Why mindfulness is important from a young age

As parents we dedicate ourselves to helping our children become the best they can be and to equip them with the key skills they need to be happy and fulfilled in their lives. In these busy times in which we live, a skill we believe is of vital importance for children to master from a young age is mindfulness. 

“We spend far too much time worrying about the future, rehashing the past and not enough time enjoying and experiencing life in the present.”

Mindfulness is all about learning to direct our attention to our experience as it unfolds, moment by moment, with open-minded curiosity, kindness and acceptance. Rather than worrying about what has happened or might happen, it trains us to explore and respond skilfully to whatever is happening right now. 

In essence, mindfulness and the ability to be present in the now is a skill which once mastered and practised will have incredible benefits to children’s emotional wellbeing, ability to manage stress and their ability to listen rather than hear. It will allow them to recognise and identify their own emotions and feelings and teach them how to help themselves feel good inside.
 
Mindfulness is such a powerful tool for life that it is now being practised in many schools over the UK, however it’s rarely practised with 2-5 year olds. So we embarked upon a training programme which was a learning curve and a lesson for us all in how such young children can learn most from this practice. As ever our mindfulness training will take place under the guise of play, with storytelling and props helping to set the scene for the relaxing environment.

Top tips for developing mindfulness…

• Puppy training
  Practise the basics of how to aim and sustain attention. Start with with fun and relaxing breathing based exercises you can do at home or outdoors. Breathing exercises teach us how to control our brains to exploit the feeling of being in the present and being self aware. It can be incredibly rewarding and will have the bonus side effect of feeling relaxed whilst also working on your mental and physical awareness and wellbeing.

• The David Attenborough attitude
  Learn and practise how to be curious about your experience. Lie down quietly, close your eyes and just concentrate on how you experience the world around you. How your body feels and what can you hear, smell or feel. Notice everything.

• A walk in the woods
  It’s easier to be mindful in a quiet room with no distractions but what about in the middle of every day life. Try practising ways to bring mindfulness to daily activities such as walking outdoors in our forest. Breathe steadily and rhythmically, and don’t forget to look all around you taking in the detail of what you see. Remember to look up too.

• Getting off the thought bus
  Practise how to question and step back from our own internal thinking, getting off the bus of stressful thoughts and keeping our equilibrium. You are the observer of your thoughts, you are not your thoughts.

• Keeping your cool
  Try to understand the difference between responding and reacting, to help us learn to become better facilitators. In stressful situations, practise breathing before immediately reacting. This will help steady you and think about what you want to happen next. And excellent for children to see you doing that too. Demonstrating that you are calm and in control no matter what happens.

• Getting friendly

  Bringing mindfulness into interpersonal relationships – specifically through listening and communication practices. Take the time to really listen to what your family members/friends are saying, you need to be open and relaxed to be able to actively listen properly

Another fantastic way to help develop mindfulness is to try doing some yoga with your child. Even if you’ve never done it before, it can be really fun and a great way to set the tone for the day. We love Yoga With Adriene For Kids and we think you will too. Make the time to do the whole video if you can and even if that doesn’t fully go to plan, if nothing else it will be a great conversation starter with your little ones about why it’s important to slow down and take the time you need to refresh and recharge.

You’ll be experts in no time… mindfully sitting, breathing, listening, mindful movement and stretching, smelling, tasting and eating together!