Calming activities for the summer holidays
(2 minute read)
Summer can be a wild and wonderful time for kids - long days playing games and lots of fun in the sun! But as parents, we all need some time to chill and it can be hard to get the little ones into a relaxed state of mind. So I thought I’d share some of my favourite calming videos and activities from my teaching days to help you and the kids chill out.
- Facetime with Blazer Fresh - This video shows your kids how to make their face and body calm - one minute of tuning into the feeling of calm.
- Melting - A four minute activity where your child simply needs to freeze and thaw - slowly! I used to use this just after playtime in reception - perfect for calming down after lots of physical activity.
- The Body Scanner - this wasn’t the exact one I used but it’s a very good body scan video. Ideal for a mindful moment, this five minute video talks you through a scan of each body part - I recommend a good lie down for this one!
- Make a calming glitter jar - always a permanent fixture in our ‘calm corners’, these easy DIY glitter jars are really great for some mindful watching. I even used to hide little toys in there so kids could follow something around inside the jar. Perfect for channeling calm!
- Rainbow Breathing - I think these breathing activities are really awesome. You can even make your own by drawing a rainbow out and having your child colour it - a 2-4-1 craft and mindfulness activity!
- Read our lovely comic ‘Bongo Blows his top’ - as well as helping to identify some tough feelings, it has some lovely calming strategies to practise at home!
And my final gift to you - one last video to help you with the post-activity clean up - the tidy up song! This was such a valuable tool for a messy classroom, by the end of the song everywhere was tidy and the kids were behind their places. Stickers for extra helpful cleaners were always a great motivator too.
Happy summer holidays to you all!
Kay Leathers
A freelance consultant for Teach Your Monster and ex-primary school teacher!
Photo by Johnny McClung on Unsplash