K-12 teachers usually begin their profession as bright-eyed and inspired fresh college grads who are eager to make a difference in students' lives. Then, the realities of the teaching profession hit: unmotivated students, dramatic parents, unsupportive school administrators, and an impossibly long "to-do" list full of frivolous tasks that drain precious classroom minutes. Oh, and maybe even a global pandemic full of continuously changing health recommendations and school district closures. The constant struggle to juggle these responsibilities is a drag on teachers' mental health and deprives them of their natural joy of teaching.
An overworked teacher brain now has a new tool to bring back relaxation and sanity through mindfulness practices like meditation: Headspace. Headspace offers a peaceful sanctuary free to teachers who can sign up with a school district e-mail address. This invaluable resource can bring back happiness and work-life balance to the job teachers face.
What is Headspace for Educators?
Headspace for Educators is a suite of mindfulness tools provided for free to K-12 teachers in four countries: the US, UK, Canada, and Australia. The app includes daily tips, exercises, articles, inspirational mantras, and advice from mental health experts combine to equip teachers with a stress-free and relaxed mindset to tackle their everyday life with a fresh outlook.
Benefits of Headspace for Educators
Headspace hopes to bring back joy and happiness to the classroom and improve the lives of both teachers and students. Teachers use Headspace to create a calm atmosphere and build healthy habits to support long-term mental health. These tools promote lower classroom stress, increased focus, and an overall happier mindset. Any teacher of students will find these tools useful to make a healthier, happier, more well-rested life.
Best Headspace Features for Educators
The Headspace app includes a quick guide to meditation techniques to bring a calm and relaxed perspective to your daily life. Headspace takes a holistic approach to mindfulness and has options for healthy sleep training, exercise and activity goals, stress and anxiety management, and even social isolation anxiety improvement. These educator-specific resources, combined with one-minute, age-specific resources can improve the life of an emotionally intelligent teacher.
Headspace Discount for Educators
Elementary and secondary teachers use their school email addresses to access the educator subscription for free. To start a free educator subscription, users simply select their school location from a drop-down menu and then complete the single-step registration form with the school email address. There is no limit to how long k-12 teachers can access these exercises for educators via an educator subscription.
Headspace for Educators' goal is to help you learn to take care of yourself and your students. The mental health of a k-12 educator can greatly benefit from these life management tools through mindfulness and meditation. By offering a free subscription to teachers, Headspace hopes to make a difference in classrooms and a happier world overall.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I share Headspace with my wife?
Headspace accounts cannot be shared. Each user will need his or her own account in order to optimize the stress relief and calming effects of their mindfulness tools.
Is Calm better than Headspace?
Calm tracks the number of sessions completed and overall mood status, however, is it found to be more difficult to navigate and less organized than Headspace by many users.
Is Headspace free for teachers in the UK?
Yes, k-12 educators in the UK are eligible to access a free educator subscription. To register, simply select the school location from the dropdown menu and provide a school email address.