I came across a fact that I read about in media which states that an average person may need more than one lifetime to finish viewing all the videos present in youtube.com. We have to put such a platform to good use.

From where I come from, and which is considered generally true, In the past, grandmothers used to recount fantastic stories to the grandchildren. While ‘listening’ to stories, the young children vividly imagine the scene on their own terms. This helps in visualizing abilities and build their imaginative and creative traits. Nowadays, the parents quickly click a link and show the story as animations. The creative activity inside the child’s brain is content enough to accept what the animation director visualized!

As the trend goes, if grandmothers are not part of ‘nuclear’ families anymore, I prefer the class teachers to tell these stories in an slow and expressive manner.

We have to encourage simple meditative techniques to our children. These meditations should not be stressful and should not be more than 10-15 minutes in a single sitting. These need not be done on an everyday basis too.  If possible, as teachers, create a scoring program during the meditation sessions, so that not only progression but any hurdles and blocks can also be tracked.

I hope, you get the full picture as you read and complete this blog and can improve to include many other things too that you are aware as a child psychologist or as a mindful teacher or as an intelligent concerned good samaritan.

1.      Meditation to increate focus

By constantly chanting mantras, like ‘Om’, (long duration, deep bass and slow as in https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8sYK7lm3UKg&list=RD8sYK7lm3UKg ), the mind learns/starts to stay focussed.

Another technique is ‘flame watching’.

(as in https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yj2OgVEJe8M ) . Please note that it is ok for the child to blink once in a while if he is unable to watch the flame in an unblinking mode). But the flame has to be from a candle or oil lamp and definitely not the electric ones. Use a scented candle if possible to improve the experience and make sure the child is not stressed.

2.      Meditation to increase listening abilities

Focussed story telling sessions can help in improving the listening abilities. Also use music with lots of sweet intonations. From the many tones from several instruments used in the music composition, ask the child to detect the sound of a particular instrument. Introduce the tone from that instrument before the session starts. You can also have a scoring system (like the child presses a key every time he/she hears the tone in the composition) to track progression.

Also, listening to music is soul healing exercise. I still remember the tunes that positively affected me when I was a kid. But make sure you use a very hi-fi music system with high clarity and resolution.

 3.      Meditation to increase sensation of seeing

There are videos with fractal patterns supported with music that can kindle the visual part of the brain of the child. But this should be subtle and gentle and should not create aggressiveness or agitation as in https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ouG6L-2L3Q .

Also, there are large, puzzling arts that hide definite shapes and objects in it and the child can be tasked to find them.

4.      Meditation to increase perception and 3D

Watching a live drawing session with light and shades of a room with sharp perceptions/projections is a meditation too. This should increase the perception of 3D objects, guessing distances between objects and in understanding the play of light in generating shades.  

Also, the kids can be taken to places like fairs and museums that have things like convex/concave mirrors to produce distortion (and laughter too), mystery room that apparently increases or decreases the size of objects or persons etc

5.      Meditation to increase the sensation to smell

Scented candles, incense sticks used during meditation session definitely helps in this effort.

Besides, kids can be introduced to different kinds of acceptable smells within limits as a classroom exercise. I wish there are classifications like that of taste to classify smells. As a corollary, the kids can be introduced to the 6 types of tastes and may be made to know about common foods that carry them (please refer to https://www.mayoan.com/post/48-food-as-a-sattvic-constituent ). Please remember that as a cognitive trait, we may close our eyes when we try to detect sound, smell or taste. Let the child appreciate this trait which is nothing, but nature induced focussing or meditating on a particular sensory perception. The children can also be shown pictures of food and ask them to identify the flavours of each food items.

6.      Meditation to increase the speaking abilities

Ask the students to read aloud in the classroom sessions. Classic literature carrying popular stories can be used for this.

7.      Meditation to increase the sensation of touch

The students should know the shapes (2D and 3D) by touching it and made to talk about it briefly. They should know properties like fine, coarse, rough, smooth etc., They may see a portrait in 2D and can made to close the eyes and feel the bust in 3D and compare the 2D perception to 3D.

As a corollary they can be shown pictures of shapes that is present in nature or about videos of men/machineries producing those shapes.

8.      Meditation to increase creativity

Ask the students to tell the stories from their minds in an expressive way. At critical places, aid in visualization by showing pictures to them in a subconscious manner. They can act too, as they tell the stories.

The good old drawing/colouring sessions can aid in this effort. They can also be introduced to colouring wheels.

The children should be shown pictures of plants and trees, and they should identify the name. They should also identify it when they see it in real. (Eventually the kids should be well versed in picking medicinal wild plants if they go to picnic in a park!)

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Hari Om!