youth activities

Summer break presents a wonderful opportunity to teach your children, and even yourself, some new mindful practices! Research shows that practicing mindfulness helps people of all ages better cope with the stress of everyday life. This is a very simple mindfulness activity you can do with your child or entire group of children. We often use this activity during our Peacebuilders Summer Camp program to help children discover how to find a peaceful place within themselves when dealing with conflicts. Mind bottles are also very simple and fun to make! How to make a Mind Bottle: Find a clear plastic bottle with a lid/bottle cap to use. You can even put to good use an old container that has been washed and had its label removed. Select about a tablespoon of glitter and place it inside the bottle (using a funnel if the opening is small). Fill the bottle with water, leaving about a half inch of space at the top so that the water can swish when shaken. Replace lid/bottle cap. How to use a Mind Bottle: Shake up your bottle What emotion does it remind you of when all of the contents of the bottle are flying around and spinning? When we feel stress, anger, and frustration, our brains are not able to think clearly. We often are not able to make good, healthy choices when our brains are clouded by stress. Shake it up again and try