Belly Breathing for Kids: Mindfulness Activity
This session teaches belly breathing for kids, helping students use their breath as a mindfulness tool to feel calm and ready to focus. Through a short video, a discussion about when in the school day this strategy might help, and a movement game where they take a side on true-or-false statements and share their thinking, students practice noticing their breath. They leave with a simple way to feel calm and ready.
Extension activity
- Skill
- Self-Regulation
- Goal
- Being Mindful
- Grade level
- Elementary School
Get everything you need to teach the skill
These materials are part of a no-prep session designed by our clinical team, with all the structure, scaffolding, and support you need to teach included.
Engaging materials
Video lessonBelly Breathing
Today we’re learning how to Belly Breathe. Before watching, ask your group to take some deep breaths and tell you how many they had to do before they felt more relaxed.
- Extension activity
Self-Regulation
Get students up and out of their seats to practice self-regulation strategies with this Simon Says-inspired listening game.
Plus everything you need to teach them
Warm-up
- Video: Hot Cocoa Breathing2:05
- Video: Daily Intention2:59
- Video: Body Squeeze2:12
Session Opener
Guiding Question: How can belly breathing help a person?
Practice
- Discussion Question
- Role-Play Activity
- Mini Game
How to use it with your students
- 1Watch Play the video lesson so students see the skill in action.
- 2Practice Try the skill together with a discussion prompt, role-play, or mini game.
- 3Extend Use the extension activity to help students carry the skill further.
What's Covered
In this lesson, students learned how belly breathing can help their bodies and brains feel calm when they feel overwhelmed or have trouble focusing. They practiced taking slow, deep breaths through the nose and feeling the belly push out, then breathing out slowly through the mouth. They also talked about moments when this could help.
Key Terms
- Belly Breathing
- Belly breathing is when you put your hands on your belly, breathe in slowly through your nose, and breathe out through your mouth. It can help your body feel calm when you have a big feeling.
- Mindfulness
- Paying attention to what is happening right now, including how your body feels and what you see, hear, and smell.
Sample IEP Goal This Session Supports
-
Mindfulness
Learner will independently initiate a mindfulness practice (e.g., breathing exercise, movement break, body scan) when noticing a need to reset, and engage with the practice for its full duration, in 4 out of 5 opportunities independently/given X prompt(s).
Send this tip home to support generalization
At home or in the classroom, when a student seems upset or unfocused, you can try breathing along with them by putting a hand on your belly and taking a few slow breaths together. Doing it with them makes the deep breathing easier to follow.
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More Self-Regulation Activities
Frequently asked questions
Is this intervention free?
Yes, this ready-to-teach session on Mindfulness Activity is free. You can access this intervention free for 14 days through the Everyday Speech Session Library. Every user gets three free sessions, but you can get more or extend your access by sharing the Session Library with friends and colleagues.
What ages is this for?
These materials are designed for elementary school students.
What's included?
You'll get access to your choice of warm-up videos, a session opener, a core material on Belly Breathing, three practice prompts, and an extension activity, Self-Regulation.
What skill does this intervention teach?
This ready-to-teach session is on self-regulation - more specifically, being mindful.
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