Kids are a form of God (Bachche bhagwaan ka roop hain), Kids always live in the present, Mindfulness comes naturally to kids. These are statements we hear casually thrown around. Such statements create an erroneous belief that children are automatically mindful. But if that were true we wouldn’t have trouble with mindfulness as adults. At least we would struggle with it less. In reality, mindfulness like any other skill / good habit needs to be practiced. Earlier you start better it is!
Here are 4 mindfulness games you can play with a toddler that encourage mindfulness.
1) Beauty Game – Ask your toddler to point out 5 beautiful things he sees whenever you are outside the house. Take turns at finding beauty and you will be amazed at some of the things your little one finds beautiful.
Advanced version – Depending on how far along your child’s language skills are, you can even ask “why do you find xyz beautiful”? It makes for some interesting conversations.
2) I 👁 Spy – This has quickly become a favorite precursor to bedtime. I Spy is a guessing game in which each person takes turn at spying an object. Others have to guess the object. We can ask questions like “Which part of the room is it in?” “What color is it?” Is it living or non living?
Often we spy objects that have been around forever but went unnoticed.
3) What do you hear? This is an excellent game for the times when your toddler is tired but doesn’t want to sleep. Get comfortable, close your eyes and take turns at describing the sounds you hear. This is especially entertaining when played sitting on a bench in a park or shopping mall. Another version is to take turns at listing h all the sounds you heard during a family walk. Toddlers can generally retain that information for no more than 20 mins. Therefore keep these walk short.
4) I touch – Ask your toddler to list 2 things she is touching right now. Take turns at listing these objects for each other. This game can be played with older kids as well (3-10). Just increase the difficulty level by introducing rules such as “Ang object can only be named once.” For toddlers it can be a good game for developing counting skills, increasing vocabulary and even identifying body parts.
Wonderful practical advise. These are baby steps to a great motherhood. A mother can contribute to the human race by raising a kid to be a wonderful mindful human being and a good citizen to the country.