At-Home Mindfulness Activities
Written by Victoria Delgadillo, MC LAC
Four At-Home Mindfulness Activities
1. Gratitude box
What you need:
An empty tissue box or empty jar
Paper
Decorating items (e.g. stickers, paint, colorful markers, scissors, labels, glitter, etc.)
Directions:
Decorate the box any way you like!
Label the box “Gratitude box/jar” or “Why I’m grateful”
Take small pieces of paper and write down some things you are grateful for, then place them in the box/jar. For smaller kids, you may need to write down the items for them.
This is an opportunity to talk with your kids and connect! You can use this activity for just that day, week, or even keep it all year! Something fun to do at the end of the year is to read all the things you were grateful for throughout the year!
2. Cotton Ball Breathing Race
What you need:
A table to sit at or a flat surface you have easy access to
Cotton balls
Optional: Straws
Directions:
Sit in front of the table, sit tall, and begin to focus on your breathing.
Close your eyes or focus on something in front of you as you keep taking deep breaths.
When child or adult says “go”, you both use your breath (or breathe through a straw) to guide the cotton ball to the other side of the table. You may notice that it is much harder to take small, short breaths. See how much easier and better it works when you take long, deep breaths!
This helps teach kids that slow breaths can be more beneficial and effective. When you practice enough, you can start to race against each other to see who is better at long, focused breathing!
3. Feelings Postcards
What you need:
Paper
Decorating items (e.g. stickers, paint, colorful markers, scissors, labels, glitter, etc.)
Choose whatever size you would like—they can be big, small, or in-between!
After decorating your card, write a message or note to someone. Say whatever it is that you are feeling inside and need to get out. Here’s the best part, you don’t have to send it to them! This can be a note you keep to yourself, or you can give it to that person.
Take this opportunity to get out all your feelings and maybe talk about it together. This also gives children the opportunity to express feelings at home without fear of judgement and encourages communication.
4. Grounding/Soothing rock
What you need:
Rock or stone
Decorating items (e.g. paint, colorful markers, glitter, googly eyes, etc.)
Directions:
Decorate your rock any way you’d like. Write a helpful word or message or decorate it with your favorite colors.
Once it’s decorated, this rock can be used any time that you feel stressed, overwhelmed, or have big emotions.
When you want to use your grounding/soothing rock, hold it in your hand and notice how it feels. Is it light? How heavy is it? Is it rough or smooth? Is it warm or cold? It can also help by just looking at it, noticing all the colors or the words you wrote on it. Sometimes kids like to carry it with them, so they have it close by when they really need it.