Little School of Yoga

Youth mindfulness in schools

Nurture the wellbeing of 7 to 11 year olds by bringing to life their innate potential for awareness, happiness and kindness.

Themes of the curriculum

This is a 16-lesson introduction to mindfulness for 7 to 11 year olds with a strong emphasis on experiential learning.

The 16 one hour lessons build up sequentially, introducing new facets of mindfulness with each lesson.

The first six lessons focus on developing the foundations of mindfulness: embodied, present-moment awareness. After this, the children explore how mindfulness can help them be happier by being present and help them be more resilient and cope with stress and difficulty, particularly difficult thoughts and emotions.

We then then focus on the cultivation of kindness: first to ourselves and then towards others. Finally the children explore questions of purpose and agency: How do I want to be in the world? How do I want to act?

What’s the research?

In a study with the University of Edinburgh, looking at the impact of the Youth Mindfulness programme on 9 and 10 year olds, 98% reported benefits to their emotional wellbeing, relationships, or ability to focus and pay attention. It was also found that:

92% of children reported being able to handle strong emotions better. 77% reported improvements in peer and family relationships. 77% said that mindfulness helps them focus, pay attention and concentrate. 55% more than half said mindfulness helps them enjoy life more and feel happier. 72% said they were less aggressive, and engaged less in confrontation.