Kids nowadays are exposed to stress, whether it’s from school, peers, and the environment. To improve the mental health of your children, introduce them to the best mindfulness cards for kids. The beauty of these cards is that they can be performed in the comfort of your home or anywhere your kids want at any time.
These forms of cards have a charming deck that can bring kids to self-awareness. Check out our favorite mindfulness cards for kids selection below.
Quick Answer:
1. Imagine Meditation Cards For Kids
Imagine Meditation Cards are pretty big, so they’re easy to carry for kids and read whatever script is printed on them. I love the pastel colors of the cards because they make the cards very pretty. Likewise, the storage box looks lovely and durable.
2. Mindful Kids: 50 Mindfulness Activities For Kindness, Focus And Calm
You can enjoy plenty of mindfulness activities with Mindfulness Kids. They feature 50 activities divided into five categories to help your kids focus, relax, and practice kindness. I love the illustrations because they look playful and quaint, plus they represent all kids of color.
3. InnerIcons The Mindfulness Game
This deck is created by teachers to engage the curious minds of children and adults in a group counseling setting. This game not only presents affirmation cards but also various fun activities to help your kids feel relax and more focused. I love the bonus booklet because it provides instructions and extension activities for better use.
Editor's Pick: The Best Mindfulness Cards For Kids
Benefits Of Using Mindfulness Cards For Kids
Mindfulness cards offer the most convenient way to help your kids deal with different emotions and improve mental health. Instructions and illustrations are already included, so these cards are effective to use at home or virtually anywhere. Therapists and teachers can use this tool to improve the coping mechanisms and social skills of children.
As a practice itself, mindfulness is proven to reduce stress. Another advantage of mindfulness is the improvement of working memory and focus. Kids can learn to control their emotions and avoid sad or dark thoughts.
Indeed, there are limitless benefits of mindfulness, so start introducing this practice in the form of cards.
How To Use Mindfulness Cards For Kids
The cards can be used to get in the mood of practicing mindfulness at home, in class, or almost anywhere. Kids can pick one or several cards to follow. Most of the time, the deck provides fun activities to engage kids in accomplishing them.
These activity cards typically contain conversations, phrases, or questions that the kid will learn to respond to. Some of them include group activities, so parents should give a helping hand. If there are blank cards, they can use that to write something, like their goal for the day.
What To Look For On A Good Deck Of Mindfulness Cards For Kids
Color And Illustrations
Kids love bright colors and fun illustrations. Learn what your kid likes and find a deck that’s close to your child’s favorites. Does your child love animals? Make sure that the illustrations are animals to attract their attention.
Activities And Phrases
The activities should be fun and easy to do. If you like your kids to develop social skills, look for group activities. Also, the phrases should be short and simple for easy understanding.
Durability
The cards should be at least laminated or made of gloss to make them easy to touch by kids and help them grab these cards without leaving any marks. Also, look for a sturdy storage box to keep the cards together for a long time.
5 Best Mindfulness Cards For Kids Reviews
1. Imagine Meditation Cards For Kids
This mindfulness kit from Imagine provides fun activities for children to exercise meditation and find inner peace. You can do the activities solo, in pairs, or in groups, so these cards can also be a great bonding moment with parents and friends. Thankfully, instructions are included to help kids meditate for the first time.
What I love most about these cards is the design, which features soft pastel colors and vibrant illustrations. I even love the storage box because it looks thick and pretty, plus the cards are incredibly huge for clarity. Besides the aesthetics, the cards engage with the short guided imagery scripts, empowering words, and easy-to-play games.
However, the illustrations might be too feminine for some boys to get into the program. Also, it’s a bit challenging to return the cards into the box because there’s little wiggle room.
PROS:
- It Includes fun activities and games that are easy to play
- Empowering words help kids learn self-care
- It can be a good bonding moment with other people
- It features pretty illustrations in pastel colors
- It comes with large cards and a lovely box for storage
CONS:
- A bit too feminine in design
- A little challenging to return the cards due to little wiggle room
Best For:
Imagine Meditation Cards are perfect for teaching kids self-empowerment and resilience to stress. They also feature the best design with beautiful illustrations.
2. Mindful Kids: 50 Mindfulness Activities For Kindness, Focus And Calm
This card deck offers 50 mindfulness games, which are both fun and powerful. I like how the cards are arranged into color-coded categories because it’s easy to choose based on your need- focus, calm, kindness, relax, and calm. The cards are well-written with mischievous pictures, making them easy to relate with children.
I think it’s an excellent strategy to make the mindfulness exercises short enough to keep kids’ attention span. My favorites are the lovely flip-top box and the simple instructions for every activity. Best of all, the illustrations aren’t vastly white, so there’s enough diversity to represent.
However, the hinged top of the box lacks a little durability to endure constant use. There are also a few cards that I think don’t suit the message like the forgot worry card.
PROS:
- It contains plenty of mindfulness cards for practice
- Easy to choose, thanks to the color-coded categories
- It relates to kids well using simple words, short exercises, and whimsical pictures
- It represents all kids of color in the illustrations
- It comes with a flip-top box for storage
CONS:
- A few cards are a mismatch of the message
- Hinge top gets beat up easily
Best For:
This deck of Mindful Kids is perfect for kids who want quick activities to improve focus and calmness. They promote all kinds of color, so they project great diversity.
3. InnerIcons The Mindfulness Game
These InnerIcons cards are just slightly bigger than a regular deck of cards, so they’re easy to carry around. The cards come with a very sturdy case for storage and travel. There’s also a bonus booklet to specify the directions plus extension activities that can help improve inner peace and self-care.
It’s more fun to use this deck with a group of friends because most activities are set for group play therapy, between 3-15 players. I appreciate the bright colors and striking geometric designs because kids love them. The questions are marvelous, and the quality is impressive.
However, these cards won’t work individually because all activities are set up for groups. Some instructions are also too wordy for kids to understand.
PROS:
- Easy to carry around with its compact size
- It comes with a very thick box or storage
- It includes a bonus booklet of instructions and recommended games
- Designed with bright colors and geometric designs
- It contains interesting questions and superb quality
CONS:
- Some instructions are a bit difficult to understand for kids
- Not meant for individual use
Best For:
The Mindfulness Game is perfect for group therapy since most activities are set up for groups and not individuals. Since the cards are barely larger than the normal deck of cards, they can be perfect for travel.
4. Mindful Games Activity Cards
This deck features 55 mindfulness games for both kids and teens. The author, Susan Kaiser Greenland, develops these games to teach attention, balance, and compassion to kids. The cards are oversized, around 5 x 7 inches, so they’re easy to hold for small hands.
I like the flip box because it feels solid to last through frequent uses. Also, the cards are somewhat plastic coated, so any liquid spills or dirt slide through easily. Interestingly, the illustrations depict different colors of birds, which kids really enjoy, and the prints are easy to read.
However, there are too many words on the card that it can bore a kid easily. There are also too many breathing exercises that the deck lacks a broader variation.
PROS:
- It contains 55 mindful games, which is very plenty
- Oversized for easy handling and use
- It comes with a sturdy flip box for keeping all cards together
- Plastic-coated cards seem resistant to liquid spills and damage
- Illustrated with birds and clear prints
CONS:
- It needs more variation in mindfulness activities
- Too wordy for kids
Best For:
Mindful Games Activity Cards are ideal for older kids because they contain complex words and instructions.
5. MindPanda SnapHappy 2 in 1 Therapy Card Game For Kids
Inspired by Memory Match and SNAP classic games, MindPanda offers an opportunity for parents to bond with their kids while helping them understand those emotions. I like how this card game allows the family to create conversations in a playful way. When you win a card, you’re given three prompts to help you talk about emotion to understand your kids better.
Well, this game isn’t all talk because it lets you pop your best dance move or pull some funny face to win the game. Moreover, the cards come with bright colors and funny illustrations of different emotions. The box feels sturdy, and the questions are thought-provoking.
However, this game is impossible to do alone. The deck is all about emotions and nothing about basic mindfulness activities, like breathing exercises.
PROS:
- Helpful in learning about different emotions
- Easy to play with the prompts
- Hilarious prompts make the game very entertaining
- It has colorful and fun illustrations
- It comes with a sturdy box and thought-provoking questions
CONS:
- Not designed to do alone
- It only talks about different emotions
Best For:
MindPanda SnapHappy is a perfect game to teach kids how to deal with different emotions.
FAQs:
Q: How do mindfulness cards work for kids?
Mindfulness cards can help kids reduce stress and deal with negative emotions calmly. They can also be fun for kids since the activities are designed to delight them.
Q: How do you explain mindfulness to a kid?
Mindfulness means focusing on something and slowing down to get aware of what you’re doing. Instead of rushing, you’re taking your time to be mindful.
Q: What age should a kid begin mindfulness?
As young as four years old, your child can start to practice mindfulness.
Conclusion
The best mindfulness cards for kids should be effective and fun at the same time. My top pick is the Imagine Meditation Cards deck because everything is just pretty- the pastel colors, empowering words, and flip box. I like the size of the cards because it’s easy to hold and impossible to lose.
If you want more activities, the Mindful Kids deck is a good alternative. These cards are very relatable to kids, thanks to their short scripts and whimsical pictures. I appreciate the effort of the author to include all kids of color for representation.
Sharon Wu i is someone who believes in living his best life, focusing on balance, happiness, and relaxation. He fosters a positive lifestyle in terms of his body, mind, and environment, and he is a huge proponent of learning to be balanced via relaxation techniques integrated into our busy lives.
