Mindfulness Activities

The mindfulness activities listed below can be used to help reduce stress and anxiety, strengthen attention and focus, support social and emotional growth, and better resolve conflicts that arise.

  1. Notice 5 Things

  • Sit down where you are and look around. Find five things you notice. Tell an adult or sibling about these five things. This can be a helpful game to play by yourself or with others if you are ever feeling anxious or upset.

  1. Deep Breaths

  • Practicing mindful breathing is a simple way to help us calm our bodies. Close your eyes and take a slow deep breath in through your nose and out your mouth. Repeat this 5-10 times.

  1. Draw Your Emotions

  • Mindfulness includes being aware of our feelings as well as how we feel about the world around us. Sit down, close your eyes, and think about how you are feeling. For younger students, adults ask your child to close his/her eyes and think about how they are feeling. You might want to offer some words to give ideas (happy, disappointed, silly, scared, angry, etc.) You can also model the exercise by drawing how you are feeling. If your child feels like naming his/her emotion, you can write the word on the picture.

  1. Going on a Safari

  • Go outside on an exciting adventure, try picking up a small rock or touching the grass. Notice the bugs or the birds. Take a moment to kneel down and touch the earth.

  • Walk mindfully paying close attention to everything around you. Make sure you walk in silence because you want to notice all the little details surrounding you.

  1. Muscle Relaxation

  • Start with your feet and gently squeeze the muscles by tightening them and then slowly release.

  • Next gently squeeze the large muscles in your calves then slowly release.

  • Continue working your way up the body until you have gently squeezed and released each muscle in your body.

  1. Object Exploration

  • Find an object that you can hold in your hand. (pencil, small toy, book, etc.)

  • Sit quietly and hold that object in your hand.

  • Notice how heavy that object is. Think about how it feels in your hand. What is something new that you notice about that object?