Mindfulness at Play

Mindfulness is widely used in personal development, healthcare, business and sports to improve wellbeing and performance.

Mindfulness at Play is for those it can potentially be of the greatest value to — young people — and the people who give them their primary support, their parents. It combines science and wisdom, theory and practice, strategies and activities. It also provides a combination of psychological knowledge and practical guiding principles which will help parents help themselves, as well as their children, to achieve mindfulness.

The authors know that the benefits of mindfulness are substantial and far-reaching. When young people can clearly focus on their internal world in the present moment, they are better able to:

• Know and communicate their experiences and needs — a critical component of emotional intelligence.
• Discover that they can be curious rather than overwhelmed by emotions, leading to greater emotion regulation and resilience.
• Increase self-acceptance and decrease shame, resulting in greater wellbeing, more effective healing from trauma, and an increase in pro-social behaviors towards others.

This book will greatly help young people’s learning development, social development and whole-person development. It is a comprehensive yet light, playful and play-based one-stop mindfulness resource for parents.

About the Authors

Dr Stephen McKenzie has taught and researched for over 30 years in many psychological areas, most recently mindfulness. He has the ability to present potentially complex information in a warm and engaging way.

Angela North is a psychologist with 30 years’ experience employing play therapy with children, adolescents and their families to treat a range of emotional and behavioral problems.