Educator Guide: Mental Gymnastics

January 29, 2022

photo of Simone Biles at the Olympics — U.S. Olympian Simone Biles and other elite athletes are prioritizing mental health. Over the last decade, researchers have identified some tools to help competitors on and off the field.

Loic Venance/AFP via Getty Images

About this guide

In this guide, students will learn about psychological tools that are helping elite athletes in competitions and everyday life, analyze data visualizations and discuss how the psychological tools might be applied to students' own lives.

This Guide Includes:

Being mindful of mental health

Students will answer questions about the online Science News article “How mindfulness-based training can give elite athletes a mental edge,” which explores new research into psychological tools to improve mental health. A version of the article, “Mental gymnastics,” appears in the January 29, 2022 issue of Science News.

Grappling with graphs and other data visualizations

Students will discuss the uses of data visualizations, analyze visualizations from a Science News article, and think about how psychological tools used by elite athletes might benefit their own lives.

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About this guide

This Guide Includes:

Being mindful of mental health

Grappling with graphs and other data visualizations

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