Continue reading »]]> Good Vibrations

From neuroscience, we now know the power of mirror neurons, the ways our brains are in a kind of sync with each other. When you see someone smile, for example, your neurons for smiling light up, even if you don’t know what the other person is smiling about and even if you don’t visibly smile yourself. The understanding of mirror neurons is a revelation in the ways we influence each other, and in no arena is it more important than in the ways we influence children. Consider how sponge-like those little beings are in soaking up information and imitating behavior. Consider also that their brains are equally adept in immersing in the feelings and moods of those around them. A friend who has three children once told me that one of the joys of being a mother for her was that it forced her to be her best self, that she stayed on a higher frequency within herself for the sake of her children in order to engender an atmosphere of delight and kindness and because she could see how easily influenced by her moods they were. Of course, having to always be one’s best self can be a challenge to parents who might be stressed for all kinds of reasons—hard work, difficulties within their own relationship, financial worries. But it seems crucial to have that intention as a parent—habituating to joy, love, understanding, and acceptance, especially in the presence of your children. And yet, it is also okay to fail now and again (as we all do). As the Sufis have it:

“Even though you have broken your vow, perhaps ten thousand times, come, come again.”

–Catherine Ingram, president of Living Dharma and author of In the Footsteps of Gandhi, Passionate Presence, and A Crack in Everything

Continue reading »]]> What should a 21^st-century education look like for our children?

According to materials distributed by the Hawn Foundation (yes, Hawn as in Goldie Hawn), Bill Gates once said, “As we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.”

2012 is finally upon us, and the world is changing in many ways. The Arab Spring of 2011 has led to the introduction of democracy where tyrants previously held sway, and more than ever we are recognizing that the future of humanity is in the hands of each and every one of us.

How do we create a culture in the classroom that focuses on cultivating the skills essential to flourishing as human beings in the 21st century?

Dr. Daniel Siegel, a leading neuropsychiatrist, calls for shifting our focus away from reading, writing, and arithmetic, and toward a new set of Rs: reflection, relationships, and resilience.

The alarming reality that depression affects 12 to 13 percent of teenagers should be enough of a catalyst for considering how we can use education to promote well-being in a whole new way.

Psychologists already understand that from age 12, the emotional part of the brain known as the limbic system develops and that if we create exercises that nourish this aspect of the brain during adolescence, there can be a profound and positive influence on the child’s emerging self.

The positive news for educators is that research shows that transitioning to the three Rs is a win/win situation. Studies from the Hawn Foundation’s signature education initiative, MindUP (a blend of social, emotional, and attentional skills developed for cultivating well-being and emotional balance in children), show that those who participated in the program also displayed a 12- to 15-percent increase in their math scores. 

With over 300 schools in North America now using the MindUP program Marc Meyer, director of the Hawn foundation, estimates that just 10 hours out of the 1,200 hours in the school year will yield results. That’s just three minutes of mindful breathing every day with grades 7 and 8. Anchored in the guiding principles of positive psychology and current research in cognitive neuroscience, the MindUP program is one of several programs proving the extraordinary benefits of sitting still and creating a culture in the classroom that honors time out for reflection.

Susan Kaiser Greenland’s “The New ABCs: Attention, Balance, and Compassion,” taught through games and activities, and Susan Finley’s “Power of Wow” series, which follows a group of teens as they work with leading brain researchers to engage in training practices designed to enhance relaxation, concentration, well-being, and performance, are just two of a variety of programs being implemented to enable children to better understand the command of their own minds. The practice of training the mind has its roots in Buddhist practice and meditation. Shamatha, often translated as “calm abiding,” is a form of Buddhist meditation that uses focused attention to stabilize and strengthen the mind. One of the foremost thinkers in this area is Alan Wallace, whose shamatha project has inspired many similar programs.

The field of neuroscience has shown us that we can train the mind to alter brain function and enhance certain qualities, such as compassion and empathy that are foundational in being able to successfully lead and empower others to greatness. And empowerment, as the purported Bill Gates quotation maintains, is the future.

Harnessing reflection as a skill in education will help us move beyond the reactive emotional loops we have a tendency to get trapped in, and give us the capacity to tune in to other people and their internal world, which in turn leads to a more resilient mind and empathic relationships

On its most basic level, reflection in education teaches us a way of paying attention to life’s experience. It enhances our ways of seeing. We go to school to study art, but no one teaches us to see well! If we can awaken to the power of attention, we will help move the mind toward health and, ultimately, productivity.

Creativity, curiosity, collaboration, critical thinking, and compassion are the skills needed for the job market in the 21st century. In order to adopt these qualities, the cultivation of compassion, empathy, and mindfulness needs to become a more integral part of our curriculum.

It is the power to serve that leads to success.

With brilliant work by organizations like the Hawn Foundation and people like Dr. Daniel Siegel, the field that newcomers are calling “inside-out education” could have finally come into its own.

In 2012, a year that holds much promise in terms of our evolutionary growth, let us choose to expand our horizons so that we can encourage schooling that nurtures a more loving and positive reality for each and every one of us.

Continue reading »]]>  We would like to welcome Dr. Shefali Tsabary as contributor! Here is an expert from her book The Conscious Parent.

Without realizing, we so often endorse our children for their actions, rather than for just being. Celebrating our  children’s being means allowing them to exist without the snares of our expectations. It’s to revel in their existence without them having to do a single thing, prove anything, or accomplish any kind of goal.

No matter how it manifests, our children’s essence is pure and loving. When we honor this essence, they trust we understand that their internal world is good and worthy, regardless of what manifests externally. Our ability to stay connected to their essence, holding steady through those periods in which their external world may be falling apart, conveys the message that they are of immense value.

Allow me to suggest some of the ways in which you can let your children know they are accepted simply for themselves, quite apart from anything they do:

They are resting, and you tell them how appreciated they are.

They are sitting, and you tell them how happy you are to sit with them.

They are walking in the house, and you stop them to say, “ Thank you for being in my life.”

They hold your hand, and you tell them how much you love to hold theirs.

They wake up in the morning, and you write them a letter saying how blessed you are to get to see them first thing in the day.

You pick them up from school and tell them how much you missed them.

They smile, and you tell them your heart is warmed.

They kiss you, and you tell them you love being in their presence.

Whether you have an infant or a teen, your children need to feel that just because they exist, they delight you. They need to know they don’t have to do anything to earn, your undivided attention. They deserve to feel as if just by being born, they have earned the right to be adored.

excerpt from ‘ The Conscious Parent ‘ by Dr. Shefali Tasabary , published by Namaste Publishing, October 2012, (pp 26-27).

Continue reading »]]>

Our blog and “Your Sauce of Spirituality for Children on the Web!”
Now featuring an array of wonderful guest contributors in the fields of conscious parenting, holistic education, wellness and more . . ..
Our vision for this blog is to create a community where we nourish the hearts and minds of children in a fun and entertaining way! Please sign up to our mailing list to receive these sound bites of wisdom and join us in our quest to become part of a growing community that believes in providing a wholesome education for children everywhere!

Continue reading »]]> It’s 2012, a year that is set to provide much opportunity for growth and transformation and certainly for us evolving our concept of spirituality and its purpose in our lives. We hope that we can play a part in this evolution, especially as it relates to children…

Spirituality reigns supreme at Chocolate Sauce!  And we are as committed as ever to our vision of connecting children across cultures and empowering them to make a positive difference in the world!  At Chocolate Sauce, Spirituality is all about sweetening our inner world by nourishing those aspects of our self that lead to us to experience happy and wholesome lives.

You’ll discover several new features on our new website. You’ll notice we’ve updated our blog: ‘ The Sauce ’, as we like to call it, that will now feature a wonderful array of guest contributors in the fields of conscious parenting, spirituality, wellness and more for children.. and their cool socially conscious parents (You!) This season we’re pleased to introduce Dr. Shefali Tsabary, clinical psychologist, and author of ‘The Conscious Parent.’  Dr. Shefali spoke at the Tibet House tea party and we’ll be working with her to introduce the Know I Know program into New York City schools this coming Spring.

We’re also excited to announce the creation of our Author’s Boutique If you’re interested, or know people, who are interested in creating and publishing a beautiful children’s story, whether it’s along the themes of spirituality and wellness, or simply just as a family keepsake, our Author’s Boutique Self-Publishing Program might be the perfect fit for you!

Other news is the introduction of our World Sauce section, probably the most important addition of them all, since we’re a book business on a mission to help feed the world! Make sure to take a look at our current project distributing books to the Georges Malaika Foundation in Africa.

From our very beginnings we’ve worked towards creating platforms to help children connect with each other all over the world. First, A Key to the Heart connected children from the US and Afghanistan, and now the Now I Know Collection bringing the wisdom of Tibet to the classrooms of NYC.

Now I Know teaches us to be wise in our ways of the world. With the official release of the first four books on January 8th we’re currently working hard on the next four books in the series, set for release this coming Winter, 2012. Time flies… and we’re busy bees…

The books have gotten off to a great start and we’ve had really positive reviews and feedback from all those who have had the opportunity to enjoy them! Check out one of my favorites here.

Stay sweet,
The Founder,
Chocolate Sauce

Continue reading »]]> Itʼs nice when I get contacted and asked if I could review a book. I like free books. I do make sure to let them know that if I think itʼs garbage, then I wonʼt write a review about it and will happily mail it back to them so they can ship it off to somebody else. But not this time. This time Iʼm keeping the book! Click here to read more…

Continue reading »]]> We had such a great time at our Tibet House Tea Party – thank you for all who came and for all of your support! We are excited for all the wonderful things to happen in the year ahead. Happy reading 2012! And in case you missed it, here’s some images of the day and a very special video of Dr. Shefali chatting to guests.

Continue reading »]]> Please click here to read a review published today about  ” Now I Know … That Hopes and Fears will Just Make Wrinkles on My Face” by Bodhipaksa.