Hot chocolate breath and pretending to be a human smoothie are fun ways for children to practice mindfulness with Sarah Pont.
At Rocky Mountain Insight Meditation Center, Sarah Pont teaches Dharma Kids, a class for kids ages 5-10. Pont believes it’s important for kids to have tools to deal with difficult situations and uncomfortable feelings. “The earlier we help develop these tools, the better prepared they are for those tumultuous teenage years. Even the youngest of children are not immune from the stress and uncertainties of life.”
In a recent class, Pont asked children what they worry about. The answers ranged from “getting homework done” to “getting COVID” to “robbers coming into my house at night.” Pont believes, “The sooner children develop a language for understanding and expressing what they experience, the easier it is to develop a toolbox for self-regulation and self-care. With practice, children begin to see how the mind and body connect, notice what’s happening inside of their bodies, and learn to take care of all of their emotions (even the unpleasant ones).”
Just Breathe
A Dharma Kids class is 45-minutes. Each class has a theme based in Buddhist ethics and wisdom. Common class themes are gratitude, honesty, moderation, and lovingly kindness. Pont uses games like “Good Stuff Bingo,” mindfulness stories like Sergio Sees the Good , and crafts to explore the theme.
“I try to give kids a very basic understanding of how the brain works, so they understand why they often feel big feelings and how that affects their bodies and self-regulation.” Pont encourages her kiddos to do hot-chocolate breath.
Hot-chocolate breath is breathing in through their noses like their smelling yummy hot chocolate and breathing out through the mouth like they are cooling off it off.
With practice, it is easier to remember and use when feeling nervous about a test, a school performance, or during a stressful situation. “When they stop and notice what they see, smell, hear, and taste, the easier it is to get out of their head and into the body, and let their whirling and twirling thoughts inside their mind settle like the snow in a snow globe.”
Fruit-Picking to Kid-Picking
Pont ends the class with movement. By incorporating body and breath, children are aware of their bodies, and they notice how their bodies respond to movement and breathwork. In other word, it’s a step “in helping them realize if they are hyper, super excited, angry, nervous, having trouble focusing, etc.” It also gives children the opportunity to practice being still and quiet, while noticing how that feels in the body. Pont directs the smoothie movement activity like this:
Pont: “Let’s make a human smoothie. What goes into a smoothie?”
Kids: They give Pont different ideas—fruit, milk, juice, etc.
Pont: “Who wants to be the blueberries? Who wants to be the strawberries?”
Kids raise their hands, and she chooses someone. Once everyone has a role to play, Pont starts the blender on slow, and adds each ingredient (the kids jump into the circle and start spinning slowly.) Once all the ingredients/kids are in the blender, she turns the blender up to medium (so it goes a little faster.) Pont reverse the direction of the blender. At turbo speed they go as fast and crazy as they can. Finally, Pont presses stop so the kids freeze. Then they place one hand on their heart and one hand on their belly to feel their breath.
Pont’s smoothie activity does not end there. She won’t exhale on more details, but she does say she’s seen the children become more aware of the body-mind connection. Like “more able to articulate what they are experiencing. They are more able to use these tools to cope and advocate for themselves.”
Pont recalls a child who avoided activities due to a stomachache. Now the child expresses the problem and the solution. “My stomach hurts. I think I am nervous about going to my first sleepover, I need to a little downtime to practice hot chocolate breath and read my favorite book before I go.”
Dharma Kids classes are donation-based. The class meets once a month and has 5-10 participants per class. Currently, the class meets at an outside park, just a few blocks away from the meditation center.
For more information about Dharma Kids or the program, email Pont: sarahpont2001@yahoo.com.
