Just Say Relax

So you’re 11 years old and your dog ate your homework, your bike had a flat and you’re having a crummy day in the classroom. It isn’t easy being a child in the stressful ‘90s.

Relax.

That’s the advice of teacher Betty Mehling at Lupin Hill Elementary School in the Las Virgenes School District. More than advice, it’s part of the lesson plan. For Mehling, relaxin’ is the fourth R.

“Teaching children to relax is giving them the answer of how to deal with stress and tension,” says Mehling. “Today’s young are bombarded with the negative--say no to drugs, drinking, smoking and sex.”

Mehling, who has instructed children in the art of relaxation for 10 years, teaches exercises that build and then release tension, enabling her students to feel their muscles relax and their stress disappear.

There’s no extra credit for snoring.