The 51 Mindful Summer Challenge

Are you ready to take on ‘The 51 day Mindful Summer Challenge?’ One activity for every day of the school holidays.

These mindful summer activities are mindful in the sense that they are helping our children learn to pay attention (to their bodies and their minds) and to understand their feelings. You don’t even have to use the word mindfulness — make it a fun activity and the learning will happen organically!

How many challenges can you complete as a family this summer? I would love to see photos so these can be shared when we return to Balliol in September. Please send them to jo.smedley@balliolschool.co.uk

1. The Ice Lolly Challenge

When you eat an ice lolly/ice cream, challenge your kids to be silent until their ice lolly/ice cream is entirely gone. Encourage them to really notice all the different tastes (one

of those ice lollies/ice cream that has different flavours would be great

for this).

2. Sky StudySpend at least 10-15

minutes

studying the sky — and notice how the clouds gently move along. Notice how the cloud that first

looked like a pig now looks like a cat. This

is a great way to introduce the idea that our minds are kind of like the sky — thoughts float through on their own, and they

change on their own. We can watch our

thoughts in our minds like we watch

the clouds!

3. Create your own Pose

Think about different poses you can make with your body. Can you create your own yoga pose? Take a photo and name it.

4. Slow-Fast-SlowWith mindfulness,

we practice slowing down, so we don’t

feel so rushed all the time. The next time

you’re at the playground, try

playing “Slow-Fast-Slow.” Whatever your children are

doing — playing in the sand, running through tunnels —

have them try to do it slow, then fast,

and then slow again.

Talk about what it felt like to do

something slowly. Did it feel different?

5. Mindful ReadingThe next time you read a story with

your children, take some time to engage

in conversation about the feelings of

the people (or animals) in the book.

It can be hard for children to talk about their own emotions, so sometimes it’s

easier to talk about fictional characters.

You can ask questions like, “What do you think the girl is thinking about?”; “Why do you think

he is sad?”; “How do you think you would feel if that happened to you?” or, “Have you ever felt like

that before?”

6. Make Mind JarsUsing glitter and water, you can

make a “mind jar” — the glitter represents all the thoughts and

emotions in their minds (and when the jar is

shaken they go crazy!) But if you stop moving it and breathe for a few

moments, the glitter settles and the water

becomes clear.

7. Organise Your Photos or Make a

ScrapbookHave your children

help you sort through old photos. This can

spark some great conversations about

their favourite memories, and, if

you’ve seen Inside Out, you could ask

kids what they think their “core

memories” are. Create collages that

represent core memories or the  different

“islands” that make up their personality.

8. ColourWhen we colour, we

focus our attention on a single activity, and that can feel really pleasant.

Join your kids in colouring time,

perhaps with a cool mandala colouring book or one with intricate designs.

(Colouring Sheets enclosed)

9. Dance Party!Crank up the tunes and dance! Get out of your

head and into your body. I love dancing with kids —

there’s no self-consciousness. It’s just pure movement and joy and self-expression. We

can learn a lot from them!

10. Listen!Listen carefully with your eyes closed to any sounds you can

hear. After one minute, open your

eyes and tell someone everything

you heard.

11. Feather Drop!Ask someone to drop a feather and watch it very closely as it

floats to the ground.

12. Listen and Draw

Listen carefully to a piece of music and

draw a line on a piece of paper which matches the feeling

created by the music.

13. Tummy Movements

Lie with your back on the floor and place a

soft toy on your tummy. Breathe in and out slowly and deeply and try to

concentrate on the way your toy rises

14. Smell!Find something with a strong and pleasant

scent e.g. lavender or orange peel and place it close to your nose.

Try to concentrate just on the smell for a

whole minute.

15. Rainbow Pose!(Yoga)

and falls with your breathing.

16. Blowing Bubbles!

Tell children to focus on taking in a deep,

slow breath, and exhaling steadily to fill the bubble. Encourage

them to pay close attention to the

bubbles as they form, detach, and pop or

float away.

17. Hot Floor!Tell children that the floor is hot and the balloon

will burst if it touches the

floor. The aim of this game is to

keep the balloon off the ground, but have them

move slowly and gently.

18. Taste!Give children a

starburst, skittle

(something similar) and ask them to put it in their mouth and really take

in the taste, texture, smell

etc…

19. Heartbeat 20. Emotion BottlesCreate your own emotion bottle characters using

different shapes, sizes and colours to represent the

different emotions.

21. Mindful Scavenger Hunt!

(Sheet enclosed)

22. Rainbow WalkGo for a walk and take in the colours

around you. Can you take a picture of

things that are the different colours of

the rainbow?

23. Mindfulness Safari 24. Texture Box

Put a selection of objects with

different shapes and

textures into a bag. Get the

children to take turns putting

their hands in, feeling one of

the objects and describing it to

the others (without

looking at it) in as much detail

as possible.

25. Kind Quotes

Get children to create pictures and send them to close family

and friends.

May want to add positive quotes, e.g.

Your Amazing! Smile! Never

Stop |Believing!

26. Memory JarEvery time an

activity is completed at home that

children / the family have enjoyed write it down and pop it in a

jar.

After a few days / weeks go back and have a read of all the fun activities

completed and talk about what you

remember.

27. Squishy BallsThis fun craft has the

added benefit of giving your kids an excellent mindfulness tool. Take colourful balloons and

insert a funnel in the neck. Help your kids carefully pour in the filling of your choice. Try flour or sand for squishy balls. You can

also use dry rice or birdseed for a firmer

texture and a less messy experience.

Once the balloons are filled, tie them up and let

the kids decorate the outside with paint or

stickers. Squishy balls allow kids to physically

relieve any negative feelings with just a

squeeze.

28. The Squish and Relax Whilst the children are lying down with their eyes closed, ask them to squish and squeeze every muscle

in their bodies as tight as they can. Ask them to start with their toes and feet, squish the muscles in

their legs, squeeze their stomachs, then their hands into fists and raise their shoulders up to their heads.

Ask them to hold themselves squished up for a few seconds and

then fully release and relax.

29. Hugs Take a moment to

hug a family / friend. How does it feel? Could you

feel your heart beat?

30. The Name Game

This game is simpler than Eye Spy and yet it can be a powerful tool

31. I am Amazing!

Stop and think about all the

positive things

32. How do you feel?

Take a moment to think about how you are

33. Pen WalkTake a

pen/pencil for a walk on a piece

of paper.

34. Positive Comments

Get every member of your house a jar

and every day

35. Wiggle and Freeze!

In this game you wiggle, bounce around, or dance until you say "Freeze!"

36. Snake Pose (Yoga)

to curb spiralling thoughts.

First, look around you and name three things you can hear, then two

things you can see, and finally one

sensation that you feel.

you can do. Share these with someone else.

You could complete

attached sheet ‘I am an Amazing Person!’ to show

how amazing you are.

(I would love to see them).

feeling. Which words would describe how

you are feeling? Can

you trace back the origins of

those feelings?

Colour, decorate each

section created.

everyone has to write a positive comment about someone else in

their family. At the end of the summer holidays open your jar up and read all

the positive comments your

family have written about you.

"Then everyone freezes and takes a moment to

notice what they can feel in their body — perhaps

movement, tingling, heat, shaking, buzzing, or

something else."

37. Cook a MealCook a meal together and take in the smells created when cooking.

38. Be Helpful!

Do one thing to help around the

house.

It may be help with the

washing/washing up, read a story to a sibling, tidy your toys/room

etc…

39. Nature Collage

Visit the woods, collect lots of natural items and create a

nature collage.

Explore the different

textures and colours in your collage. Can you describe

them?

40. Daisy Chains

Find some daisy chains and see how long you

can make your daisy chain.

41. Yoga VideoFollow one of the

yoga videos on this link:

https://awakeandmindful.co

m/best-kids-yoga-videos-on-youtube/

42. Pennies!You will need a basket/pot of pennies. Everyone gets a penny and a minute to

study it in detail. The pennies are then placed back in the basket. Each player has to pick their

penny out of all the pennies and say how they

knew it was theirs. This game can be played with

different objects.

43. Through the Window!Sit and look out of one of your

windows for 10 minutes. What do you see? Who did you see? Did

you see any cars? Can you remember what you saw?

44. Hand TracingSit quietly and take a

few slow, deep breaths.

Stretch out your fingers on one hand.

With your other hand, slowly trace around your thumb. Breathe

in as you trace up one side of the

thumb, and breathe out as you trace

down the other side.Do the same for the other four fingers,

tracing up and breathing in, tracing down and breathing

out.Switch hands and do it again. This time,

pause slightly at the top and bottom of

each finger.Think about which method you prefer

today: with or without the pause.

45. Bug Watch!Find an old piece of

log, branch or lift up an old plant pot. Take a few minutes to watch the creepy crawlies

and describe what you see.

46. Make a Splash!Splash in puddles or

dance in the rain. How did it make you feel?

47. Tree Pose (Yoga) 48. Blow! Blow a dandelion and watch the petals float

away. Where do you think they will land?

49. Colour Mood

Ask children to identify

different colours to represent

different moods/feelings.

Talk about what makes them

feel that colour and what colour they are feeling each day or at different times

50. Doughnut Time!

Eat a doughnut without licking

your lips.

Think about the taste of the

doughnut and the texture of the sugar on

your lips.

51. Noticing Walk Go for a walk in your

local area and ask your children to try to

notice 10 things they’ve never really

paid attention to before — perhaps

the colour of the neighbour’s car/front door or the flowers in the area. You could also try to listen for

new sounds, too. Ask them why they think

of the day. they’ve never noticed them!

Other useful websites / Apps:

Smiling Mind App – Free o Practice your daily meditation and mindfulness exercises from any device. Smiling Mind is a unique tool developed by psychologists and educators to

help bring balance to your life. https://www.cosmickids.com/mindfulness- activities-kids/

Breathe, Think, Do with Sesame o This app teaches skills such as problem-solving, self-control, planning, and task persistence. The research-based app

helps your child learn Sesame’s “Breathe, Think, Do” strategy for problem-solving. Children enjoy silly learn emotional vocabulary, a calm breathing technique, personalised encouragement, and more!

Go Zen o https://gozen.com/category/mindfulness- meditation/

Go Noodle o https:// family.gonoodle.com/

Books:

Matt’s Swirly World by Madeleine Matthewso An adorable journey featuring a mother and her young son, this book is a great reminder about how all emotions are accepted and that

proper behaviours can be learned by kids and taught by caregivers.

What Does it Mean to be Present? by Rana DiOrioo Follow a group of friends at school, at home, and at the beach as they experience just what it means to be

present.

I Can Handle It! by Laurie Wrighto Parents and teachers are amazed when children start saying 'I CAN handle it' almost immediately after reading this book!  In tough

situations that usually cause meltdowns, kids start to realize they can problem-solve solutions and likely 'handle' the situation themselves.

For further information / support regarding SEND and Pupil’s Emotional Well-Being:Bedford Borough Advice / Support:https://localoffer.bedford.gov.uk/kb5/bedford/directory/advice.page?id=DIOI7rT1-n4

This website has lots of useful information and leaflets about ‘Returning to School’, ‘Policies’, ‘Referrals’ (for further support, e.g. Speech and Language) and useful advice supporting children with SEND.

Parent Carer Forum:https://www.bbpcf.co.uk/

Young Minds:https://youngminds.org.uk/

Enjoy your mindful summer activities, have a wonderful summer and we all look forward to seeing you in September!