A Children's Guide to Mindfulness: How to Practice It

Many of us learnt how to meditate much later in life. Imagine if we had started reaping the advantages at a much earlier age; would we have been able to successfully manage the emotional rollercoaster that is puberty? Allow us to study for our tests more efficiently? How did you teach us to engage with our peers and parents in a more compassionate manner?

Initially, advocating that a youngster practice meditation may seem to be an unrealistic undertaking. Many children struggle to sit still for even thirty seconds, much alone ten minutes. However, it is possible to teach children the basics of meditation. With the proper approach, parents, teachers, caregivers, and loving relatives may teach children meditation to help them learn how to quiet their minds and relax in their bodies. This will help youngsters to process their emotions more efficiently, recall new information, and improve their attention, and they will be able to do so far sooner than we think.

The benefits of meditation for children

It has been repeatedly shown that practicing mindfulness and meditation at work may help people achieve higher success in their careers. Younger children may be decades away from having a career, yet they may already be enrolled in full-time schooling. Meditation has the potential to have a measurable positive impact in the classroom setting.

Meditation may help children succeed in the classroom in a variety of ways, including improving their working memory capacity. Working memory is an important executive function of the brain that helps to cognitive growth. It is also a capability that is very vital for the development of key academic abilities like reading and mathematics.

Furthermore, it has been shown that it helps youngsters acquire a sense of self-awareness about their own learning or thinking processes, often known as metacognition. Individuals have a better understanding of the learning strategies that work best for them, which is a skill that may help them become better students.

Meditation has been demonstrated to improve concentration. According to a 2019 study, high school pupils who meditated on a daily basis had a greater attention span than their nonmeditating counterparts. This is because frequent meditation practice trains the mind to be less easily distracted.

What age can kids start meditating?

It may seem feasible for teenagers or even pre-teens to grasp the fundamentals of meditation, but what about kids younger than that? We all know sitting quietly isn’t that easy. It isn’t easy for us as grown-ups, so think about how hard it is for kids. They’d much rather be out and about having fun and getting dirty than sitting still with their eyes closed. Just how early can we begin to introduce children to meditation?

Evidence suggests that by age 4-5, children have a fully developed awareness and understanding of one's own thought process. It’s around this same age that children also begin to understand that other people’s behavior is guided by beliefs and desires, and that these may not necessarily be the same as their own. More than being just intellectually interesting, studies are increasingly showing that kids who are taught to improve their own learning or thinking process early on are more resilient and become better learners. Considering this, age 4-5 might be a great time to begin. Or you might even try jumping into it a bit sooner if your toddler seems interested and engaged. There’s good evidence to suggest that, on average, by age 3 children will have acquired an awareness of themselves and others, and begin using verbs such as ‘think’ and ‘know.’

How parents can help kids learn to meditate

On a daily basis, when we meditate as adults, we often look for a secluded and peaceful area of the home where we may be alone and practice our meditation. It has been shown via study that children tend to model their conduct after that of their parents. Therefore, it would be beneficial to enable our children to observe and/or participate in meditation alongside us.

Instead of looking for a place to hide, we should try to explain what it is that we are doing and why we are doing it. We are still teaching children that meditation is a good act that enhances our health and happiness, even if they have difficulty sitting still or if they shut their eyes and chuckle. This is because we are normalizing the practice and teaching them that meditation is a positive act. Moreover, isn't that the ultimate objective, really?

If the children do not seem to be very interested in participating in a guided meditation session in the beginning, there are a variety of additional methods that may be used to ease them into the practice. Throughout the course of the day, parents or teachers may begin to include brief mindfulness exercises for children. These activities may include the creation of a mindful bedtime routine, the practice of eating thoughtfully, the practice of deep breathing, or the encouragement of children to tune in to their sensations while going for a walk with their families.

Try some meditations for kids and families

Looking for easy guided meditation for kids? We created Headspace for Kids in the Headspace app to help children be healthy and happy, not just for now, but for the rest of their lives. Subscribers can access several mindfulness activities made just for children, including:

• Calm – ages 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12.

Teach your child the fundamentals of meditation with this simple, fun breathing exercise.

• Cool Off – ages 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12.

Whether it’s anger or frustration, use this exercise to help melt away any uneasy feelings.

• Good Morning – ages 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12.

This quick morning meditation for kids will help you and your child start the day off right.

• Rest & Relax – ages 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12.

In this exercise, kids learn how to recognize calmness and be less reactive.

• Kindness – ages 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12.

A visualization exercise that will teach your child about openness and generosity.

• Appreciation – ages 3-5, 6-8, and 9-12.

A visualization to help kids get in touch with a feeling of gratitude for the world around them and the people in it.