You can practice mindfulness with child of any age. As they grow, so should their ability to connect with themself. You might try stillness, focusing on the sense, guided imagery, and more.

Parenting or being a primary caregiver takes hard work. There are so many ages and stages — and they go by super fast. You may feel like you’re hanging on for dear life.

Or maybe you’re searching for new tricks to try when the going gets rough.

Whatever the case, mindfulness is more than just a parenting tactic. It’s a way of life, and it may help your kids (and you!) with far more than tantrums or sibling spats.

Mindfulness is a practice all about living in the moment. It focuses on the thoughts and feelings you’re experiencing in the now without adding a layer of judgment or overthinking.

Mindfulness may take the form of meditation, guided imagery, or breathing to tune in with your body and mind. Other times, mindfulness uses different methods to lessen stress and relax.

With children in mind, the goal of mindfulness is to help them move beyond thoughts of the past or future that may be:

  • draining
  • negative
  • worrisome

Instead, it gives children the tools they need to connect with what’s going on in their world at the present moment.

It’s about empowering them to accept their current thoughts and feelings and to form healthy habits for coping with all the big emotions they may have.

May relieve stress

Mindfulness is often incorporated into stress reduction and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for children and adults.

The goal of including these methods is to give children who live with anxiety a toolbox of ways to cope with stressful events and reduce anxiety.

Mindfulness may help kids shift their focus from worrying about the past or future to what’s happening now. It may also help redirect and retrain their mind’s automatic pilot reactions to difficult situations.

May help with emotional recognition

Mindfulness-based cognitive behavioral therapy for anxious children (MBCT-C) teaches them how to become aware of and recognize their thoughts, emotions, and bodily sensations in a more balanced way.

It aims to build emotional resilience and reduce anxiety.

A small 2019 study of 20 students in grades 3 through 5 found that MBCT-C helped reduce bullying in the classroom. In particular, the mindful practice of including — not excluding — others seemed to help.

May help with executive function

Executive function is a set of skills that allow children to focus on tasks, follow directions, and — importantly — handle their emotions. Kids need these skills in everyday life.

According to a 2022 research review of 18 studies published between 2010 and 2021, mindfulness-based interventions in young children may support their executive function.

Infants as young as 8 weeks may recognize voices and the scents of their primary caregivers. Mindfulness at this age may be about tapping into those budding senses.

At this stage, though, it’s mostly about you as a caregiver developing more mindfulness so you can better help your child learn it as they grow.

Infant massage

Practicing a daily infant massage may be one way to start a mindfulness practice with your baby. Tune in to your baby’s cues — notice if they’re calm and alert or fussy.

A 2023 research review of 8 studies suggests that the possible benefits of infant massage may include:

  • an enhanced bond between the baby and caregiver
  • reduced symptoms of postnatal depression in women
  • improved temperaments and fewer night awakenings of the baby

How to perform a baby massage

Before beginning, wait about 45 minutes after feeding your baby to avoid spit up.

  1. Use gentle pressure to massage your baby.
  2. You might start on their stomach and then work the head, neck, shoulders, and other body parts for around a minute each — between 5 and 10 minutes total.
  3. Go about this slowly and calmly, paying attention to how your little one responds to your gaze and touch.

Other mindful techniques if you care for an infant

The early childhood development nonprofit organization Zero to Three suggests a few other techniques for a more mindful way to connect with your baby:

  • Give your baby your full attention: This doesn’t mean neglecting your own needs. But when you’re interacting, try absorbing the environment, your baby’s mood, their physical state, and any other clues they’re giving you about how they feel.
  • Put yourself in your baby’s shoes: Respond to their cries and frustration with kindness and compassion.
  • Accept your feelings toward parenting: Sleepless nights can be hard, and it’s OK to feel drained. Don’t judge yourself for feeling less than enthused about being beyond tired. Try to remind yourself and accept that your baby isn’t staying awake through the night to anger you.

Kids in this age group are all about testing limits and gaining independence.

This may mean lots of tantrums and tough moments for caregivers, parents, and tots alike. You’ve probably heard of this age, known as the “terrible twos.”

Mindfulness strategies for tots revolve around the senses and getting kids to recognize what they’re feeling on the inside before acting out negatively.

Model mindfulness

One of the best places to start this journey is to practice mindfulness yourself.

Kids learn from their environments, particularly from their caregivers. Modeling awareness and non-judgment can have a big impact on your child.

Activity idea

Focus on a certain activity you do every day, like bathing your child:

  • Feel the warmth of the water and the slippery, sudsy soap between your fingers.
  • Take in the scents of the shampoos and soaps and the sounds of your child splashing.
  • Notice the motions you make while drying off your child with a towel.

Alternatively, take just 5 minutes each day to close your eyes and focus on your breath. Anytime your mind wanders, try to focus again on your inhales and exhales only.

Provide language

Kids of this age don’t always know how to express their emotions verbally. Giving them language helps them share their feelings in an understandable way.

This helps young kids pay attention to and honor the feelings they’re experiencing internally.

Over time, the idea is that your child may be able to share their feelings or at least have some skills to recognize and cope with them.

Activity idea

If your 3-year-old throws a block across the room, avoid immediately labeling the behavior as bad. Even more importantly, avoid labeling the child as bad.

Instead, you might say, “I see you’ve got a lot of energy right now. We can’t throw things in the house… but let’s find another way to get your wiggles out.”

This approach helps show children that their actions aren’t inherently bad. It may also help them recognize when they’re feeling extra active in the future and provide options to better release that energy.

Focus on the senses

While young children may not fully understand mindfulness, they can benefit from the experiential learning process.

Instead of presenting mindfulness as some abstract concept, try focusing on the senses.

Activity idea

Take a walk in nature with your child:

  • Tell them to listen to how the leaves blow in the wind.
  • Direct their attention to the warm sun as it bathes their face.
  • Put a hand to your ears to listen to birds in the distance as they chirp.

On your way back home, talk about how it went.

Focusing on the surroundings helps your child connect to their environment. It brings their attention to the here and now.

Facilitate body/mind awareness

If you ask a young child how they’re feeling, they may automatically say “good” or otherwise not really know.

Teach them to check in with their body and mind by having them do a “body scan,” where they give each area attention and then move to the next, noting the feelings or sensations along the way.

Activity idea

Encourage your little one to think from head to toe about how they’re feeling. This can be a good way to start the day or something you do when your child needs to center themself.

If you hit a tense moment in the future, return your child to body scanning. Do they feel tense in their shoulders or anxious in their tummy? Talk about these areas and work on ways to relax by using other techniques, like deep breathing.

Children in grade school cope with many situations at home and school that test their:

  • emotions
  • focus
  • ability to handle themselves

Now that kids have more language, they may better understand and use techniques to further their mindfulness practice.

Guided imagery

School-age kids may have trouble with traditional meditation. Guided imagery exercises may help them focus on their thoughts and breath in a fun way.

If your child has difficulty paying attention during longer exercises, consider starting with something short and building over time as your child adapts to the practice.

Activity idea

YouTube has a wealth of guided imagery videos for children and adults alike.

For example, Johns Hopkins offers a 15-minute sea-themed exercise where kids can either close their eyes to participate or keep them open and soak in the fishy scenes. It involves:

  • the narrator asking kids to check in with how they’re feeling and to imagine themselves swimming with the fish
  • moments of silence that allow for quiet breathing and self-reflection

Yoga

Connecting your child’s breath and body movements may help bring their awareness to the present moment.

Yoga can be a fun way to help get wiggles out while incorporating various aspects of meditation, like deep breathing.

Activity idea

You may consider searching your community to see if anyone offers yoga classes for kids. But you can try this at home, too.

The popular YouTube channel Cosmic Kids Yoga offers an extensive library of yoga routines for children of all ages 3 and up.

Create a safe and calming space (think clutter-free and dimmed lights) for an activity with zero distractions.

Mindful eating

Eating is a total sensory experience. Kids see the food in front of them. They smell its aroma. They taste its flavor. They feel the texture of the food on their tongues.

Practicing mindful eating can help school-age kids build stamina for stillness and focus. It can also just be a fun way to use snack time mindfully. (Caregivers and parents can practice mindful eating too!)

Activity idea

  1. Gather a timer and your child’s favorite snacks.
  2. Have them close their eyes and place the food in their mouth.
  3. Tell them to focus on the food without chewing it. If you’re using something that melts, like a popsicle, have them focus on it melting in their mouth for a few minutes. If you sense their thoughts shift during the activity, try to bring them back to the experience.
  4. Talk about what they felt.

Stillness

Another way to promote stillness is to play with the idea a bit. This technique can be fun in the classroom and at home.

It may be hard for kids to sit calmly for a long time at first, so consider setting a timer for just 2 minutes to start and try working your way up to longer durations.

You may even find it fun to track your child’s progress on a chart so they can feel a sense of accomplishment as they progress.

Activity idea

  1. Have your child sit comfortably, perhaps with legs crossed or in the lotus yoga position.
  2. Dim the lights and play some soothing music.
  3. Start your timer and encourage your child to close their eyes and focus on the music or their breath. If they’re fidgeting or having trouble sitting still, try reminding them to stay calm, breathe, and remain still.
  4. When it’s almost time to stop, tell them to slowly start wiggling their fingers and toes to help bring awareness back to their body.
  5. Stretch and talk about how it went.

As kids get older (and grow into young adults), many of these same techniques are still useful.

But at this age, kids may be more resistant to trying mindfulness techniques, so it’s all about presentation.

Mindfulness tips

  • Space matters: The room in which you practice mindfulness may impact their overall experience. Have your tween or teen relax in a space that doesn’t produce negative emotions.
  • Play it cool: Teens may not want to be told to try mindfulness techniques. Instead, present the idea to them and let them choose whether or not they want to participate. Pushing the idea may backfire. Try gently suggesting.
  • Model: Practice what you preach. If your growing child is particularly resistant to the idea, try not to judge. They’ll participate when they’re ready or want to.
  • Try a variety of techniques: If meditation doesn’t work for your teen, offer other options, like yoga, body scans, breathing exercises, or guided imagery. The specific technique doesn’t matter so much as your teen’s desire to engage.

How to practice mindfulness with infants to young adults — and even for yourself as a caregiver or parent — may very well be beneficial to teach.

It may teach them emotional recognition, executive function, and how to relieve stress.

If one technique doesn’t speak to your child, try something else. Every person is different, so what works for you may not be as compelling to your 4-year-old or tween.

The most important part of the process is to be consistent and positive about the experience. With time, your child’s ability to connect with themselves and their environment should grow and flourish.

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