Down syndrome is the name for a genetic condition in which a child is born with an extra chromosome 21.
This means that they have an extra chromosome, 47 in total, instead of 46. The extra chromosome 21 can impact the way the child’s body and brain develop. Sometimes this means that the child may need extra time to process and learn new things. Sometimes this means that the child may have additional health challenges and diagnoses. With early diagnosis and supportive care, children with Down syndrome can expect to live happy, full lives, just like every other child.
Children with Down syndrome may have some challenges related to learning. They may struggle with cognitive functioning, problem solving, memory, social and self-care abilities, and have some delays in language and communication.
While the symptoms may vary from child to child, some children with intellectual disabilities may need a little more time to learn new things. Meditation is a wonderful practice for kids with intellectual disabilities because the practice itself is all about slowing down, learning to focus, and eliminating mental chatter.
Kids with Down syndrome can absolutely meditate. Every child learns in different ways and at their own pace; no way of thinking, learning, or being is right or wrong. Whatever way a child learns and interacts with the world is their way, and just right for them.
The same is true when teaching children with disabilities and illnesses how to meditate. Teach meditation the way you would anything else- by making it fun and engaging.
Some of the evidence-based benefits of meditation are:
These are a lot of wonderful benefits, and kids don’t have to spend hours in meditation to begin experiencing the effects. Children who meditate improve their ability to concentrate and focus, skills that act like a domino effect, positively impacting other areas of their lives.
For example, better focus can lead to improved learning outcomes and academic success. Children who meditate often sleep better, and for longer, than children who don’t. Better sleep enhances immunity, improves behaviors, and also contributes to better focus and improved learning. Children who meditate can have less anxiety, leading to better emotional regulation and the use of mindful strategies to cope with stressors.
Teaching meditation for kids with Down syndrome is easy and effective- with the right approach. Like most practices, kids need to be introduced to meditation in a way that makes sense and interests them.
Children with Down syndrome may have specific areas of interest. If you can tailor the meditation practice to one of their specific interests, for example animals, or a certain color, they will be more motivated and engaged in learning to meditate. You can do this in a variety of ways. You could invite them to bring something related to their specific area of interest into the meditation space, if possible.
Let’s say their specific area of interest is like rocket ships. You could invite them to bring a favorite rocket ship, or rocket image to meditate with, and then tailor the meditation around rocket ships.
Could they take a few slow, deep breaths, like they are an astronaut, preparing for a journey into space? Could they visualize themselves, flying through the sky, passing the moon and millions of stars? Could they imagine being on the moon, where it is quiet and dark, and very peaceful?
You could teach them how to do a focused meditation with the rocket ship, or imagine their breath like a rocket ship, inhaling on blast-off, and then coming back to earth with each exhale.
This is just one example, but you can find creative ways to use specific areas of interest to engage children in their meditation practice.
All children, not just those with Down syndrome, do best learning meditation in a quiet environment that is free from distractions. If you are able, designate a corner of a room as a meditation space. Invite your child to help you create a soothing place where they will be motivated to meditate. Use comfort items, like pillows and blankets, and decorate the space in their favorite colors or with posters of things they find calming.
In time your child will be able to meditate anywhere, but the meditation space will always be a place where they can go to relax.
Begin with spending quiet time in your child’s meditation space before you invite them to meditate there. It doesn’t matter if it is 15 seconds or 15 minutes. Just get them comfortable being in this calming space. This is not a space where they will be playing with their toys. It is a place where they will go to relax. They need to associate this space with meditation, and being calm, not as an alternate play space.
Once the child has a level of comfort in the meditation area, begin with short meditation sessions. You might have them listen to a mini meditation, do a short moving meditation, like stretching like a sunflower, or you might invite them to spend a few minutes listening to a soothing soundscape, and imagining themselves floating like a cloud in the sky.
When the child is ready for longer sessions, you can begin using guided story meditations, doing body scans, loving-kindness meditations…whatever they enjoy. Remember, try many different kinds of meditation until you find the ones that your child likes best.
Tip: Listen to Raccoon and the Wishing Well, a guided story meditation about using affirmations to achieve goals.
Because children with Down syndrome are often visual learners, it may be helpful to make a visual chart, with pictorial representations of expectations for being in the meditation space or pictorial representations of instructions for specific meditation practices.
Here is an example of instructions that you may want to illustrate on a chart for your home/classroom/office meditation space:
Always take your time in explaining what the child is to do, and remember the “why.” They are meditating to help their minds feel calm. They are meditating to help their thoughts quiet, to relax, to notice with all of their senses, the world around them.
You might say:
“We meditate to feel calm.”
“We meditate to give our brains a rest.”
There will be a time when your child seeks meditation time on their own, without prompting, but until then, be their meditation partner.
Model the meditation practice your child will be practicing until they are comfortable with it. Some children will eventually be ready to meditate on their own. Others always enjoy having this special, calming time with a grown-up.
Meditation is always more appealing to children when they can hold a teddy bear, comfort object, or a fidget toy. The trick is to guide the child to use the prop in a gentle, calming way, as a meditation support. They need to know that this isn’t play time. You can say, “A special toy can join us for meditation, but it will be meditating with us”.
There are so many ways to reward children for accomplishing tasks. Some children enjoy behavior tracking charts, token boxes, stamps on their hand or on a calendar, etc.
Find a reward system that motivates and encourages your child to meditate and incorporate it into their practice.
Meditation doesn’t have to be done sitting still. A child can move in ways that are soothing to them while they meditate. They might want to rock in a rocking chair, swing, stretch, or stand and sway. It really doesn’t matter, as long as they are engaged in meditating. There are specific moving meditations like walking meditations, but really, any meditation practice can be done with gentle movement.
Especially when you are establishing a meditation practice, it is helpful to schedule it on a visual calendar. This shows the child when to expect to meditate, and it also shows them the importance of meditation. It teaches them that meditation is something that is so valuable for their life that we make sure to put it on our calendar.
Meditation is something that you can begin anytime. With so many ways to practice, and with the suggestions above, you will see how easy it is for you to bring the benefits of meditation to your child. Remember, meditation is a practice, so it needs to be done consistently for your child to experience, and you to see, the benefits and results.
Wee Meditate makes teaching meditation to kids of all abilities easy and engaging. Wee Meditate teaches kids meditation in a storybook world complete with animal characters, each who have a different disability.
