Mindfulness for kids: How to get started

Mindfulness has become increasingly popular in recent years and is a concept that has been integrated into various schools’ curriculums worldwide. The concept of mindfulness has many applications, including in the field of medicine and in the military. It is also used to help people with chronic stress, anxiety and depression. Essentially, mindful activities help you focus on the present and ignore the distractions of your mind.

Mindiveness is an ancient Buddhist practice that involves focusing your thoughts and attention on a single object or theme. It teaches you to control your thoughts and emotions. Focused thought is one of the most important aspects of meditation, as it allows you access to inner wisdom and consciousness. The act of focusing encourages mental stability, balance, self-control and stress relief. Essentially, mindfulness creates peace of mind by teaching you how to calm your thoughts and emotions.

Why mindfulness for kids?

Mindfulness activities teach us how to focus on what we want in life. It is used to change thoughts into reality-based actions. Most activities that incorporate mindfulness are aimed at adults, but kids can also practice this mental skill. Mindiveness teaches you to be more aware of your thoughts so that you can control them and improve your mental state. You can use this mental control when learning how to control your actions based on your thoughts.

Being mindful is essential when learning new things or performing tasks. Kids need this mental discipline when they are learning or dealing with the constant changes presented to them in this world. Focused thought helps them learn new things easily by eliminating errors caused by lack of concentration. It’s also essential when writing or editing essays or work papers or responding to situations. By focusing on one task at a time, humans find it much easier to complete the task at hand more effectively. Focusing on the present helps us cope with the ever-present world; we just need to learn how to control our minds.

50% of mental health problems are established by the age of 14, with three children in every classroom experiencing a mental health problem. The Mental Health Foundation has stated that it wants emotional wellbeing to sit at the heart of school curriculum, and that’s something I’m 100% behind. With children facing a mental health epidemic, how can mindfulness for kids help? t

Here we talk to mindfulness coach Mihaela Berciu who has over 10 years of experience helping people to practice mindfulness on a daily basis to improve their mental wellbeing tofind out more.

Why mindfulness is especially useful for children

I believe that teaching our children to invest some of the energy they have into something so powerful that they can benefit from is simply amazing. The feeling of gratitude, awareness and joy that mindfulness brings into our children’s lives makes it a great tool. It also equips them with a sense of worthiness and self-confidence that will come very handy in the years to come. 

How mindfulness help children to stay calm in stressful times

In stressful times, we need to show our children that panicking is not an option that yields positive results. We need to signpost that they will only get the wanted result by being in the present and acknowledging what’s happening around us. There are so many ways in which it can be practised, like mindful breathing, meditation, book colouring etc. See which one your child reacts better and make sure that’s the safe place he/she usually goes to whenever things get a little bit confusing. It helps to teach them about emotions and support them in exploring how each emotion feels for them. Being able to recognize emotions is a powerful tool to have.

Indeed, there are so many distractions in this world and it can be difficult to keep our children focused. Mindfulness brings peace of mind, and if they can master that in time, they will be able to prioritise. In turn, that will help them see what’s more important and how being peaceful and present can improve the outcome of a situation.

Practical examples of mindfulness for kids

It’s absolutely obvious how a child’s ability to focus and concentrate increases once they start practising mindfulness. Take homework for instance. Some will panic when not knowing the answers, others might get frustrated, others might start putting themselves down. However, children who have been practising mindfulness will have that ability to master that situation and learn that these little obstacles are just part of their development. 

5 simple and fun mindfulness for kids activities

• Book colouring
• Breathing exercises
• Yoga for children
• Guided meditations and walks in the park
• There are also lots of amazing awareness games that can help children become more aware of themselves, appreciative of their abilities, both physical and mental, and respectful of those around them.

Useful mindfulness tools for children

• I love mindfulness cards, colouring books, meditation and relaxation CDs, essential oils and bell ringing exercises. There are also lots of awareness exercises that can easily be played whilst taking them to or back from school.
• One of my favourite games is the options game, a game that helps children make decisions and take responsibility for them. Start by giving them three options of outcomes when they would like to do something. Keep it simple: “if you do that, this, this and that can happen. Now that you know what could happen, whether you do it or not, it’s your decision. But you’re also responsible for the outcome, so cannot blame anyone if you’re not happy with the outcome.” This way, they will learn not to take anything for granted, they will experience self-compassion and will also build the confidence they will benefit so much from for the rest of their lives. I takes patience from your part, but is so worth it!
• Enlisting a mindfulness buddy. This could be a parent, friend or family member who creates connection and extra support to introduce new themes and practices to be explored by the child.

Advice on teaching mindfulness to kids

I believe it’s very important to make your child curious about what mindfulness is first, rather than telling them they “have to practice it”. Set an example and practice it yourself, because you’re their main role model. You’ll see how they’ll want to do it too, naturally. It takes time, so don’t think it’s not for them if at first, they don’t seem to love it. It’s like an acquired taste, and it needs practice. Lots of it, until it becomes their natural way of being.

Traits mindfulness teaches children

Teaching mindfulness to children will create the adults our society needs: compassionate, kind, generous and generally good human beings.

So are you can see, mindfulness for children is a potentially powerful tool to have in our parenting kit. I already use breathing and guided meditations with my daughter when she is feeling overwhelmed, and looking forward to incorporating some other techniques shared above. Is mindfulness for children something you’ve tried before in your family? Or perhaps it’s something new that you’d like to try. Do leave a comment and share.

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