Meditation for kids: 3 exercises for every day

Teaching children meditation techniques increases mindfulness, develops self-control and empathy. Meditation helps with stress, hyperactivity and depression in schoolchildren and improves academic performance in the sciences.

It is generally accepted that meditation requires special adult self-discipline and concentration. In fact, this technique can be used at any age. The main thing is to choose the right exercises. Three ways to get started with kids.

1. “Balloon”

This is a simple deep breathing exercise with a strong visual component. Performed sitting or standing.

An exercise

1. Relax and take a deep breath in and out through your nose.
2. Take a slow, deep breath and try to fill your belly with air, as if you were trying to inflate a big balloon. Try to inflate your belly as much as you can.
3. Slowly release the air from the balloon by exhaling through your nose.

Remind the child to relax the whole body with each exhalation, each time the air is slowly expelled from the balloon. At the same time, try to make a quiet “shhhh” so that the exhalation is slow. Continue for a few minutes.

For restless preschoolers, a more dynamic option with your participation is suitable.

An exercise

1. Close your eyes and imagine your favorite color, and then a huge ball of that color in your imagination.
2. Inhale slowly and deeply through your nose, inflating a large ball of your favorite color with your belly. Extend your arms to the sides and over your head, imagining how this ball grows inside the abdomen.
3. When the balloon is completely filled with air, hold your breath.
4. Now I will burst your ball (press your finger to the child’s stomach), and you exhale sharply and fall to the floor.

2. “Follow the leader”

More suitable for children over five years old. Ask your child to introduce a friend, sibling, or someone they enjoy spending time with. Then ask which of them is the leader and comes up with games. If your child sees himself as a leader, ask him to imagine that he is “breath”. If he prefers to follow the leader, he is a “thought”. For example, he chose his older brother as his best friend, and then the older brother is the leader.

An exercise

1. Get comfortable and close your eyes.
2. Focus on your breathing and try to breathe more slowly, taking deep breaths and slow exhalations.
3. Let your thoughts follow your breath. Imagine that you are a thought, and your breath is your big brother.
4. Count how many seconds your breath lasts. Don’t let your thoughts run ahead. She will try to do this, but try to make her follow the breath.
5. Before exhaling, slowly count to ten.

3. Universal relaxation technique

This practice is suitable for both children and adults. She solves problems with sleep, a long period of stress or illness, liberates before public speaking. It is based on a progressive muscle relaxation technique developed by psychotherapist Edmund Jacobson in the 1920s for anxious patients.

An exercise

1. Get into a comfortable sitting or lying position and close your eyes. You can lie down on a pillow and cover yourself with a blanket.
2. Take a few deep breaths in and out.
3. Bring your attention to your right foot. Squeeze it very, very hard, tucking all five fingers inward. Hold it in this position for two deep breaths.
4. Relax your foot sharply and feel how the tension dissolves. You may feel a slight tingling in your muscles.
5. Shift your attention to the left foot (the “tension-relaxation” cycle repeats).
6. Slowly move along the entire body, continuing to squeeze and unclench the muscles (if this is difficult, you can squeeze or massage them with your hand) and breathe deeply. Here is an approximate sequence: right foot – left foot; right shin – left shin; right knee – left knee; right thigh – left thigh; feet and legs along the entire length; hips; buttocks; stomach; the whole body below the belt; rib cage; right hand – left hand; right palm – left palm; shoulders; neck; face.