Strategies

There are numerous mindfulness activities that can be taught to children (and adults) in order to help them learn to regulate their feelings. These strategies/activities should be taught to children when they are calm instead of only attempting to use these strategies when experiencing a negative emotion. Like anything else, these strategies take practice in order for someone to become sufficient at them and in order for these strategies to be effective during emotionally distressing situations. Attached to this page, there is a Mindfulness Presentation that talks about numerous strategies that can be used in order to teach mindfulness. Some of the most common strategies are summarized below:

Strategies that Focus on Breathing

1. Flower/Candle Breathing - Breathe in through your nose like you are smelling a flower and out through your mouth like you are blowing out a candle.

2. Belly Breathing - While breathing in, expand your stomach like a balloon. While breathing out, allow your stomach to settle back to its normal position. Watch how to complete this strategy by clicking on the video below.

3. Breathing Buddy - Lie down on the floor and place your breathing buddy (a stuffed animal of your choice) on your belly. As you take belly breaths, watch your breathing buddy go up on the in-breath and down on the out-breath. Watch how to complete this strategy by clicking on the video above.

4. Happiness Soup or Happiness Hot Chocolate - Pretend to make happiness soup (or hot chocolate) by putting all of your good thoughts into an imaginary bowl. After putting in three to five good thoughts, pretend to stir the soup. Then pretend to smell the delicious soup before blowing on the soup to cool it off. Repeat this process a few times.

5. 7/11 Breathing - Breathe in through the nose for seven seconds and breathe out through the mouth for eleven seconds. Repeat. Watch how to complete this strategy by clicking on the video below.

6. Beat Your High Score - Breathe in deeply and count how long it takes to breathe out all of your air. Continue to do so with the goal of trying to increase the length of time you are able to breathe out. Watch how to complete this strategy by clicking on the video above.

7. Super Star Breathing - Start with your finger on the green circle. Breathe in while tracing the first straight line of the star and breathe out while tracing the second straight line. Continue until you have traced the entire star. Repeat as necessary! Print out the Super Star visual by clicking on the document attached to the bottom of this page. Watch how to complete this strategy by clicking on the video below.

8. Square Breathing - Start with your finger on the green circle. Breath in for four seconds while tracing the top part of the square, hold your breath for four seconds while tracing the right side of the square, breathe out for four seconds while tracing the bottom of the square, and finally hold all of the air out for four seconds while tracing the left side of the square. Repeat as necessary! Print out the square visual by clicking on the document attached to the bottom of this page. Watch how to complete this strategy by clicking on the video above.

9. Firework Breathing - Press the palms of your hands flat together in front of your heart (i.e. the fireworks). Breathe in while the rocket takes off (move hands up center of your body until arms are up above your head). CLAP (i.e. firework exploding). Then breathe out while your fingers sparkle downward. Repeat as necessary. Watch how to complete this strategy by clicking on the video below.

10. Bubble Gum Breathing - Hold both hands in loose fists. Put your fists together in front of your mouth so that your thumbs are touching your mouth (i.e. the bubble gum). Take a deep breath in through your nose. While breathing out through the mouth, slowly move your hands away from one another while opening up your fists as if the bubble is getting bigger and bigger. When you run out of breath, clap your hands together as if the bubble has popped before rubbing them together. Repeat as necessary. Watch how to complete this strategy by clicking on the video above.

11. Snake Breathing - Touch the palms of your hands in front of your body (the snake). Take a deep breath in. Slowly exhale by making a "sssssssss" sound while moving your hands all around like a snake. Upon running out of air, put the snake to sleep by settling your hands on your lap. Repeat as necessary.

12. Birthday Candle Breathing - Pick a number between one and ten or roll a dice to see how many birthday candles you will blow out. Hold the corresponding number of fingers in front of your mouth and wiggle them as if they are candle flames. Inhale slowly and blow one candle until they are all out.

13. Water Faucet Breathing - Stretch your arms out in front of you with the sides of your fists touching. Squeeze your hands tight while breathing in. Exhale while making a shhhhhhh sound with your mouth and making the spirit finger motion with your fingers (as if they are the water coming out of the faucet).

14. Ocean Breathing - Cover your ears with your hands and take a deep breath in through your nose and out through your mouth to hear the sounds of the ocean!

15. Lazy 8 Breathing - Trace the Lazy 8 with your fingers starting at the star and taking a deep breath in. As you cross over to the other side of the Lazy 8, slowly let your breath out. Continue breathing around the Lazy 8 until you have a calm body and mind (From The ZONES of Regulation curriculum).

16. Rainbow Breathing - Place your finger on a white dot. Trace the arrow and take a deep breath in. Pause at the end of the color. Trace the next arrow and breathe out. Continue around the image several times (From the OT Toolbox).

Strategies that Focus on Sense of Hearing

1. Count the Sounds Around You - Sit mindfully with your eyes closed. Keep your eyes closed in order to focus all of your attention on your hearing. Count all the sounds around you for thirty seconds to a minute or until you get to a predetermined number of noises. Try to increase the length of time you listen or the number of sounds you hear as you repeat this strategy. Watch how to complete this strategy by clicking on the video below.

2. Listen to Sounds in Three Locations - Sit mindfully with your eyes closed. Listen to the sounds outside of the room for approximately thirty seconds. Then, listen to the sounds within the room for approximately thirty seconds. Finally, listen to the sounds within yourself for thirty seconds. Watch how to complete this strategy by clicking on the video above.

3. Chakra Chime or Bell of Awareness - Sit mindfully with your eyes closed. Sound a real chime or a chime on a free app such as Chakra Chime or Insight Timer. Listen to the beginning, middle, and end of the bell. When you can no longer hear the bell, imagine that you can still hear its sound in your mind for approximately thirty seconds. Click the visual below to hear the sound of this bell.

4. Listen to Different Parts of Songs - Sit mindfully with your eyes closed. Listen to the same song numerous times but each time you listen to the song focus on a different aspect of the song. For instance, focus on the drums during the first listen, the guitar during the second listen, the lyrics during the third listen, the harmony during the fourth listen, etc.

Strategies that Focus on Sense of Sight

1. Count One Color - Pick one color. Look mindfully around the room and count all items that you can see that are that color.

2. Notice Three New Things - Look mindfully around the room and notice three things that you have never noticed about that room before.

3. Colors of the Rainbow - Look mindfully around the room and spot one item of every color of the rainbow.

4. Glitter Jar - Create a glitter jar (search on the internet for directions on how to do so). When experiencing a negative emotion, shake the glitter jar and watch it closely until all of the glitter has settled onto the bottom of the jar. Like the glitter in the jar, the thoughts in your mind will hopefully settle as well by doing so.

Strategies that Focus on Sense of Touch

1. Clap Your Hands - Clap your hands once before closing your eyes. Focus on the sensation in your hands until it fades.

2. Notice Three Points - Sit mindfully with your eyes closed. Notice three points where your body makes contact with something else.

3. C.A.L.M. - Sit mindfully with your eyes closed. Notice current sensations or emotions in your Chest, Arms, Legs, and Mind.

Strategies that Focus on Happiness/Gratitude

1. WWW (What Went Well?) - Think of three things that went well at the end of each day. As a bonus, start a WWW journal in which you write these three things down each night. Watch how to complete this strategy by clicking on the video below.

2. Make Kind Wishes - Close your eyes. With your eyes closed, make one wish for someone you care about, make one wish for someone you don’t know very well, and make one wish for someone who bothers you. As a bonus, make one wish for yourself. Watch how to complete this strategy by clicking on the video below.

3. Flower of Gratitude - Hold hands upright on your knees like two closed flowers. Take deep breaths in and out. With each exhale, think of something or someone for which/whom you are grateful and hold out one finger. Your fingers represent ten petals as well as ten things for which you are grateful. By the end of the tenth out-breath and tenth finger, bring both hands to your heart. Breathe deeply three times. Watch how to complete this strategy by clicking on the video below.

4. Inside Smile - Close your eyes and bring a small smile to your lips. Notice what the smile feels like from the inside both in your face and with your feelings.

5. Compassionate Hug - Stretch your arms out wide on the in-breath like you are hugging the whole world. Hold your arms across your shoulders on the out-breath like you are hugging yourself. Watch how to complete this strategy by clicking on the video below.

Below there is a long list of additional mindfulness activities.