about us

Know us better

What
is gym?

GYM Growth Mindset groups are based on the work of Carol Dweck (Mindset), Angela Duckworth (GRIT The Power of Passion and Perseverance), John Raty (Spark), Social Thinking, Big Life Journal and The Zones of Regulation.
GYM programs educate children on how to create daily habits that teach the importance of exercise and mindfulness, building a growth mindset and developing grit.  GYM teaches children how to first regulate our bodies and minds through exercise and meditation, then understand how to grow our mindset and develop grit in order to achieve small steps leading to big goals that are important to each child.  GYM programs are one-hour classes held once per week for 10 weeks.  

Mission

To empower all children to develop the mindset of achieving a future without limits and inspiring them to encourage others to do the same.

Vision

We see a world where kids believe in themselves and build grit through nature, exercise and a growth mindset.

Mission

To empower all children to develop the mindset of achieving a future without limits and inspiring them to encourage others to do the same.

Vision

We see a world where kids believe in themselves and build grit through nature, exercise and a growth mindset.

Core
Values

Empowerment

Building grit through embracing failure as a means for growth and preserving until you reach your goal

Dream Big

Be courageous to believe that talents are not fixed, but rather can be achieved through hard work

Core
Values

Compassion

Kindness inspires kindness

Gratitude

The power of gratitude fuels the joy in life

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Testimonials

I love Meena’s class because it’s super fun and you get to get your exercise out but not in that boring kind of way. I like it when we write stuff down on the papers. I like to get out my feelings and write down stuff that I love. Sometimes we do obstacle courses and other times we take walks. I really think it’s a good idea to have her class.
Lila Roberts
Age 9
I loved jumping rope in GYM class. I wasn’t good at the beginning but I kept practicing.
 
I never gave up, and now I’m good at it!
Ellie Foster
Age 7
What I liked most about GYM was playing with Marley. She makes me feel calm and motivates me. One thing I did with Ms. Meena that I thought I couldn’t do was finish the 5K. It was fun to run with my friends, and it wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be
Leo Foster
Age 9
My daughter loved Meena’s class! She was excited to go each week and always came home in a great mood. Meena worked with the girls on gratitude and Lila wrote in her gratitude journal every night for a week without me needing to ask. It has been a lifesaver during this pandemic. We were so disappointed when it finally became too cold and we couldn’t have the class anymore. We can’t wait for spring! Thank you Meena!
Andrea Butterfield
Psy.D.
My four children ages 5-12 participated in Meena Tondravi’s growth mindset program each week this past fall. The timing was impeccable as most sports had been postponed or canceled.  My kids all looked forward to Thursdays with Meena! She has a welcoming and caring nature that puts all the children at ease.  The structure of the program I highly recommend; the importance of moving your physical body but also taking time for reflection and goal setting was a gift for my kids.The model of the program offers skills that are important and necessary in life especially when life is challenging.  This program would be an excellent addition to the MPS schools.
Kate Sutphin
Our family was beyond thrilled to participate in Meena’s GYM program last Fall. Brendan (4th grade) and Caitlin (2nd grade) absolutely loved every minute each week. They came home buzzing about how they accomplished their goals and then exceeded their goals. They very much enjoyed the physical activity portion, but also the social emotional side of Meena’s program. Each week at the end of the session I heard from both kids “that was so much fun.” Meena has an amazing way of connecting with the children and getting them to talk about, put into action and realize their potential while making goals. Both of my children tend to be shy and sometimes need some encouragement to join groups. With Meena’s kind words and positive attitude, both kids felt so good about themselves each week and gained a boost of confidence that all kids need! It was wonderful to witness in a world with so much pressure these days. My children were able to experience how to have a positive and thoughtful mindset to achieve whatever goals that have! I would highly recommend Meena’s GYM class to all children. We can’t wait to do it again!
Amy Ellis
Meena is AMAZING and her Growth Mindset Group is top notch! My son Tyler, who suffers from ADHD and anxiety, was a part of one of her groups and absolutely adored every minute with Meena (and her 3 dogs when they tagged along). Tyler left each session in a great mood and with a big smile on his face -talking about Meena, her dogs and counting the days until his next session. Meena increased Tyler’s motivation by working with him to set and achieve goals, like exercising daily, running a 5K (he still talks about this accomplishment) and walking our family dog. Meena has truly been instrumental in helping Tyler breakdown and overcome some of his emotional barriers (anxiety, aggression and frustration) using various strategies, which in turn have helped Tyler build confidence and enhance his overall emotional and social development, and learning. Meena’s dedication, passion and kindness are superior -she truly cares and believes in each child she interacts with and it shows! THANK YOU Meena!!
Kathleen Jackson
If I were asked to rate Meena’s Group from 1-10, I would rate it a 10. Meena pushed us to reach our goals. When I first started her group, my cousin and I could only run one lap around Kelly Field (1/3 of a mile). But after a lot of training with Meena, we were able to surpass our goal of 3 miles, and run 5 instead! And although we learned how to be consistent and use growth mindset while reaching our running goals, we also got to be creative and think outside of the box when filling out Meena’s growth mindset work sheets. In the sheets we were able to draw, write and learn a lot about achieving goals. I learned so much from Meena, and I would definitely do it again. That is why I would rate Meena’s Group as 110.
Molly Sutphin
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I love Meena’s class because it’s super fun and you get to get your exercise out but not in that boring kind of way. I like it when we write stuff down on the papers. I like to get out my feelings and write down stuff that I love. Sometimes we do obstacle courses and other times we take walks. I really think it’s a good idea to have her class.
Icons_GYM-21
Lila Roberts
Age 9
I loved jumping rope in GYM class. I wasn’t good at the beginning but I kept practicing.
 
I never gave up, and now I’m good at it!
Icons_GYM-10
Ellie Foster
Age 7
What I liked most about GYM was playing with Marley. She makes me feel calm and motivates me. One thing I did with Ms. Meena that I thought I couldn’t do was finish the 5K. It was fun to run with my friends, and it wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be
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Leo Foster
Age 9
My daughter loved Meena’s class! She was excited to go each week and always came home in a great mood. Meena worked with the girls on gratitude and Lila wrote in her gratitude journal every night for a week without me needing to ask. It has been a lifesaver during this pandemic. We were so disappointed when it finally became too cold and we couldn’t have the class anymore. We can’t wait for spring! Thank you Meena!
Icons_GYM-14
Andrea Butterfield
Psy.D.
My four children ages 5-12 participated in Meena Tondravi’s growth mindset program each week this past fall. The timing was impeccable as most sports had been postponed or canceled.  My kids all looked forward to Thursdays with Meena! She has a welcoming and caring nature that puts all the children at ease.  The structure of the program I highly recommend; the importance of moving your physical body but also taking time for reflection and goal setting was a gift for my kids.The model of the program offers skills that are important and necessary in life especially when life is challenging.  This program would be an excellent addition to the MPS schools.”


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Kate Sutphin
If I were asked to rate Meena’s Group from 1-10, I would rate it a 10. Meena pushed us to reach our goals. When I first started her group, my cousin and I could only run one lap around Kelly Field (1/3 of a mile). But after a lot of training with Meena, we were able to surpass our goal of 3 miles, and run 5 instead! And although we learned how to be consistent and use growth mindset while reaching our running goals, we also got to be creative and think outside of the box when filling out Meena’s growth mindset work sheets. In the sheets we were able to draw, write and learn a lot about achieving goals. I learned so much from Meena, and I would definitely do it again. That is why I would rate Meena’s Group as 110.
Icons_GYM-18
Molly Sutphin
Our family was beyond thrilled to participate in Meena’s GYM program last Fall. Brendan (4th grade) and Caitlin (2nd grade) absolutely loved every minute each week. They came home buzzing about how they accomplished their goals and then exceeded their goals. They very much enjoyed the physical activity portion, but also the social emotional side of Meena’s program. Each week at the end of the session I heard from both kids “that was so much fun.” Meena has an amazing way of connecting with the children and getting them to talk about, put into action and realize their potential while making goals. Both of my children tend to be shy and sometimes need some encouragement to join groups. With Meena’s kind words and positive attitude, both kids felt so good about themselves each week and gained a boost of confidence that all kids need! It was wonderful to witness in a world with so much pressure these days. My children were able to experience how to have a positive and thoughtful mindset to achieve whatever goals that have! I would highly recommend Meena’s GYM class to all children. We can’t wait to do it again!
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Amy Ellis
Meena is AMAZING and her Growth Mindset Group is top notch! My son Tyler, who suffers from ADHD and anxiety, was a part of one of her groups and absolutely adored every minute with Meena (and her 3 dogs when they tagged along). Tyler left each session in a great mood and with a big smile on his face -talking about Meena, her dogs and counting the days until his next session. Meena increased Tyler’s motivation by working with him to set and achieve goals, like exercising daily, running a 5K (he still talks about this accomplishment) and walking our family dog. Meena has truly been instrumental in helping Tyler breakdown and overcome some of his emotional barriers (anxiety, aggression and frustration) using various strategies, which in turn have helped Tyler build confidence and enhance his overall emotional and social development, and learning. Meena’s dedication, passion and kindness are superior -she truly cares and believes in each child she interacts with and it shows! THANK YOU Meena!!
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Kathleen Jackson

Meet Our Leadership

Meena Tondravi

MED, MS. CCC-SLP

Meena Tondravi, MED, MS. CCC-SLP, owner and founder of Growing Young Minds, holds a Masters degree in Education from Smith College as well as in Speech Language Pathology from the University of Vermont. Meena has been working with children of all ages on social learning development since 2001 in both public and private schools and private settings, including her own private practice in Milton, MA since 2015. An active member of her Milton Community, Meena also led the BOKS program (before school exercise program sponsored by Reebok) at Tucker Elementary School since September of 2015, as well as creating Tucker Cares, a year long, school wide volunteer program for all elementary aged students.


Meena developed the Growing Young Minds program in the summer of 2020 in order to help children remain positive, resilient and hopeful during the COVID 19 Pandemic. Combining the role that exercising in nature plays with regulating emotions and behaviors and her knowledge of growth mindset work for healthy social emotional development, Meena created the Growing Young Minds program. Marley, Meena’s BONES Certified Therapy Dog, also participates during groups and provides motivation, reduces anxiety and brings joy to the students in GYM groups. The Growing Young Minds program has received glowing reviews from students and families and continues to be a program where children learn to build grit and believe in themselves.