Practicing Mindfulness
Whether supporting a child with anxiety, or looking for ways to expose your child to a more mindful way of life, our resident expert Kaitlin Van Acker shares how to appropriately teach deep breathing and meditation for children. Mindfulness promotes physical and mental wellness through breathing, compassion, gratitude, and kindness, start ‘em young!
Deep Breathing: We know this is one of the most effective and evidence-based strategies to cool a child’s nervous system down.
Younger Children
Tiger breath and other animal breaths
Role play with them by inviting them to put their stuffed animal or doll on their lap! An adult might ask “how can we make “elephant’s” worry smaller? By having him take deep breaths? Should we all do it together? Or would you like to give him a lesson in it?”
Hot Cocoa Breath - a winter, seasonal favorite in our house
Older Children
Square breath - typically do it with finger, drawing a square
Flower / candle breath - on an index card, the child can draw a flower on one side to “smell” and inhale AND draw a candle on the other side to “blow out” and exhale.
If they draw it themselves, they will feel greater sense of control
From Awareness to Zen, and everything in between, take a deep breath, find some quiet space, and discover the magic of mindfulness! A fun read for the entire family, ABC Mindful Me is not only perfect for teaching toddlers their ABCs, but also for introducing them to key concepts that will help to grow young readers' concentration, listening skills, and ability to manage emotions, stress, and anxiety.
Daytime Deck for Mindful Mornings: Help your child get centered for the day. These affirmation cards for kids teach fun mindfulness activities such as gratitude and awareness. Use them at the breakfast table or in self-esteem games for kids. Make them your own.
The Mindful & Co Kids Happy Hearts is a hand-illustrated board game that will bring joy and laughter to the classroom, playroom, and family time. Combining science-backed mindfulness techniques (like gratitude and body awareness) with yoga and breathing, this sweet game will help little hearts bloom and little minds grow!
Meditation
Meditate as a family together for 1 minute each morning, start small by setting a timer. Everyone sits still, takes a deep breath, listens for sounds. Start to build that practice young!
Kaitlin Van Acker is a Licensed Marriage, Family, and Child Therapist trained in the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy approach. Through a career as an Elementary School Counselor and a private practice, Kaitlin worked with a wide range of children and families. She ran “Courage Groups” for children with OCD and worked with parents of children who suffered from anxiety. Kaitlin combined art therapy with the CBT approach. She currently resides in Marin County with her husband and three young children who attend an AMI Montessori school.