Parents.com has a great little article entitled “A Calm Approach to Discipline”. It discusses using a method called Mindfulness when your child is having a hard time facing an emotionally difficult situation. According to the article, “Mindfulness teaches kids to pay attention to themselves and the world around them.”
Mindfulness is a tool to be used.
Essentially, it is a calm way to diffuse a situation before your child can get into full-blown tantrum mode. The article does a great job of staging several real-life situations, and then providing examples of how to mindfully handle them. By directing your child’s attention to a physical depiction of how they are feeling, or making them taking notice of the things around them, children can take a step back and regain control of their emotions before dealing with the situation at hand. I feel that the best part of using this method is that over time, your child will learn to use this calming approach themselves when they face challenges.
Kids and adults of all ages should learn and practice mindfulness.
It’s no secret that, as human beings, we tend to make better choices when we approach challenges with a clear mind and a calm self. Unfortunately, this is a lesson that many of us don’t learn until we are into adult hood. But why not teach our young children to calm themselves, and to think before they react to a situation? It seems to me that it can do nothing but help them become more rational adults. Isn’t that one thing we all want for our kids? And if we practice what we preach, this method can help bring a little more calm into our own lives as well. Check out our books for hands-on examples of how to incorporate mindfulness into your parenting.