts in which physical contact takes place. It's hard (impossible?) to find just one "rule" to govern them all. (Here's a link to the book Mike references: Essential Touch: Meeting the Needs of Young Children by Frances M. Carlson)

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22:19

TWTBIM_0353 I Like Your Sweatshirt

Teaching With The Body In Mind ·

2025/11/04

One of Tom's pet peeves is when grownups greet children with compliments centered on their appearance. Mike sees it as similar to relfexively saying "good job." Ross points out that attempts to build self-esteem could actually wind up undermining self-worth. Joey wonders about the child who plans their outfits and initiates the interactions about clothing. The conversation leads Tom to an insight about the importance of helping children reflect on their strengths and accomplishments.

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202 results

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