The problem with pomodoro
Oh, happy summer, happy warmth, happy gardening, happy graduation or kid milestone, happy together time, happy barbecuing! I’m hopeful that there are sweet, easeful days and weekends for you right now.
It’s been really beautiful to welcome a number of new student-clients to Awakened Learning, and to the world of learning strategies. That’s thanks to you! We don’t advertise, but rather cherish your heartfelt referrals when you see the genuine impacts for your learners. Thank you!
It can be disorienting, in the most beautiful way, when a new student begins. There is no singular, set “Awakened Learning Method” (not yet anyways), but questions about sleep, stress, overwhelm, movement, and overall wellbeing are present from the start. Sometimes, students might wonder why sleep is coming up when they’re consistently failing tests or exams, or why exercise is up for discussion when they’ve come to talk about focus and note-taking.
And then… the magic begins to happen.
Learners are more rested. They’re less worried. They describe having more capacity. They are able to be both more productive and more efficient.
That’s the holistic part. The integrated part.
I can’t in good conscience, with everything that’s laid out in the literature, and in working with students for so many years, talk about how to write a paper, do a science lab, hand work in on time, bust through procrastination… and leave out wellbeing strategies. They’re wound together and interrelated.
Yes, students can get Bs, As, even A+s without tending to their wellbeing—pulling all-nighters, exhaustion on overdrive, social isolation, and little daylight.
In every student-client session, parent circle, keynote, and article, my reason for being is about the opposite: helping learners do better and feel better. Lowering the “cost” of academic success.
But it sure has come with pushback over the years.
As a learning strategist, I was once told—this goes back about 10 years—that I couldn’t talk to students about mindfulness-based practices. WHAT?!? Yup. Students would come in with a Red Bull in hand, dressed in pajamas having been up all night, with 55 browser tabs open, flitting between them all during our session. How could I not talk about mindfully reflecting on what was working and felt helpful or not.
It’s the question that’s consumed me for years: what counts as a learning strategy? I think I have two ways I distill that now.
#1: It’s a learning strategy if it’s health-promoting
I don’t think of wellness as “perfect health,” or being disability- or illness-fearful, but rather as a fluid experience that a person articulates for themselves. There is no end-point or ideal, but rather things that nudge us towards feeling more embodied, rested, and in tune. And whatever these are—sleep, movement, community, play, nourishing food, crafting, art, nature—they help scholastic success too. They just do. They make doing the day-to-day of school… more doable.
#2: It’s a learning strategy if it’s relational
Sometimes it can feel like “every person for themselves” in school; it can feel competitive and lonely. There are enough studies about how loneliness reduces our quality of life, and how it may lower school grades. Loneliness is even referred to as its own kind of pandemic at times. What’s a balm or salve for loneliness? Relationship. It doesn’t have to be many, it doesn’t have to be party party party, but being with others helps with just about everything, from co-regulation to perspective.
Now, it’s important to say: there is no one-size-fits-all with learning strategies. There are always individual preferences and differences. There will be some learners who thrive solo, and I’m all about cheering on when a student finds their recipe or repertoire for feel-good learning.
So, what counts as a learning strategy? So much more than is usually included. Learning strategies aren’t just study schedules and time management hacks, but also what we do in our breaks, how we intentionally make time for friendships, and how we have clear, consistent, boundaried bedtimes to give our bodies (and minds! and spirits!) necessary recoup time.
Bring on the loving, holistic disorientation of learning strategies! 🙂! School—and life—can go and feel so much better, lighter, sweeter.
All the love, cherishing, and care—here’s to well-learning!
Deena