Enrichment · Wellbeing

Volcano breaths,
turtle tucks, calmer rooms.

Young children settle with their bodies first. This guide gives preschool teachers and parents ten simple moves, each marked as waking up or calming down, and a quick log for each session: the goal, the group’s energy before, the moves, the minutes and the energy after. The page checks that the moves fit the goal, that you end on something calm and that sessions stay short enough for small attention spans.

Log a sessionWhat you get

Sessions

The worked example is made up: three sessions with a class of four-year-olds. Saved on this device only.

Loading the session form. If nothing appears, turn on JavaScript.

What you get

Enrichment · WellbeingFree

What you finish with
A record per session: time of day, the goal, the group’s energy before and after from 1 to 5, the moves used and the one you finished on, minutes and how many joined. Shows the average energy change for settle-down sessions and the move used most; flags energizing moves before rest, finishing on an energizing move and sessions over ten minutes.
Who it is for
Preschool and Pre-K teachers, child care providers and parents of three- to five-year-olds.
Format
Browser guide with a move library and a saved record per session. Prints one session, all of them in a table or a blank sheet; downloads a spreadsheet (.csv); exports and imports a file.
Access
Free. No account, no sign-in and nothing to install. Everything you type stays in this browser; nothing is sent to Caveat.
Where it lives
The Wellbeing space in Caveat Enrichment.
Support
Questions about access, an order or a correction: team@caveatacademic.com.

How to use it

  1. Pick a goal: wake up and move, or settle down.
  2. Rate the group’s energy before you start.
  3. Choose three or four moves that fit the goal, and do them with the children.
  4. Finish on a calm move, then rate the energy again.
  5. Look back after a week to see which moves work for your group.

Log a session

Moves for little bodies

Pick moves for the goalTo wake upStarfish stretchBear walkFreeze danceBunny breathsShake it outTo settle downBalloon breathVolcano breathSnake breathTurtle tuckTree poseEvery timeDo it with themThree or four movesFive to ten minutesEnd on a calm moveName what you feelPick moves for the goalTo wake upStarfish stretchBear walkFreeze danceBunny breathsShake it outTo settle downBalloon breathVolcano breathSnake breathTurtle tuckTree poseEvery timeDo it with themThree or four movesFive to ten minutesEnd on a calm moveName what you feel
Long, slow breaths out are what calm the body. That is why snake breath, a long hiss out, works so well with this age.

Why breathing out matters

Slow breathing with a longer breath out is linked with a shift toward the calming side of the nervous system. Children can learn it as a game: blow out birthday candles, hiss like a snake, let a balloon belly go flat.

Short is the point

Preschoolers’ attention for a whole-group activity is short. Five to ten minutes, with you moving too, keeps most of the group in. Children who watch are still learning; do not force them to join.

What the research says

Studies of mindfulness and movement programs in preschool and kindergarten have found small gains in self-regulation and attention. The effects are modest and depend on practice that happens most days, not occasionally.

Sources

  1. Flook, L., et al. (2015). Promoting prosocial behavior and self-regulatory skills in preschool children through a mindfulness-based kindness curriculum. Developmental Psychology, 51(1), 44 to 51.
  2. Razza, R. A., Bergen-Cico, D., and Raymond, K. (2015). Enhancing preschoolers’ self-regulation via mindful yoga. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24(2), 372 to 385.
  3. Zaccaro, A., et al. (2018). How breath-control can change your life: a systematic review on psycho-physiological correlates of slow breathing. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 12, 353.
  4. Head Start Early Childhood Learning and Knowledge Center: Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework, approaches to learning and self-regulation.

The worked example is made up. Adapt moves for children with physical disabilities or medical needs, and follow your program’s policies. Nothing you type is sent to Caveat. Support: team@caveatacademic.com.