Mindfulness Ideas Part 1

Here are some mindfulness ideas, in no particular order. Many of these can be done with children.

1 Long pencil colouring: standing at a table, hold the pencil at the far end so it’s hard to control the detail, draw something like a tree or a house, practice accepting the lack of control and the imperfection of the drawing

2 Bell listening: chime a bell and listen to it as it fades. In a group, you can raise your hand when you can no longer hear it.

3 Nostril breathing: focus on the sensation of the breath as it passes through the nostril, observing without judgement.

4 Belly breath with hands: placing your hands on your belly, slowly push your belly out when you breath in and pull it back in when you breathe out.

5 Energy breathing: imaging breathing clean air down into your belly with each breath, through the nostrils.

6 Weight shifting: slowly and subtly shift your weight from one foot to the other (try not to become unstable, bend the knees to maintain stability); notice the changes in weight underfoot and notice how your thigh muscles activate and relax.

7 Environmental listening: observe the sounds around you, firstly in the room, then after a while take your focus outside the room, listening, noticing the sound, not judging the sounds you hear.

8 Listening to music: slowly focus your attention from one instrument to the next, not judging the instruments or music.

9 Bird listening: listen to the individual sounds of birds in a garden.

10 Observing lights: if you have disco lighting and can slow down the movement, watch the lights shone onto a wall, observing the changing colour; alternatively watch the shadow of a tree as the branches and leaves shift in the wind.