XI
Toolkit &Participant Journal
Mind Matters Toolkit
The Instructor Manual Toolkit contains directions on cardstock for the breath exercises, self-soothing skills, and
self-awareness skills that are used in different lessons. It is found in the Instructor Manual pocket and is easily
accessible because the instructor relies on directions from it for every lesson. Master copies of these exercises
are also available to download in the Online Materials. (DibbleInstitute.org/mm2)
Participant Journal
The Participant Journal is an essential component of this curriculum. It is designed to amplify learning
through sound educational principles, deepen understanding of concepts, and encourage practice and
acquisition of skills between sessions. There are specially designed charts to demonstrate and strengthen
the ideas presented in class.
Participants regularly make a written commitment to practice, evaluate their success, and record their
accomplishments. The more participants apply Mind Matters’ concepts to their personal lives, the more
benefits they will receive. At the end of the program, participants receive their journals to continue to
review, reflect on, remind, and apply what they have learned.
The Participant Journal includes:
• Personal reflection on each lesson’s activities related to concepts taught in class
• Practice Plans and reviews of previous Practice Plans to apply what they have learned
• The Brief Resilience Scale
• The Trauma Recovery Scale Part III
• Self-soothing coloring pages for participants to use in class when needed
• A final Personal Agreement and Practice Record listing all skills learned to assist participants in their
continued use after the program ends
• Directions for every exercise learned during the program
• Activities to support lessons learned in charts, worksheets, and summaries of lessons
Tips for Using the Participant Journal
Time to complete journal activities is built into every class. It is recommended that, at the beginning of each
lesson, participants start on the Practice Plan Review before class starts. Because the journals are necessary
to teach Mind Matters, instructors may wish to keep them between classes, assure participants that their
journals are confidential and will not be read by the instructor or anyone else. It is highly recommended that
participants do not take their journals home until the Mind Matters program is over. This way, participants
will always have their journal available for class.
Occasionally, participants are given written homework to be completed between classes. For those activities,
reproducible handouts are found in the Online Materials folder that you can access after you register your
Instructor Manual at DibbleInstitute.org/mm2.
Toolkit &Participant Journal
Mind Matters Toolkit
The Instructor Manual Toolkit contains directions on cardstock for the breath exercises, self-soothing skills, and
self-awareness skills that are used in different lessons. It is found in the Instructor Manual pocket and is easily
accessible because the instructor relies on directions from it for every lesson. Master copies of these exercises
are also available to download in the Online Materials. (DibbleInstitute.org/mm2)
Participant Journal
The Participant Journal is an essential component of this curriculum. It is designed to amplify learning
through sound educational principles, deepen understanding of concepts, and encourage practice and
acquisition of skills between sessions. There are specially designed charts to demonstrate and strengthen
the ideas presented in class.
Participants regularly make a written commitment to practice, evaluate their success, and record their
accomplishments. The more participants apply Mind Matters’ concepts to their personal lives, the more
benefits they will receive. At the end of the program, participants receive their journals to continue to
review, reflect on, remind, and apply what they have learned.
The Participant Journal includes:
• Personal reflection on each lesson’s activities related to concepts taught in class
• Practice Plans and reviews of previous Practice Plans to apply what they have learned
• The Brief Resilience Scale
• The Trauma Recovery Scale Part III
• Self-soothing coloring pages for participants to use in class when needed
• A final Personal Agreement and Practice Record listing all skills learned to assist participants in their
continued use after the program ends
• Directions for every exercise learned during the program
• Activities to support lessons learned in charts, worksheets, and summaries of lessons
Tips for Using the Participant Journal
Time to complete journal activities is built into every class. It is recommended that, at the beginning of each
lesson, participants start on the Practice Plan Review before class starts. Because the journals are necessary
to teach Mind Matters, instructors may wish to keep them between classes, assure participants that their
journals are confidential and will not be read by the instructor or anyone else. It is highly recommended that
participants do not take their journals home until the Mind Matters program is over. This way, participants
will always have their journal available for class.
Occasionally, participants are given written homework to be completed between classes. For those activities,
reproducible handouts are found in the Online Materials folder that you can access after you register your
Instructor Manual at DibbleInstitute.org/mm2.
