Mindfulness activities for teens are talked about a lot in schools and in the media but what does mindfulness actually mean and how can we encourage our teenagers to take part in mindfulness activities?
Mindfulness is being aware of yourself in the present moment as well as your surroundings.
Imagine the bliss of doing the daily tasks with total consciousness and being completely aware of what’s exactly happening. That is what it means to be mindful. Basically, it is the opportunity to tune into the moment and let go of everything else, it is a great way to relax, unwind and focus on yourself.
Practising mindfulness has many proven benefits that include stress reduction, coping with anxiety, self-realisation, increased energy and happiness, bringing peace and calm, improved focus, and most importantly, it equips you with the coping tools for uncertain times when life gets hard.
As much as it is important for adults to dive into mindfulness, it becomes super essential to take your kids and teenagers on the same journey.
In today’s highly sophisticated world, our teenage kids are bombarded with all sorts of activities from academics to co-curricular alongside the constant use of technology that make it harder for them to be in the present. Put simply our teens are busy and the practice of mindfulness can bring positive effects to everyone.
Today’s young people deal with totally new emotions than we dealt in our times. Hence it now becomes so essential to teach them various mindfulness exercises right from the beginning to help them grow to be more kind and empathetic.
The term mindfulness is often coined to be boring because we adults associate it with mindfulness meditation only. While it is super difficult even for adults to get into this meditation practise, we surely cannot expect our kids to dive into its depth.
Benefits of mindfulness activities for teens:
1. Improves their focus, which will help teenage when studying or at school.
2. Provides stress release
3. Equips them with a useful tool that helps during a hard time.
4. Increases compassion and kindness
5. Makes them aware of their emotions
6. Enhances relationships
These benefits are just a few to mention. When you, along with your family members, start practising these fun mindfulness activities listed below, you will notice some major shifts.
‘Let’s practice Mindfulness exercise today’, said no mum ever.
The Best Mindfulness Activities to Try at Home
We have curated these simple activities that every family can incorporate at home, they work equally well for young kids, older children and into the teenage years. These activities are an excellent way to introduce effective mindfulness activities to everyday life.
Being an educator, the most important lesson I learned about teens was, that if you want them to do the work, do it in their style, the easy way!
Try making mindfulness techniques or mindfulness practice super fun and interesting. Teach simple mindfulness exercises in a way that they look forward to your mindfulness games session every day and if you make it more like a game than teaching and you’ll have their full attention.
I assure you they’ll follow you blindly if they enjoy it.
Not sure how to be innovative when it comes to mindfulness exercises for kids? I got you covered.
Here are some playful mindfulness exercises for kids that they will love to practice.
(Remember, you gotta have fun and enjoy yourself to convince your kid it’s totally interesting)
1. Super Senses
Duration – 5 mins
Supplies – only your imagination
I bet every single kid loved to be a Superhero. Well we are going to take our older kids back a step and think about their superpowers! The superpower of Spiderman is his ability to tune into his senses, ask your young person to become just like spiderman for a while and ask the following questions:
What can you smell?
What can you hear?
What can you see?
What can you taste?
What can you feel?
This mindful activity will make them aware of their senses in a playful way. Though this works best in nature, you can surely try it indoors too. We use this in everyday life and you can guide them by starting off if they feel uncomfortable. Encourage mindful listening, what can they hear how does it make them feel?
2. Gratitude Jar
Duration – 15-30 mins
Supplies – Jar, craft paper, pens
Tell your teenager to write a note of thankfulness daily to one person they’re most thankful for (including pets)
If they are yet to learn to write, help them with that part and guide them to close their eyes, and feel the feeling of gratitude for everyone around.
Sometimes, their answers may sound silly but remember, they are developing and still live with the weirdest of imaginations.
When I played this game in my class, I received a few messages like:
1. Thank you mum for pasta in today’s tiffin.
2. I am thankful for my teacher for guiding me every day.
3. I am sending my sincere thanks to our postman for delivering the letters
4. Thank you, Jimmy, for sharing your lunch today
You may notice a gradual shift in their thoughts but know that mindfulness is a journey without any end destination.
3. Mindful walking
Duration – 15 mins
Supplies – your imagination
Go out for a walk in nature or just a casual stroll in the neighborhood and ask your teen or tween what they are seeing, feeling, hearing, or smell.
Ask your children to notice the sound of birds chirping, the smell of oak wood, and the feel of the air around. Let them feel the bliss of being present mindfully.
This excellent mindfulness activity will nurture their physical as well as their mental wellness.
4. Mindful colouring
Duration – 15 mins
Supplies – Colour book or prints
Coloring is considered as peaceful as meditating. It is highly recommended even for adults. Drawing mandalas and filling them with beautiful colors is altogether a peaceful experience and often viewed as a form of meditation.
Try doing this mindful coloring activity along with your children to help them realise how art can bring peace and calm into their lives. Play some soulful music around while you’re performing this art and enjoy the bliss.
5. Breathing buddies
Duration – 5 mins
Supplies – Teddy bear or fluffy toys
This practice is similar to the breathing exercises designed for adults. So far, this is my favorite exercise to reduce stress and anxiety but for kids, we need to make it super interesting or they are more likely to run away from all mindfulness exercises.
Ask your young children or teen to lie down and keep the teddy on their belly. Ask them to inhale on the count of three and then exhale for the count of 4.
Now ask them to notice the teddy fall and rise as they breath. Do this for 4-to 5 times. (Do not overdo any of the exercises as kids tend to lose interest super quick). Mindful breathing has such a positive impact and once they have learnt the skill they won’t need the visualisation of the teddy but this midful skill will help them in stressful situations as they can control their breathing and in turn their heart rate.
6. Weather games
Duration – 3-5 mins
Supplies – none needed
This is one of my new favourites. Teach your kids to associate their emotions with the weather. This will help them to be aware of what they are feeling instead of being confused.
Sunny – Happy
Stormy – Angry
Wintery – Lonely
Windy – Anxious
Rainy – Sad
They may come up from the school and say, ‘I am feeling sunny’ or when they are actually sad due to some reason, they can easily refer to rain as their sad feeling.
This exercise will teach them that no matter the season, it always passes. Hence just as the rain cannot be forever, their sadness shall also pass soon. This mindfulness exercise teaches them life lessons too.
7. Laughing Buddha
Duration – 5 mins
Supplies – A laughing Buddha or its picture
Place the statue of the laughing Buddha in front of your teen or take out its color print. Now play the game of laughing your heart out while raising your hands for at least 2 mins. Practice this along with your kids. Laughing is super beneficial for mental wellness and undoubtedly it will cheer up your moods.
Besides being a mindful exercise, this is the best way to build a stronger bond and share joy.
8. Mindful dinner dates
Duration – 30 mins
Supplies – none needed
Get together as a family for at least twice a week to practice mindful dinner dates. Avoid all kinds of distractions or peeping into your social media while having dinner with your family. They learn what they see.
Take a moment to be grateful for the food you have and for this togetherness. Teach your child the power of practising gratitude. Besides this, be mindful while eating the food. Notice the aroma of your deliciousness, the smooth touch, and eat with a heart full of joy. We have a no-tech rule at the table for this reason and I want us all to understand mindful eating, it is important to know when we are full and we can’t do that with lots of distractions going on.
9. Mindful gardening
Duration – 10 mins
Supplies needed – Plants, water jar/ can
Watering plants can be extremely mindful and stress buster. This single act can prove to be a great source of bringing calm and peace. This activity can also work best when done together, bond with your kids through the beauty of nature. Invest in two watering cans, one for you and one for your son or daughter or maybe make a colorful one for them.
Make it a morning routine to water your plants together. Fill up your cans and go for nurturing your green babies, encourage them to breath in the fresh air. While watering the plants talk about how alive the plants are and take a moment to examine their leaves and color.
These mindfulness exercises will only work if you bring joy and fun into them. Try to involve yourself and make your child feel that this is something super fun and exciting.
I hope you enjoyed these mindfulness exercises for kids and had fun reading them.
Do let me know which of the above mindful activities are you planning to include into your daily routine. If you have older teenagers then you might find this new podcast aimed at supporting teen mental health, and offering support and ideas for parents to help their teenagers. https://actuallymummy.co.uk/…/welcome-to-the-teenage…/ really useful.
