In keeping with February's theme, all things love and heart-related, I thought I would share some loving-kindness with you. So, I'm sharing my Loving-kindness Meditation for Kids script with you. You can find your goodies, including the script, discussion questions, and a creative printable in the Mindfulness Library.

LOVING-KINDNESS MEDITATION

Loving-Kindness Meditation stirs feelings of kindness for ourselves, for those who are close to us, and all other beings of the world. Practicing loving-kindness helps us to be less judgmental and less hateful and allows for more joy, selflessness, and of course loving-kindness.

If you’re looking for a way to bring more happiness, kindness, and friendliness into your classroom or home, then start with this meditation. It has been shown to have immediate results, and it doesn’t take hours of sitting in meditation. It can still be effective in less than ten minutes. And, with regular practice the impact becomes long term.

Add the loving-kindness meditation to your morning circle time or your morning routine to benefit from it all day. Or, this would also be a wonderful addition to your bedtime routine. Imagine going to sleep with your heart content and filled with love. I have incorporated some loving-kindness into this bedtime poem that you can use, too.

THE BENEFITS OF LOVING-KINDNESS MEDITATION

There are so many reasons to practice Loving-kindness Meditation and these benefits are backed by science. Overall, focusing on love and kindness can promote positive thoughts and emotions, healing in the body, and better social connections. Here is a short list.

Loving-kindness Meditation promotes:

• positive emotions and decreases negative emotions
• healing and decreases chronic pain
• emotional intelligence by physically changing the brain
• relaxation
• social connection
• self-love and reduces self-criticism

And, for parents and teachers- you can trade in the expensive procedures and creams that claim to make you look younger for a bit of loving-kindness meditation. Yes, that's right, Loving-kindness Meditation has been shown to slow the aging process, imagine that!

You see, stress causes changes in our chromosomes that are associated with aging. But, one study showed that women who practiced Loving-kindness Meditation had less of this change in their chromosomes than the control group.

So even though I wrote this script for pre-schoolers, you can absolutely use it for yourself, too.

LOVING-KINDNESS GIFTS FOR YOU

I have written a Loving-kindness Meditation script that I like to use with kids. It incorporates the people that kids are familiar with, uses language they understand, and is an appropriate length for their age. And, included with the script are some questions you can use to start a discussion about their meditation experience. You can download the pdf from the Mindfulness Library.

Any discussion or creative activity after meditation (any meditation) helps the experience come together with deeper meaning and understanding. Sometimes kids will remember things they didn’t remember at first or they will have an a-ha kind of moment when suddenly something starts to make sense. So, encourage them to talk about their experience. Have them share what they saw, what they noticed, and how they felt. Your kids can use the activity printable to express these things in their own creative way.

So, grab your Loving-kindness Meditation script, discussion questions, and creative printable for free in the Mindfulness Library. You can go here if you already have a password.