Breathing exercises can be incredibly useful for children and have even more benefits when incorporated into your child's daily routine. To define what breathing exercises are, they are different techniques designed to focus on one's breath pattern in specific ways.
Breathing exercises can help promote relaxation, improve focus and attention, can help regulate emotion, and encourage positive habits.
Let's go over five different kinds of breathing exercises that are easy to learn for kids!
Hoberman Sphere Taking a Hoberman Sphere, or breathing ball, mimic through the ball how the lungs fill with air. Inhale, taking a deep breath, and while doing so, expand the ball. Then when exhaling, slowly shrink the ball back down to its beginning size. You can repeat this exercise to continue deep breathing, or instead try to mimic a more natural breathing cycle.
Belly Breathing Begin by placing a hand on your belly, having the child do the same. Then inhale through your nose, making note of your belly filling with air, like a balloon. Your hand should move with your belly in and out.
Candle To begin this exercise, you should pretend as though there is a lit candle in front of you. Then take a deep breath in through your nose. When you go to exhale, you are going to envision that you are blowing out the candle's flame slowly, until it is just flickering. This exercise can help slow down your breathing and relax your body.
4-7-8 Breathing This method of breathing follows a specific pattern that can help reduce anxiety and help you fall asleep. To begin, you will inhale through your nose for four seconds. Then you will hold the breath for seven seconds and exhale for eight seconds. This follows the 4-7-8 pattern and can help diminish anxiety as you focus on your breathing.
Bubble Breathing The last technique of bubble breathing is a fun activity for kids to really get involved in. Using actual bubbles, you will practice using slow and gentle breaths to breathe through the bubble wand and create a bubble!
Practicing these breathing exercises with your children can help them understand the importance of deep breathing and provide additional benefits to aid in their sleep or working through their feelings.
Visit the Mindful Play Learning YouTube channel for more mindfulness activities to do with your children!
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