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Meditation is an incredible tool for self-care and personal growth for children and families alike. This practice not only brings about a sense of calm and relaxation, but it also helps kids develop mindfulness. They learn to become more aware of their thoughts, feelings, and surroundings, which can significantly help them when they face challenging situations. It's a wonderful practice that can give them the skills they need to become more resilient, empathic, and self-reliant individuals. This post walks you through four meditations to do with your family so that you can begin incorporating this beneficial practice into your daily routine.

Getting Started

Caregivers, take a moment to get comfortable with your child. Use this time to bond and connect through peaceful breathing. Breathe in deeply, then exhale slowly. Together, extend your arms upwards, reaching for the stars. As you breathe out, lower your arms and spread your elbows wide, with your heart shining towards the sky. Continue this for a few repetitions until you're ready to begin the meditation.

When you're prepared, guide your child (suitable for all ages) through the following meditations. We suggest doing one each school night this week. For more meditations like these, visit the Little Otter Shop.

1. Melting Lava

   You are the melting lava. Imagine your body is warm and loose as it slides down a hillside. The heat makes it easy for your body to relax. With each breath you take, your body moves further and across the land. Down, down. You make a blanket of heat over the earth.

   And when the night falls, you gently cool with the night sky. Your lava hardens against the rocks, the trees, and the ground. Soon, your orange river changes into a strong, dark rock. You melt away the old, and in time, bring the promise of something new.

   Keep going. Where does the lava travel to next? What happens at the bottom of the hill? When do you finally rest?

2. Dancing Wildflowers

   Imagine you are the dancing flowers of the valley. You are as yellow as the midday sun, green as the gentle grass, blue as the deep ocean, and purple as the sunset sky. Your stems are thin but strong. When the wind blows, you dance, and you dance, and you dance.

   You love being connected with the Earth. Your arms reach out to the friends and family around you. You know you are just one flower, but you are also all the flowers. You are just one stem, but you are also the whole Earth.

   Keep going. When you tilt your head with the setting sun , what else do you see across the land? Do you see the trees? The mountains? When you dance, how does it feel in your body?

3. Gentle Fog

   You are the gentle fog. Imagine you roll in from the deep ocean. You move carefully across the big, blue waves. You quietly crawl onto the beach shore and settle into the mountain. Everything you touch gets a little bit of dew from your fog.

   You help us remember to be still. To be quiet. To be right here, right now. You teach us to close our eyes, to breathe in and out, to stretch our bodies. And when the time is right, you know when to move on, to thin out, to blend into the wind, and gently change into something new.

   Keep going. Where do you go next, fog? Do you enter the town? Do you return to the ocean or simply disappear? How does the ocean feel different from the land?

4. Mighty Milky Way

   You are the mighty Milky Way. You watch over the entire galaxy. You look to your left, and you see beautiful shades of purples and blues and blacks. You roll your eyes to the center. You see planets of all shapes and sizes. To your right, a shooting star sails across the sky. What a beautiful night.

   You remind us we are bigger than we could ever imagine. You help us dream our big dreams. You tell us to be hopeful for more but happy with what we have now.

   Keep going. What else do you see? Is the moon nearby? What about a meteor shower? Does it feel warm warm or cool? How many stars can you count?

With both everyday wellness tools and our award-winning online child therapy app, we’re on a mission to increase access to child mental health care at Little Otter. Begin your family’s mental health journey at the link below.