Background information

This activity uses mindful breathing techniques to teach children how to shift emotional states. This is a practice that can settle children, and foster calm and focused attention. These practices can be incorporated into everyday life to lessen anxiety and relieve stress amongst children, educators, and families.

Please find out more about the importance of breathing exercises for our health here: The Benefits Of Breathing Exercises.

This activity has been developed in partnership with Beata Heymann from Breath Circle. You can find out more about Beata and arrange for her to come to your centre by registering here.

In this activity, you will be sharing a clip with children. The clip is a guided breathing exercise, where children will be asked to follow the instructions and actions presented in the clip. If you can, go through the breathing exercise yourself before sharing it with your children. That way you will know what is expected of them, and be able to support them through the activities.

Research has shown that spending time outdoors has many benefits, especially for children. This also applies to practices like breathwork and mindfulness. Research suggests that presenting these activities outdoors may make our minds wander less, and allow us to focus more on being present. The research also suggests that mindfulness practices conducted outside can have greater benefits to mental, physical, and social health than those undertaken indoors. Find out more here and here.

Part A: Discussion

Step 1.

Gather the children together in an open space. This activity would work best outdoors.

If you have an activity that you use with children to focus their attention (such as three claps, a song, or a poem), you could do this now.

Once you have the children's attention, invite them to sit and place their hands palm down on the ground. Pose the following statement:

I wonder what is under our hands.

Invite responses from children and lead them to the idea that under their hands is the earth!

Step 2.

Then say the following:

I wonder what we already know about the earth.

Invite children to suggest responses. Concepts you could share with children include:

Earth is a planet floating in space.
Earth has many layers under the surface, including soil, rocks, and magma (the stuff that comes out of volcanoes).
Earth is the only place (that we know of) where people, animals and plants live; the only place where you can find oceans filled with sea life and trees filled with birds and insects; and cities filled with traffic, buildings, streets, museums, art galleries, playgrounds, parks, and busy, busy people!
Earth is our home; there is nowhere else in the solar system where we could survive comfortably (as far as we know).
In the soil beneath our feet, there is so much more than dirt and rocks; there are all sorts of worms, insects, fossils, and other treasures—imagine what you might be sitting on right now!
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Active listening - Active listening shows a child that what they have to say is important. This helps maintain attention, and allows more complex thoughts and ideas to be injected into the conversation. You can show children their contributions are valued by:

• using verbal and non-verbal cues, including making eye contact and nodding
• using short verbal cues such as 'mmm' and 'yes' to show you're listening
• making appropriate facial expressions (eg surprise, concern) and gestures (eg shrugging)
• allowing children's interests to steer the conversation by building onto a child’s contribution.

Tip: For more evidence-based advice on supporting oral language development, click here.

Finally, invite children to lie down and spend some time feeling the earth beneath them. You could pose the following questions:

Does the earth feel soft or hard?
Does the earth feel warm or cool?
Does the earth feel smooth or rough?
How does it make you feel to lie on the earth? Do you feel excited or calm? Does it make you feel worried or comforted?

The aim here is to connect the children’s experiences of earth to their bodies and emotions. This can help children recognise and communicate their feelings and emotions, and support them in working towards social and emotional regulation.

Part B: Breathing activity

Step 1.

Explain to the children that they will watch a clip that will help them connect to the earth, and feel calm and relaxed.

Throughout this clip, children will be asked to move their bodies gently, focus on their breath, and listen to the instructions.

Share the following clip with your children:

Breath Circle - Earth (with captions) (https://player.vimeo.com/video/677898492?h=b0654725c6)

Step 2.

Once you have watched the clip, spend some time talking with the children about activity:

I wonder what you liked about this activity.
I wonder if you feel different in your body now.
I wonder if you feel different in your mind.
I wonder if you would like to do this again.

Part C: Possible lines of development

Children may have developed their own ideas about how to extend upon the themes presented in this activity. If not, choose one of the following ideas to explore with them:

Head outside and lie down on the grass. Flip onto your tummies and look closely at what is happening in the grass—can you see any insects or other creepy crawlies? Can you see any little plants growing? Can you imagine being as tiny as an ant in this world?
Play with mud! Make a mud table where children can play with mud. Add old spoons and cups to the table for children to use. Dress children in smocks, roll up their sleeves and let them have fun!
Dig it up. Some children really love to dig. Bury some ‘treasures’ (such as shells, painted stones, and old coins) in the sandpit and invite children to dig them up.
Grow something! Take an egg carton and add one or two small holes to the bottom of each compartment. Fill the compartments with soil and add a seed (bean, sunflower, or grass) to each compartment, then water and place in the sun. When your seedlings are ready, carefully remove them and plant them in soil. Alternatively, if your carton is made from recycled paper or cardboard, you can cut out each compartment with a knife and plant them directly into the soil.
Use the breathing exercise in this activity throughout the day to calm the children or focus their attention. This could be helpful for transition moments in your centre, such as before and after meal, story, or nap times. If you need a shorter exercise, try taking just three or five breaths.
Spend some time exploring the Zones of Emotional Regulation Chart with children. Social and emotional learning strategies seek to equip children with knowledge and skills that positively impact their ability to manage emotions and behaviours, as well as improve their interactions with peers, parents, or other adults. The chart can help children visualise their feelings and build their emotional vocabulary, shifting them away from rote responses like 'good' to more nuanced responses like 'curious', 'excited', or 'worried'. Find out more here.

Want more breathing activities? You can find some more here, or register to see if Beata can visit your centre in person.

Breath Circle - Earth (home learning)

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