The power of breath is a cornerstone tool for calming and self-regulation in children. It is able to help them in calming and relaxing themselves following a large emotion or unwind after a busy day.
Breath work when used in Occupational Therapy sessions focuses on the connection between the mind and body, and how the simple act of breathing has the ability to influence and child’s emotional and physical well-being.
Self regulation is a child’s ability to be manage their emotions and actions depending on what a situation requires of them. A child’s self-regulation abilities are as a result of their cognitive, attentional and emotional capacities. It is not uncommon for children to have difficulty with self-regulation as they do not yet have the tools to cope in daily life.
Here are some breathing games and activities that may be helpful to calm and regulate your child at home.
Bubble Monsters:
Image: KFOT
You will need:
• A bucket or bowl with a small amount of water inside
• A small amount of liquid soap or bubble mixture
• A chewy tube or straw
How to do:
1. Use a bucket or container with a small amount of water, liquid soap or bubble mixture and a chewy tube or straw to blow.
2. Encourage your child to use a slow and long exhalation and see if they can get the bubbles to the top of the container and grow the monster as large as they can with their breath.
This activity is great for drawing the child’s visual attention in towards the bubble monster as they watch it grow.
Bubble monsters can help with:
• Stress and anxiety
• Deep breathing
• Visual processing
• Oral motor input
• Attention and concentration
Balloon Rockets
Blowing balloons up and letting them launch around the room
You will need:
• Balloons (you can get particular flying rocket balloons if you would like)
How to do:
1. Simply blow up the balloon as large as you can without it bursting (encouraging children to take deep breaths through their noses and use long exhalations to fill the balloon).
2. Hold the end of the balloon so the air can't escape and wait for everyone to have their balloon filled with air and ready to launch.
3. Release your grasp on the balloon and let it launch into the air.
4. Collect your balloon and repeat steps 1- 3.
Pom Pom Soccer
You will need:
• Pom poms
• Paper straws
• Tape
• A flat surface (e.g. table or the floor)
How to play:
1. Use tape to set up a boundary for your soccer field as well as the goalposts at each end on a table or a flat surface such as the ground.
2. Each player sits or stands at one end of the soccer field.
3. Place a pom-pom in the center of the field to start the game.
4. Each player uses a straw to blow air and move the pom-pom towards the opponent's goal.
5. Each opponent is aiming to blow the pom-pom into the opponent's goal to score a point.
6. Players cannot use their hands or any other objects to touch the pom-pom; only the straw can be used to blow air.
7. Each player tries to score as many points as they can to win.
Other toys that can support breath work:
• Balloon animals
• Whistles, flutes or recorders
• Kazoos
• Magic ball pipes
• Bubble blowing with bubble wands
Cover Image: Small Talk