More mindfulness in everyday school life: the "Playfully relaxed" pilot project comes to an end

"Now stand on your tiptoes and make yourself as tall as you can. As tall as you can and don't forget to breathe!": Small yoga exercises, such as the tree shown here, fantasy journeys, relaxation exercises and breathing exercises were taught to Offenbach children in after-school care at four schools as part of the "Playfully relaxed" pilot project and they now know how to cope better with stress. "That's good, because in an increasingly complex world and the pressure of time and performance can also lead to stress in children, who then react with headaches or stomach aches, tiredness or sleep problems. Or they are in a bad mood and disturb others," says city councillor and head of education Paul-Gerhard Weiß.

For three years, children and professionals learned stress reduction, balance and mindfulness in the afternoons at "Playfully relaxed" at the Goethe School, the Rudolf Koch School, the Beethoven School and the Mathilden School. Concerns that the project would be difficult to integrate into everyday education were quickly dispelled. All of the exercises can be easily incorporated into lessons or childcare and have thus become firmly established.

Over 600 children and more than 75 professionals were not only reached during the project period, but also convinced: stress prevention is easy to implement in everyday life and helps to build health-promoting structures in the long term. This was also the aim of the GKV Alliance in Hesse, which funded the project with 150,000 euros over the entire period.

The participants at the final meeting in January, to which the city education authority, together with the Frankfurt association "Mehr Zeit für Kinder e.V.", which is responsible for implementation in the schools, and the participating educational institutions had invited in January, were therefore generally positive. There, the project participants once again presented their experiences, talked about reservations and revealed tips and tricks. The schools now have their own relaxation clubs, chill-out areas and small relaxation sessions in lessons or afternoon supervision are a matter of course. One participant therefore concluded: "Stick with it, establish it, implement it. Consistently and consistently, it's definitely worth it."