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Children and Meditation

by Lorraine Murray

How to support children's health

Meditation is a common word these days with many adults turning to this to help reduce stress, improve sleep and feel more relaxed in daily life.

Children can also benefit from learning meditation although many adults assume (wrongly) that it is more difficult for children to learn how to meditate. Here are a few points to help support you if you are thinking about teaching your children meditation.

Being in the Moment - Meditation

Being absorbed in the moment is a form of meditation and some children find it very easy to do this. Whether it is playing with a toy, skipping or running...they usually do not think about anything else. Most adults find it difficult to switch off their minds from thinking so it takes longer for their minds to relax into meditation.

Focus and Concentration

Whilst children can only concentrate for shorter periods of time (compared to adults) they can still try some forms of meditation Using the breath to meditate is a good example. Simply getting your child to notice their breath, count their breath and gently make their in and out breath longer may only take 2 minutes but it will have a very positive effect for concentration (plus focusing on the breath helps to calm down your children's energy).

Relaxation

Relaxation methods invite the child/adult to relax each part of their body. When we teach adults to relax, we do this with them seated in a chair and their feet on the ground. If we allow them to lie down... they fall asleep! With younger children (under 7) it is usually best to let them lie down if you are trying any relaxation methods during the day. They will not fall asleep but it allows them to settle down. If you are trying to get them to go to sleep then use it whilst they lie in bed at bed time).

Toddlers Cannot Meditate

I used to think this but I think that provided you appreciate they their attention span is shorter (so it is better to do short meditation exercises more frequently than try to do 1 long one) and that sometimes children benefit from moving meditations (such as yoga) then it is quite possible for young children to meditate.

Using Colour

Our bodies are energy, so using a colour meditation is a great way to get kids to meditate. Get them into a meditation position, ask them to think of a colour and then ask them to imagine a blanket or cloud of this colour surrounding them. Get them to breath in the colour into all parts of their body. On an energy level, children always choose the right colour (for healing and balance) and breathing it in helps them to feel safe, grounded and relaxed.

How To Teach Children Meditation

Lorraine Murray has been practising meditation for the past 24 years and teaching Meditation and Reiki for the past 8. She runs a teaching practice in Edinburgh, Scotland and offers meditation CDs for all levels. She runs a course for adults on how to teach children meditation. No experience is required. She is passionate about teaching children meditation and is setting up the 'Teach Children Meditation' Campaign in 2011. Join the Campaign >>>

For more information:

• How to Teach Children Meditation Course >>>
• Meditation for beginners >>>
• Meditation Cds for adults or children >>>

Lorraine has also written a book called 'how to teach children meditation' which will be released by end of 2011/beginning of 2012. Please subscribe to the mailing list to be kept informed of the release date.

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