Cozy Corner

Activity Overview

A cozy corner is a designated safe haven for children when they are experiencing a range of different emotions. It is an area where your child can work on building awareness of their feelings, practice regaining control of them, and integrate new ways to problem-solve. An ideal cozy corner should be located in a quiet area that feels private but also is observable by adults so that children can get support quickly if needed. This is a safe place where all feelings are acknowledged and have room to be felt, not a time-out zone. Cozy corners are filled with a variety of tools and techniques your child can use to help them regulate their feelings and bodies, including opportunities for reflection, sensory input, yoga, and meditation. This activity features an opportunity to co-create a cozy corner with your child, then to practice meditative techniques with familiar fairy tale characters. We encourage you to practice all the strategies below in calm, regulated moments as this will ensure more successful integration of the strategy when large feelings or dysregulation occurs.

What You Need

• Items to make your corner cozy: a fluffy rug or blanket, a bolster or floor cushion, a canopy or teepee, fairy lights

• A basket to hold your cozy corner tools

• A collection of cozy corner tools

  • Sand timer (to set time for calming down practice)

  • Whiteboard and marker (to draw with)

  • Stuffed animals (for comfort)

  • Fairy Tale Meditation Cards and Spring Into Yoga poster (for mindfulness)

  • Fidgets or TheraPutty (for sensory input)

  • Diverse textures (for sensory input)

  • Mindfulness jar or snow globe (for relaxation)

Steps: Cozy Corner

1. Find a quiet but observable area of the house to set up your cozy corner.

2. Introduce the cozy corner. Explain that it is a safe space to have our feelings, and not a time out zone.

3. Brainstorm with your student what calming items you feel would be useful tools inside the cozy corner and collect these in the basket.

4. Show students a variety of calming tools and meditation strategies that you have collected that they can use in the cozy corner.

5. Have students practice using these calming tools proactively to become accustomed to their new cozy corner, and in order to become comfortable accessing these strategies while feelings are not elevated. This will help tremendously when you point out these options when your student is struggling.

Note: As your student gets used to using the cozy corner, it will be important for you to model these techniques by using the cozy corner yourself in front of your student, and for you to be available to support them until they become more independent in their practice.

Steps: Fairy Tale Meditation Practice

1. Show the students the movements on the Fairy Tale Meditation Cards.

2. Help your student act out the movements and practice using mindfulness techniques.

3. Utilize our Breathing Exercises, An Invitation to Meditation, Yoga & Breathwork, or Spring Into Yoga activities if you would like more calming resources.

Guiding Questions

• How can we make our cozy corner a space where anyone can feel safe to share their feelings?

• How can we use these tools to change our feelings?

• Which tool will you use when you are [angry, sad, lonely, tired]?

• How does meditation make you feel?