Meditation to help you see the best in your kids and teens

Negativity Bias and Mindfulness It means that our brain and body constantly scan the environment for threats. If we detect a threat, we manage it as it activates our stress response (fight/flight/freeze) – which is designed to keep us alive. What it means is that we are hardwired (neurologically speaking) to seek out the negative in […]

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How to help Kids in Canada thrive – with meditation and mindfulness

  Are Kids in Canada Coping with Stress? I’m writing this post with a focus on Canada.  Why?  Because I’ll be going there to teach in September and I wanted to find out more about how Canadian Kids could benefit from meditation. What I find fascinating is that many of the issues facing young people in […]

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Mandala meditations for kids

I love mandalas. They are one of the most effective ways to teach children mindfulness skills while they meditate. The idea behind mandalas in Buddhist practices is to create the mandala out of coloured sand while paying attention to thoughts, body, breath and emotions.  Then when complete,  the mandalas are released to symbolise impermanence and non-attachment. However […]

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Changing Education with Meditation and Mindfulness

I’m looking to change the education system in order that kids benefit from meditation – every day. The very fact you are reading this blog suggests that you are interested in… a/teaching your children meditation b/teaching other people’s children meditation … and you want this world to be a better place for children in the future when we […]

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watch out for mindfulness ‘cowboys’

One of my students Ali Gray, is very passionate about the world learning meditation.   He is one of our Connected Kids students and together with his colleague, Gary Young, is pioneering a project to make it part of the school curriculum in Scotland. At a ‘business and mindfulness’ conference, he heard the term ‘mindfulness cowboys‘ and wondered […]

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Why I care about your child’s happiness

I wasn’t sure what to write about in my recent blog. I get a bit tired of emails  or blogs all sounding the same and a bit ‘salesy’. But that’s not me. So I decided to let you know why I feel responsible for your child’s happiness.  Every time I read about the stress young people […]

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Changing Education with Mindfulness and Meditation

I had an extraordinary trip to the States recently. It seemed to tie in with how I feel (strongly) about teaching kids and young people meditation. I am a passionate advocate for meditation becoming a natural part of the school day. It should be introduced into the school curriculum in the same way that we include […]

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what is a connected kid? teaching meditation and mindfulness

There’s a whole story behind the name ‘connected kids’. Originally we had called our programme after the first book ‘Calm Kids – help children relax with mindful activities‘.    However the name didn’t sit comfortably with me.  I felt a bit ‘icky’ with the idea of adults trying to ‘calm kids’ down.   Meditation isn’t about […]

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The real reason why we teach kids/teens meditation

Today I read an article  about someone in the States using a derogatory term for the President.  This term is an insult to people who have special needs.  However a Special Olympics athlete replied to the incident with a response that gave me chills – because it was so compassionate and kind – even in […]

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Useful ideas to help kids with ADHD

  ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) is a condition very close to my heart as I see kids who benefit from learning easy, simple mindful activities that help them out of their stressed state. They enter that state very easily as they basically live there.  It’s not an easy existence and while I don’t think […]

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