Self-Built Teens: The Power of E – Engage Your Feet

Self-Built Teens Classroom Signs ( Free Resource with Book)

This week in Self-Built Teens, we are focusing on the letter E — Engage Your Feet.

It might sound simple, but how we stand shapes how we feel, how we breathe, and how we show up in the world. Posture is more than just “standing up straight”—it’s about feeling grounded, confident, and present.

✨ Be where your feet are planted.

When we bring awareness to our bodies, we help our minds settle too. This is something our students need just as much as we do.

🌿 Simple Posture Cues (From Head to Toe)

You can guide students (and yourself!) with these gentle reminders:

  • Soften the space between your eyebrows

  • Keep your gaze gentle and attentive

  • Unclench your jaw

  • Relax your shoulders down your back

  • Widen your collarbones

  • Lift your ribs away from your hips

  • Gently tuck in your tummy

  • Unlock your knees

  • Place your feet parallel, hip-width apart

  • Balance evenly on both feet

  • Root down and rise up like royalty

🧠 Visual Cues That Stick (Perfect for the Classroom)

Kids LOVE imagery—and honestly, so do we. Try these:

For Standing Tall

  • Imagine a bungee cord gently lifting you from the top of your head to the ceiling

  • Picture a mother cat lifting her kitten—lengthening your spine naturally

For Breathing

  • Imagine an umbrella inside your ribcage, opening on the inhale and closing on the exhale

  • Breathe into your back like you’re filling the sails of a sailboat

For Walking

  • Let your collarbones become arrows shooting outward from your shoulders

  • Imagine your head is a floating balloon, gliding effortlessly above you

For Confidence

  • Walk like the King or Queen of England, calm, steady, and self-assured

For Shoulder Awareness

  • Gently slide your shoulder blades toward your opposite back pockets

💛 Why This Matters

When we help students connect to their bodies:

  • They feel safer and more regulated

  • Their focus improves

  • Their confidence grows

And the same is true for us.

Posture is not about perfection—it’s about awareness.

🌟 Try This This Week

Take 30 seconds before a lesson or transition:

  • Stand tall

  • Take one deep “umbrella breath”

  • Feel your feet grounded

You might be surprised how much it shifts the energy in the room.

🌈 Breathe • Stretch • SEL

This simple rhythm is a powerful way to structure your day and your lessons:

1. Breathe – Use breathwork to regulate and ground
2. Stretch – Bring awareness into the body
3. SEL – Teach the life skill through story and connection

You can pair this breathwork with:

Self-Built Teens – Engage Your Feet This creates a consistent, calming, and engaging flow your students will come to recognize and trust.

If you’d like to practice this together, I’d love to see you in class:
👉 https://powerfulyou.as.me/

Keep rising,
Julie 💜

Julie Frizzi