Mindfulness and kids. You may have heard of all the wonderful benefits of incorporating mindfulness into your life, but did you know that it can be just as beneficial for kids? The catch is that ways that adults practice and incorporate mindfulness may or may not be quite as effective for kids for a variety of reasons.

According to the Huffington Post in an article titled “Why Children need Mindfulness just as much as Adults:

“Research is beginning to shed light on the power of mindfulness as an intervention for a number of behavioral challenges that children face”. 

The article then goes on to list the following benefits of teaching mindfulness to children:

• Mindfulness can help kids thrive at school
• Mindfulness can reduce stress and anxiety
• Mindfulness can increase sleep
• It can be an effective intervention for autism
• It can help kids with ADD and ADHD
• It can help kids with cancer and other health conditions
• It can encourage children to self-actualize
• Mindfulness can increase focus
• Mindfulness can increase positive thinking
• Mindfulness can regulate emotions
• Mindfulness can foster empathy

Combine all those wonderful benefits of practicing mindfulness with the benefits of nature. Did you know that even just looking at a picture of nature can bring countless benefits? Benefits that include:

• reduce stress
• reduce depression
• reduce anxiety
• slow down breathing
• lower heart rate

Just to name a few.

So how do you start introducing and practicing mindfulness with your kids?

Want a way to connect with your kids that is meaningful and will provide benefits for both of you?

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Research shows mindfulness is incredibly beneficial to kids. But it can be tricky to know how to implement it – especially if you’re not super familiar with mindfulness yourself. My kids mindfulness coloring pages and flashcards are great ways to practice mindfulness together – whether it is at home, daycare, school, or anywhere else!

These two resources are included in the 2019 Ultimate Homemaking Bundle which includes 103 additional resources and 10+ bonuses to help you live the life you want!

For more information, click on the banner below!

Enter in the Mindfulness Flashcards for Kids digital download.

The mindfulness flashcards for kids was created when I noticed my son would become really engaged if we started looking at a nature photograph. We would sit for a while and look at it together, and I would listen to his observations. Eventually, I would start asking questions about the photo such as ‘what colors do you see?’, ‘what shapes do you see?’. It became a great tool if he needed a break when his emotions became hard to express and/or if we just needed to take a moment to calm down. Eventually, we just started doing it just because. I mentioned the tactic to my husband, and if my son was on the verge of a tantrum or breakdown, my husband would encourage him to start looking at a photo as well. He was surprised to learn for himself how well it worked.

What exactly are the flashcards?

The Mindfulness Flashcards for Kids digital download contains five unique nature photos on a single page for kids to gain focus, redirect, calm down, study and observe (see sample below). For me and my son, it works to have us sit for a while, calmly reflect on the photo, and make observations.

On a second page, each nature photo contains mindfulness prompts/questions unique to each photo for adults to help facilitate the mindfulness activity if needed (see example below). If I feel like he needs more engagement, or if he is especially worked up, I will start asking from the mindfulness prompts/questions to help facilitate and drive the activity for a bit. It works best to play around with different scenarios and see which one your child reacts better too.

The flashcards work well on any digital device, but can also be printed out for use. The download is formatted so that you can print out the flashcards double sided and the large nature photo will be on one side and the corresponding mindfulness prompts/questions on the other for easy use.

These flashcards are great for at home, daycares, schools, and much, much more.

Check out the mindfulness flashcards in my Etsy shop (you do not need to have an account with Etsy).

If you’re looking for even more mindfulness tools for kids, check out my kids mindfulness coloring pages!

**A portion of the proceeds will be donated to Jane Goodall’s Roots and Shoots organization which has the mission to: “foster respect and compassion for all living things, to promote understanding of all cultures and beliefs, and to inspire each individual to take action to make the world a better place for people, other animals, and the environment.”

Bonus!

I am looking for reviews to use on my website! If you love the flashcards and want others to benefit as well, send me an email at Laura{at}themindfulmomblographer{dot}com with your review and name, and I will send you TWO additional cards at no charge. By sending me your review, you give me permission to use it on my website. A huge THANKS in advance!

***Obligatory legal notice: All content provided on The Mindful Mom Blographer is for informational purposes only. The owner of this blog makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information. These terms and conditions of use are subject to change at any time and without notice.***

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