In moments of stress, our nervous systems can become overwhelmed and shift into a state of fight, flight, or freeze. This happens not just in our children, but in us as parents too.

For our children it may be overwhelm with too much sensory information coming in and for us it may be overwhelm with too much todo, think, and plan.

Mindfulness, when practiced together, becomes a powerful tool for co-regulation. It helps settle the body, calm the breath, and shift both parent and child out of the sympathetic stress response and back into connection, safety, and presence. Whether it’s through shared stillness, creative expression, or simply noticing what we feel, mindful practices invite the brain and body to rest, integrate, and relate.

The activities below are designed to offer exactly that—moments of calm, creativity, and co-regulation, no matter your child’s age or ability.

• Rhythm Drawing Together – Draw side-by-side to music, matching each other’s strokes.

• Mirror Movement – Face each other and gently copy movements back and forth.

• Finger Painting to Music – Paint freely with your hands to music, exploring color and emotion.

• “Today I Noticed…” Page – Record something simple from the day using drawing or symbols.

• Shared Breathing with Visual Cue – Use a pinwheel or feather to guide slow breathing.

• Emotion Weather Wheel – Choose and reflect a ‘weather-feeling’ through drawing or movement.

• Nature Journaling with Touch – Collect and glue nature items into a journal and reflect.

• Heartbeat Hand Drum – Tap together in rhythm with your heartbeat to create calm.

• Scent & Scribble – Pair calming scents with free drawing for sensory anchoring.

• Emotion Stickers Story – Use stickers or reflect feelings in a story sequence.

• Walk & Whisper – Walk in silence or soft tones, narrating observations with gentleness – or do walking meditation of senses

• Mandalas– Slowly trace or color pre-drawn mandalas to match breath and focus.

• Photo Reflection Time – Look at photos and respond with a gesture, sound, or narration, “Remember.”…

• Blanket Journaling – Cuddle under a  blanket while co-creating on paper.

• Sound & Motion Collage – React to various sounds with movement, expression, or drawing.

• Body Outline Story – Draw an outline of your child and color together connecting color to feelings

• Side-by-Side Silent Drawing – Simply draw in quiet next to one another—no instructions.

• Dim Light Drawing – Use soft lighting to slow down and co-create in stillness.

• Color Match Emotions – Choose a color that matches a feeling and create with it.

• Back & Forth Art – Take turns adding to a drawing, line by line or shape by shape.

• Tactile Patterning – Use finger paint or clay to make soothing, repetitive patterns.

• Emotional Puppets – Use a puppet to voice simple questions and nonverbal answers.

• Heartbeat Hug + Hum – Hug with gentle pressure and hum together for vibrational grounding.

• Create a “Safe Space Page” – Draw or collage a personal calm space you both visit.