Getting in “The Zone!”
Ben LaRoche, an upper elementary educator enrolled in our Foundations 1 training, posted a response to reading chapters about the third eye chakra in Ellen Tadd’s books, A Framework for Wise Education, and The Wisdom of the Chakras:
The third eye chakra was the one I thought I knew the most about before starting this course, but after reading Ellen Tadd’s description of what the third eye chakra entails, I realized I was ill-informed. I think this chakra feels familiar to me because of its heavy presence in the imagery of art and pop culture. I think of the “all-seeing eye” printed on our dollar bills. Even Doctor Strange from the Marvel movies sprouted a third eye at the end of his latest film! I had assumed the third eye was either a conduit to see into the spiritual world or a symbol of achieving wisdom over emotion.
While there is some truth in those definitions, they do not fully encapsulate what the third eye does. In both books, The Wisdom of the Chakras and A Framework for Wise Education, Tadd uses the notion of athletes being “in the zone” as an example of the third eye being open. Athletes might “get cold feet” or lose confidence if they are perceiving through their solar plexus center of emotion instead of their third eye (which deals with focus, concentration, clarity, and wisdom).
A recent example came to my mind. In the 2020 Olympic Games, Simone Biles, one of the greatest athletes I’ve ever seen, started to falter and ultimately withdrew from most of her events. This led to a conversation about the mental health of athletes and how even the greatest can be susceptible to issues of intense pressure to perform and unhealthy focus on success at any cost. This sounded a lot like what Tadd described when we perceive through our solar plexus.
Contrast that with the 2024 Olympic Games, in which Simone Biles was competing again at an amazing level and won multiple medals! But, more importantly, it was the change in her attitude that I noticed the most. She seemed much more comfortable with herself and her role, talked about how she was enjoying these games more than any other, and was heard many times giving her teammates (and competitors!) words of encouragement and loud cheers during their performance. Whatever she did in those years between the games definitely helped her shift her perception from her solar plexus to her third eye.
Ellen Tadd writes about some strategies and exercises you and your students can do to help focus and open their third eye. One of them that caught my attention was the Focus Corner. I’ve heard of this concept before, but didn’t connect how it could be useful to anybody who struggles with focus, which can be all of us at times! I have a small room connected to my classroom where I often put desks for students to work when they want a quiet and more secluded place to work. After reading these chapters, it got me thinking, could I make my back room a Focus Room? What could I put in there that would help students focus and activate their third eye perspective? I’ll be thinking more about this and would love any suggestions!