This simple mindfulness exercise helps kids let go of tension and become more aware of their bodies. It’s a fun tool to use when they’re anxious, and it’s super simple to do.

I introduced this exercise to my 2-year-old son some months ago. We simplified it further, due to his age. What we did was we simply crunched our bodies – our faces, fists, hands, abdominals, and toes – all at once. The whole body crunch with an added silly face routine seems to work quite well when he is anxious. We make fun of the situation and end up laughing together.

Here’s the mindfulness exercise:

Mindfulness Exercises For Kids – Squish And Let Go

Purpose: Relaxation / Introduction to mindfulness of body

Best For: Ages 3+

What you need: Nothing

Ask your child to lie down and take a few deep breaths.

You can use the following script with your child:

Tense your stomach muscles for the count of two and then release or relax them.  See how this feels.

Now we’ll start this tensing and relaxing with each part of the body, starting with the toes.

Clench your toes for the count of two, then release them.

Now clench your feet for two, then release.

Let’s try your calf muscles. Clench for two, then release.

Work your way up your body until you finally finish up by clenching and releasing the top of your head. For added fun, you can ask your child to make a silly face as he clenches his face.

When you’re done, ask your child how his body feels now.

  • How did it feel to tense up?
  • How did it feel to let go?
  • Now that you have visited each muscle of your body, tensed, and let go, are you more relaxed or more tense?

It’s best to learn this exercise when you are both calm and relaxed. This way it will be much easier to apply when your child is tense.

I hope you’ll enjoy this activity with the kids!!

You’ll find 150 playful mindfulness activities in my 5-star rated best selling book:

“The Most Important Mindfulness Book You’ll Ever Buy” – Helen Hudson

Ultimate Mindfulness Activity Book – 150 Playful Mindfulness Activities for Kids and Teens (and Grown-Ups too!)

Wishing you many fun mindful moments with your children :-)

Chris Bergstrom

Chief Mindfulness Ninja @ Blissful Kids

 #1 Best-Selling Author of:
 
★★★★★ Awesome “Bought this book for my 6 year old, but even my 3 and 15 yo love the activities. We usually incorporate activities on a daily basis and it’s been working so far.”
&
★★★★★ Cute and calming “With the craze being all about baby sharks, it’s a great idea to take it and use it to help our kids calm down themselves. I’m a therapist and look forward to using this with my kid clients.”

See also:

Liking the Music

Stay Cool Game

5 Mindful Games

If you are new to mindfulness with children OR you want to make practice easy we recommend our online mindfulness courses.


Chris Bergstrom is a bestselling mindfulness author, a leader in the field of mindfulness, the founder of BlissfulKids.com, a blog dedicated to children’s mindfulness, and a dad who is thrilled to practice mindfulness with his son. He is a certified mindfulness facilitator and trained to teach mindfulness to students in K-12. He’s also known as “the dad who tried 200+ mindfulness activities” and has taught meditation for more than 15 years.