How to Teach Meditation to Kids
Meditation can feel lofty and intimidating, especially to kids. Here is a practice you can use to introduce meditation in a way that’s salient to older kids and teens:
Find a writing tool and a piece of paper. Write your name in your absolute best cursive. When you are finished, reflect on what it felt like. Note those feelings. And also write some notes to describe the writing itself. You may notice words like this:
It felt… purposeful, thoughtful, slow, careful, smooth, engaging, focused
It looks… smooth, connected, linked, curvy, soft
Now switch your writing tool to your non-writing hand. Try the exercise again: write your name as best you can, in any style of print. When you are finished, reflect on what it felt like. Note those feelings. And also write some notes to describe the writing itself. You may notice words like this:
It felt… challenging, frustrating, hard, clunky, awkward, difficult, disconnected
It looks… jagged, lopsided, disconnected, rough, broken, scratchy, unclear, illegible
In summary, meditation is the practice of making your thoughts like cursive: becoming aware of our thoughts and helping them to slow down and become more purposeful, thoughtful, careful, smooth, engaging, and focused. But in reality, we typically practice discursive meditation: our thoughts jump from idea to idea and become disconnected, broken, and unclear. Discursive meditation occurs every time we scroll social media, browse news websites, shop online compulsively, and ruminate on worries.
Make it Actionable: Set a 5-minute timer. Open up your favorite social media app. Focus on looking for images with the color blue in them. Seek, find, scroll. Seek, find, scroll. As your awareness drifts away from the goal (finding blue), steer it back. When the timer goes off, reflect: What was this experience like? How did it shift your consciousness? What changes would you like to make to your thinking when you open this app next time?
Thank you for going there.
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In yoga philosophy, meditation is dhyana, the seventh limb of practice.
It’s also the gateway to samadhi — a state of perfect bliss, unity, and absorption.