Calm is best known as a meditation and sleep app for adults, but the platform also offers resources specifically designed for use in schools.
The idea is simply to give teachers easy ways to introduce short periods of mindfulness, breathing, relaxation, and reflection into the school day. Calm says more than 250,000 teachers are already using its resources.
That could mean starting the morning with a short mindfulness exercise, using calming music during independent work, or giving students a simple breathing activity when the classroom needs to slow down.
This aims to lay out all you need to know about using Calm in your class.
What is Calm?
Calm is a digital mindfulness and wellbeing platform offering guided meditations, breathing exercises, music, Sleep Stories, and other tools designed to help people manage stress and relax.
For education, Calm has a dedicated Schools offering with age-specific resources intended to help teachers bring mindfulness into the classroom. It also includes material aimed at teachers themselves, recognizing that staff wellbeing is part of creating a healthy school environment.
The classroom resources aren't designed to replace teaching or act as a standalone mental health intervention. Instead, these can be dropped into the school day as short activities alongside existing lessons and routines.
This makes Calm very easy to use. A teacher doesn't need to build a course or learn a complicated piece of software. Instead, they can select an appropriate exercise and play it for the class.
Calm's current free school resources include a 30 Days of Mindfulness in the Classroom guide, with age-specific activities for PreK-12 students, as well as a self-care guide aimed at teachers.
How does Calm work?
Calm is primarily accessed through its website and mobile apps, although teachers don't necessarily need an account to make use of the current free classroom materials.
The downloadable classroom guides include links to selected Calm audio content, allowing teachers to play exercises directly from the resources. These can be used during activities such as morning meetings, quiet time, or other points when a class might benefit from a short reset.
One useful aspect is the range of formats. A teacher could use a guided meditation when the class needs to settle, breathing exercises as a quick reset, or relaxing music as background audio while students are reading or working independently.
Calm also makes its resources suitable for use beyond the classroom. Because the free guides don't require a login, teachers can share these with parents and students for use at home.
That is potentially useful for schools looking to make wellbeing activities part of a wider wellness routine or social-emotional learning rather than something that only happens during a particular lesson.
What are the best Calm features?
Age-specific resources
Perhaps the most useful feature for teachers is that the classroom material isn't simply a collection of generic adult meditation sessions. Calm's school offering includes age-specific resources designed for different stages of childhood.
That makes it easier to choose something appropriate rather than expecting a teacher to work out which activity will suit a particular age group.
30 Days of Mindfulness
The 30 Days of Mindfulness in the Classroom guide gives teachers a ready-made structure rather than leaving them to decide what to do every day.
It includes daily mindfulness exercises and links to selected Calm Kids content, making it possible to build short activities into a regular classroom routine.
Breathing exercises
Breathing exercises can be useful because these don't require much preparation. A teacher can introduce one as a short activity before a lesson, after a busy transition, or whenever the class needs to pause.
Calm Music
Calm's music library can also have a less obvious classroom use. The company highlights music as a way to create a more relaxed environment, and teachers can use instrumental tracks during activities such as reading or independent work.
Teacher self-care
Calm doesn't only focus on students. Its Schools resources include a self-care guide for teachers, covering ways to manage stress and avoid burnout.
That is worth noting because wellbeing initiatives can sometimes put another responsibility on teachers. Giving staff something they can use themselves makes the offering feel more rounded.
How much does Calm cost?
Calm provides free classroom resources that don't require a login or subscription.
These include the 30 Days of Mindfulness in the Classroom guide and teacher self-care resources, with links to selected free audio content.
Teachers who want access to the full Calm library, including additional meditations and Sleep Stories, need a personal Calm Premium subscription.
Schools and districts looking for wider access can also investigate Calm's business and organizational offerings.
Calm Tips
- Start the day calmly
Use a short breathing or mindfulness activity at the beginning of the school day. This can create a consistent transition from arriving at school to beginning lessons without taking up much teaching time. - Don't overdo it
Start with a few minutes and see how the class responds. A short, repeatable routine is likely to be easier to maintain than an ambitious wellbeing program. - Use music during quiet work
Try Calm's relaxing music while students are reading, drawing, or working independently. Keep the volume low enough that it remains background rather than becoming another distraction. - Build a reset into transitions
Rather than waiting until a class is visibly unsettled, use a short breathing exercise between activities. Moving from PE back to academic work, for example, can be a natural point for a brief reset. - Let students choose
Once students know the different types of activities available, give them some choice. One student may prefer breathing exercises while another finds quiet music more useful. - Share it with parents
The free Calm classroom guides don't require a login, so teachers can share relevant material with parents who want to continue the practice at home. - Look after the teacher, too
Don't make Calm something that is only for students. A short mindfulness session before school, during a break, or at the end of the day can give teachers a chance to use the same tools they are encouraging their students to try.
