Wellness Mini-Sessions

Need a quick break? Join a 20-minute Wellness Mini-Session to learn about and practice a wellness strategy designed for education settings. These monthly sessions will feature wellness experts from throughout California sharing a variety of ideas that you can use and share to promote stress management. Sessions will occur on the second Wednesday of each month. Recordings will be posted to the Resources page.

Register for a 2026 Wellness Mini-Session

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March Session

Basics of Mindfulness for Self-Care and Managing Difficult States

March 11, 2026 2:00-2:20 PM

Mindfulness is the capacity to be aware of our experience as it happens. The fundamentals of mindfulness can be practiced in meditation. This session will offer guidance in mindfulness meditation and its use in managing physical pain and navigating difficult emotions.

Facilitator:

With over 15 years of health and wellness experience, Serena Hoenig brings a strong foundation to her work facilitating healthy lifestyles. Serena is a UCLA Semel Institute–trained mindfulness facilitator who offers secular, evidence-informed teachings that emphasize mind–body awareness and integration. Informed by her lived experience with ADHD, she thoughtfully incorporates accessible accommodation strategies to support diverse learners.

 

May Session

From Words to Wellbeing: How Shifting Language Can Impact Wellbeing

May 13, 2026 2:00-2:20 PM

Language shapes the images we create in our minds, and those images influence how we feel and how we act. In this session, you’ll learn how to speak with intention, so your mind creates powerful inner images that shape how you feel, how you act, and ultimately, who you become. When you speak something clearly, your brain can picture it, and when you picture it repeatedly, your body begins to believe and embody it.

Dr. Marissa Smith is a Program Coordinator with the Innovation and Engagement Branch at the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools, where she leads regional initiatives that promote student and staff wellness. Guided by the Whole School, Whole Community, Whole Child (WSCC) framework, she advances a comprehensive approach that aligns health and education to ensure every student is healthy, safe, engaged, and supported. She specializes in integrating mental wellness, preventative care, and evidence-based practices into school environments to strengthen emotional resilience and positive behavioral outcomes.

 

Need to find a strategy now? Check out the BeWell website to find quick and easy practices to chill out, refocus, or maintain well-being.