One of our children’s deepest needs is to feel heard, and by listening carefully and expressing empathy, parents can help fill this need. More importantly, research has found that if someone feels empathy, even if it’s just from watching a touching video, it can make them feel more connected to — and generous toward — others. In other words, practicing empathy with your kids can help them grow up to be emotionally intelligent adults.
Getting back to the Fall school routine is exhilarating, yet can also be anxiety-producing for kids and families alike - especially given our last few years dealing with the many pandemic changes. Check out these tips from the Child Mind Institute to reduce stress at home, and gear up for success. Adding a sprinkle of mindfulness to your daily routine can also be a powerful antidote to stress. Check out Kidevolve’s Can of Delight or Worry Box (by Jeff Warren) to boost confidence and cope with worries, or Heart Medicine (by Christine Alevizakis) to get a head start on self-care! And you can listen to audio-only versions of these cool Creative Mind Journeys here.
The easiest and quickest way to calm an anxious mind is to breathe in and breathe out. But if you find “breath work” boring, you’re not alone! Here’s a shortlist of techniques we love, so you can find the one that’s easy and right for you. Scan this list and try a few. Then, teach your kids and students! As always, most kids pick up on these techniques effortlessly (when compared with adults). If you teach children while they’re young, you give them crucial EQ skills to draw on for life.
During pandemics, personal choices determine whether we contain or spread the virus. Our decisions also govern something even more contagious—our emotions. When they’re out of control, one person’s irritability can upset the whole family’s happiness. But, if we understand and harness transmissible emotions, they can (like a vaccine) protect family wellbeing.
Kids who have explored building self control and focus in Be a Ninja and Ninja School 2 are now ready for our latest and final Ninja installment: Ninja School 3. In this advanced story, they can test out their new Ninja powers and practice feeling dignified and in control. At the end, they’ll have honed a key Ninja superpower - the ancient art of self-control - even when difficult feelings try to hijack the scene!
We invite you to clear some active space (where kids can bounce around), and line up this giggly, zesty 6.5 minute journey for Friday’s home-school curriculum. This story is all about flexibility. Kids learn to switch back and forth between being DELIGHTFULLY bouncy and PEACEFULLY calm - on a dime - think about it like a giant freeze game (with audio and visual cues for both kinds of learners). At the end, kids gain a key Ninja power - the ancient art of self-control.
As nerves understandably become a bit frazzled the longer we stay at home together, one thing seems to help: practicing kindness. Studies report that showing compassion or gratitude can boost those feel-good hormones (serotonin and dopamine) in your brain. So encouraging children to bring a snack to someone without being asked or to give a random hug to an annoying sibling isn’t simply being nice—it might also be helping to boost their mental health.
