10 Games to Practice Mindfulness with Children and Stimulate Intellectual and Emotional Development

The practice of Mindfulness, or full attention, has been considered as one of the pillars for individual development. For this reason, more than a habit for adults, it can help your child — whether in childhood or adolescence — to go through the processes that involve growth and life in society with more balance and awareness.

Thinking about how Mindfulness can help children, the team at awesome.club was to research how this technique can be applied with the little ones and what are the real benefits of including these exercises in everyday life.

Among the main benefits achieved with the regular practice of this concentration and mindfulness technique, the following stand out:

Increases body awareness, thoughts and emotions; Enhances the ability to concentrate on the task at hand; Optimizes focus on the present and on practical attitudes; Stimulates the ability to control impulses and social conflicts; Decreases anxiety and negative thoughts; Generates empathy and gives security.

Practice eliminates anxiety and excessive fears and insecurities with the future by orienting thoughts and attitudes towards the present moment. According to Jon Kabat-Zinn—who is the creator of the concept and practice of mindfulness—it’s about “just stopping and being present, and that’s all.”

And, at this point in your reading, you must be wondering how it will be possible to implement this type of activity with children, especially with those who have difficulty concentrating.
Experts in the field of psychology indicate that the best way to do this is by playing some games, like the ones we’ll show you from now on.

Sit or lie down with the child and play music for a few seconds. Then turn off the music and ask the little one to pay attention to all the sounds around them. At the end of this period of silence, which can last between 1 and 3 minutes, whoever remembers the most sounds wins the game.

Note: this exercise helps children to connect with the present moment and the sensitivity of their perceptions. Also, exercise your memory.

Tell your child to imagine his thoughts as soap bubbles. Thus, he must pay attention to each one that comes into his mind during this game. Those who are not pleasant he should blow away, until the “bubble bursts” and so the thought floats away and disappears into thin air.

note: this exercise helps reduce anxiety and control negative thoughts. He also shows that these sensations can be managed when a rational look is placed on them.

Give the child a teddy bear or doll. Ask him to lie down with the toy on his stomach. Tell him to breathe silently and observe how the animal moves up and down, following the movement of the breath.

Note: this exercise helps to improve body awareness and makes you realize how correct breathing manages to stabilize sensations.

Ask the child to close their eyes and hand them something fragrant (it could be a fresh fruit, a flower or a mint leaf, for example). Stimulate the little one to focus on that smell and then describe what that fragrance represented, what sensations it aroused.

note: this exercise leads to concentration. The contact of the senses with the external world helps to interpret the feelings. Also, scents can be a powerful tool for anxiety control.

It’s almost like gymnastics! Tell the child to squeeze (contract) each muscle in the body — you can go on talking about each part: arms, legs, hands and shoulders, for example. Encourage her to stay in that position for 10 to 15 seconds and then release her body to relax her muscles.

Note: this activity, in addition to bringing relaxation, is a way for the child to better understand their own body and learn to “be present”.

Ask the child to do jumping jacks or jump rope for a few moments. This will make your heart rate pick up a little more. Afterwards, the little one needs to sit down and count how many times he feels his heart beat in a minute. Then encourage him to relax to normalize his heartbeat.

note: this game helps to understand the body’s signals and, more than that, to interpret and control what they mean. It helps a lot to understand that our actions can influence the functioning of our body.

First, ask your child to cover his ears with his hands to shut out sounds from the “outside” world. Afterwards, he must close his eyes and imagine that he is a bee, flying over the flower beds. Then, it’s time to take a deep breath, pulling air in through your nose, and letting it out through your mouth making a “zzzz” sound, similar to the buzzing of a bee.

note: this dynamic helps calm thoughts, focusing on pleasant images that bring good sensations. At the same time, it stimulates correct breathing which is an asset against anxiety.

Following this game, you can ask the child to remain in the position that feels most comfortable – it can even be standing! At that moment, there will be a “call” from each part of the body, to know if all are present. Thus, the adult says the names of members and the child needs to move that region. For example: you say arm and the child raises his arm; when talking hands, she can clap her hands.

note: this game reinforces body awareness, increases empathy and stimulates concentration in the moment they are living.

Prepare a box by following the steps in the illustration. Give the child an object to feel through the holes in the box (this could be a dice, ball, or other everyday utensil). The task is now objective. You need to describe the item — whether it has rounded edges, whether it is light or heavy, etc. Then ask her to say what she has in her hands. Done that, show the object for her to see if she got it right.

note: this activity is a stimulus for problem solving. It helps to realize that, when looking directly at a situation, it becomes simpler than when we just imagine what is happening.

This task can be done at any age, but you will need to find the right tone for each child. In this exercise, make yourself comfortable with your child and ask them to talk. Leave it until the end of the activities, so they can start talking about each game, evolving into feelings.

note: this practice helps to break down the barriers that may exist to talk about experiences, doubts and fears in a transparent way.

These moments of activities with your child can be a chance for you to also put mindfulness into practice in your routine. And yet, it will be a way of strengthening the bonds of affection between you. Have you ever practiced any relaxation or mindfulness techniques with children? How did they do?