How to Use Meditation With Children

Many people believe children, by virtue of their innocence, are specially attuned to spiritual forces and can learn to harness them with incredible aplomb if encouraged from a young age. Adherants to meditation practices claim that children can use meditation to increase their concentration and foster their precious innate understanding of the spiritual. Meditation is an ancient discipline that focuses the mind while relaxing the body. Some people believe it can be used to treat everything from anxiety to deficits.

Things You'll Need

• Computer with Internet access
• Meditation beads (optional)
• Dedicated meditation space
• Meditation stones (optional)
• Meditation music (optional)

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Instructions

Teach Your Child to Meditate

• 1

  Know that meditation for children does not necessarily mean they must remain rigid, still and cross-legged, as adults do. Though that practice can be used, many experts agree that it is better to simply allow young children to move around as they wish while you guide their thoughts toward the creative and contemplative.

• 2

  Prepare your child verbally. Explain to her, in plain language, why meditation is important. It can be helpful to approach meditation as a game you're going to play together if your child is a toddler.

• 3

  Encourage your children's creativity. Don't discourage them if their thoughts and minds wander. Simply encourage them to use their imaginations to gain self-understanding.

• 4

  Read about techniques helpful for encouraging children to meditate in books such as "Teach the Children Meditation" (see Resources below). Apply the ones that seem most useful to your child's particular disposition.

• 5

  Use meditation music. This will help your child stay focused and will prevent outside distractions.

• 6

  Give your older children meditation beads or meditation stones to use as they meditate. This will give them a tangible task to work through as they meditate, such as moving through a necklace of beads or a set of stones. These beads are usually inexpensive.

• 7

  Participate in meditation along with your child. He will learn from your example, and will pick up proper techniques by watching you and receiving instruction.

• 8

  Emphasize mental imagery during meditation. This makes good, constructive use of children's naturally active imaginations.

• 9

  Be positive and patient. Children are filled with energy, and the world is a new and fascinating place to them. Don't become discouraged if they resist meditation at first.