Letter from the ChairMindfulness: Technique, Process, and OutcomeMindfulness is a hot topic. It is simultaneously a set of techniques, a process, and an outcome. The authorsin this issue identify and describe several mindfulness techniques for children and adolescents, includingawareness of breathing, not making judgments, and making choices. They talk about the process ofnoticing thoughts, feelings, and emotions with acceptance and compassion for the internal and externalworld, rather than judgment or disbelief. They emphasize that a universal outcome of mindfulness is to helpall young people grow up to be healthy and compassionate adults.

Mindfulness therapies differ radically from most of the therapy approaches from the past 120 years. Let’ssay that your supervisor rejected your request for vacation; you had the thought, “That’s unfair,” and yourbody had the corresponding physiological responses of anger, such as increased heart rate and dilatedpupils. In the 1950s, Freudian psychoanalysts would say that you couldn’t truly “understand” this reactionbecause it emerged from your unconscious, which was inherently unknowable except by a trainedpsychoanalyst. “That’s unfair” had its roots in your childhood and your relationship with your parent(s),and through dreams and free association it was a pathway to unlimited richness of insight. Behavioristssuch as B.F. Skinner took the opposite position. They discounted the importance of thoughts, acknowledgedthe physical reactions, and would have focused on the “punishment” of having a request for vacation denied.

In the 1960s and 1970s, cognitive therapy pioneers Aaron Beck and Albert Ellis agreed with Freud thatthoughts were very important, but they disagreed with the theory that people couldn’t make sense of theirown thoughts. Beck and Ellis argued that not only could we know where our thoughts came from, but withminimal training we could learn to interrogate and evaluate them by ourselves. Thoughts were so powerfulthat they could influence feelings and behaviors. Cognitive therapists would understand the thought “That’sunfair” as a judgment linked to dozens of automatic thoughts and a core belief. Learning to recognize andunderstand where these thoughts came from and how they influenced feelings and behaviors gave peoplepower over these thoughts. By the 2000s, cognitive therapies were the 800-pound gorilla of the therapyworld. Nearly every empirically supported treatment had a cognitive or behavioral basis; nearly everyproblem that social workers dealt with had a cognitive-behavioral answer.

But what if disputing thoughts didn’t empower people but instead gave thoughts power over them? Thisinsight was the quiet revolution of mindfulness therapies. Interventions with names like Mindfulness-BasedStress Reduction, Acceptance Commitment Therapy, Dialectical Behavior Therapy, and Mindfulness BasedCognitive Therapy challenged fundamental assumptions of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. The most radicalassumption in mindfulness is that our thoughts are meaningless unless we give them meaning. If your

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You’ve heard the word“mindfulness.” You’ve seen theannouncements for “mindfulness”workshops in the back of yourfavorite mental healthpublication. The term may arouseimages of peaceful humansilhouettes sitting cross-leggedagainst the backdrop of anexotic setting sun. Perhaps othersmay think of a combination offreshly burning incense, flickeringcandles, and beckoning gongs.You might think of mindfulnessas the latest mental health fad,but mindfulness is not a trendytherapy. It is an approach to lifethat has been around forcenturies—no beach sunset orincense required! Unlike manytreatments we learn in school or

on the job, mindfulness can betaught and learned by peopleacross the lifespan. What Ihave found most useful aboutthe practice of mindfulness isthat it offers inner peace andinner safety despite outer lifecircumstances.

WHAT IS MINDFULNESS? Put simply, mindfulness isawareness in the presentmoment. If you are noticingyour thoughts, feelings, bodilysensations, and the surroundingenvironment in the moment—instead of getting caught up inthe thoughts and worries of pastand future—then you arepracticing mindfulness. Becomingaware of your own breath,

observing the room for a certaincolor, truly listening to a sound,and intentionally tasting toexperience food in a new,focused way are all forms ofmindfulness. Mindfulness is thepractice of noticing, withoutjudgment, thoughts and worriesthat pop up in the moment andletting them go.

MINDFULNESS AND YOUTHAlthough most books andprograms that teach mindfulnessare designed for adults,developmental psychologistLawrence Steinberg (2014)argues that childhood andadolescence are the idealstages of life in which to teachmindfulness. While the adult

brain’s neural pathways havebeen established, children’sand adolescents’ brains arehighly malleable (whichneuroscientists call “plastic”).Every time youth learn somethingnew, they are etching neuralpathways into their brains. Themore those pathways are used,the stronger they become. Incontrast, when adults learnsomething new, they modifyexisting neural pathways. Forthese reasons, Steinbergconsiders mindfulness acornerstone of healthy adolescentdevelopment. Awareness is thefoundation of all life experiencesand skills. When childrenincrease their awareness in thepresent moment, they can

IT’S A FACT: Public education is a vital socializing of the child intellectually, socially, and

Jonathan B. Singer, PhD, LCSW, ChairMary Elizabeth Alvior, DCSW, ACSW, LCSWLeonette Boiarski, LCSW, ACSWLynne E. Hakim, ACSWShannon Kish, LGSW

CAYACommitteeMembers

NASW PRESIDENTDarrell Wheeler, PhD, MPH, ACSW

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICERAngelo McClain, PhD, LICSW

NASW STAFFDirector, Professional andWorkforce DevelopmentRaffaele Vitelli, CAE

Specialty Practice Section ManagerYvette Mulkey, MS

Project CoordinatorRochelle Wilder

TEACHING MINDFULNESSSKILLS to YouthKRISTINA SARGENT, LISW • JONATHAN B. SINGER, PHD, LCSW

force that, with the family, promotes the total development physically.

increase attentiveness skills,better regulate their emotions,make safer choices, and noticeand attend to others’ emotions.When children are presentenough to notice others’emotions, they can develop orenhance skills in empathy,kindness, compassion,forgiveness, and appropriatesocial skills.

INCORPORATINGMINDFULNESS PRACTICEINTO YOUR WORK WITHCHILDREN, ADOLESCENTS,AND YOUNG ADULTS Step one: Start practicing.There is no better way to teachthis skill than to know it andpractice it yourself. Not onlywill you be aware of thechallenges associated with

mindfulness, but also you willbecome more present and awareas a result of your practice. Weare better providers when weare truly present in the momentwith our clients, approachingthem from a sense of offeringrather than a sense of fixing orcontrolling, and noticing andletting go what we need to inour own lives (our own worries,fears, perceived failures, etc.).Ten minutes a day of sittingdown and practicing a guidedmeditation or simply focusingon our breath is so helpful!

Step two: Teachingmindfulness skills. 1. Don’t forget to breathe! Itmight seem strange that wehave to remember to breathe.After all, the average adult takes

approximately 22,000 breathsper day (Wikipedia, 2016). Butit is precisely because we takeso many breaths that we turn onour automatic pilot to breathe,literally. Breathing is regulatedby our autonomic nervous system(ANS). Luckily, breathing is theonly part of the ANS that wecan control. Conscious breathingcan help us to calm down whenour ANS is hyping us up, or itcan bring energy and awarenesswhen our ANS is shutting usdown. Conscious breathing isoften seen as the starting pointfor mindfulness. Right now, asyou’re reading about breathing,you’ve probably become awareof your breathing. Do you noticethe rise and fall of your body?What about the coolness of airentering versus the warmth as it

leaves? You’ve taken control ofyour breathing, but it might notbe very intentional. In fact, itprobably seems very artificialand forced. But noticing yourbreath is the first step inconscious breathing.

2. Teach conscious breathing:Instruct your client to “breathein through your nose as if youare smelling a flower andbreathe out your mouth onto thepalm of your hand.” If your kidscan’t relate to flowers, you cansubstitute the smell withsomething they like (for example,pizza). Breathing into the handallows kids to experience thewarmth of their breath as itleaves their bodies. Teachingchildren deep breathing byusing illustrations and tangible

Letter from the Chair… continued

supervisor denies vacation leaveand you feel angry and think“That’s unfair,” mindfulnessapproaches would say thatmaking a conscious choice—for example, letting go of thatthought—is just as valid aresponse as figuring out whereit came from or what it means.Instead of saying that your angeris rooted in childhood authorityissues or in a core belief thatthe world is an unfair place,mindfulness approaches wouldsay that there is value in noticingthe anger, having compassion foryourself and others, and makinga conscious choice about whatto do with your anger.

I can just hear you now: “Thissounds great!” Yes, it does. ButI know that some of you arethinking to yourself, “I workwith kids who live in violentneighborhoods and chaotichouseholds, who are in abusiverelationships, or who havedifficulty intense emotions. In

order for these kids to getthrough the day, they have toforget about the chaos andviolence at home, or ignore thetaunting and harassment ofpeers. How does ‘noticing andcompassion’ help these kids?”

Mindfulness approaches existalongside the role social workersplay in identifying and protectingkids who are being abused orneglected. If a child had learnedto make it through the day bycompartmentalizing thoughtsand feelings, you would not takeaway that coping mechanism;you would use your skills andtraining in trauma to identifyhow and when a child iscompartmentalizing, and thenincorporate mindfulnesstechniques such as relaxationand conscious breathing asadditional tools the child coulduse. Thinking of mindfulnesstechniques as additional copingis useful, because it preparesthese youth for times when their

current coping mechanisms arenot required. We’ve all knownadults whose current problemsare in part due to the fact thatthey are holding onto copingmechanisms that are no longeruseful. For example, a personwho grew up with an abusivefather and learned to bedeferential in order to avoidpunishment might find that, asan adult, being deferential keepshim or her from getting what heor she really wants in life (whichis a form of punishment).Therefore, teaching youngpeople to be aware of theirthoughts and feelings—and howto make conscious choices aboutwhat to do with those thoughtsand feelings—provides themwith real control over situations.When they find themselves inenvironments where they havereal control, their mindfulnesstechniques will help them to bemore healthy and compassionate.

The two articles in this issue focuson ways of teaching mindfulnessto school-aged youth. As withevery issue, we worked with theauthors to make sure that theirarticles were practical and easyto read and that they addressedissues of importance to socialworkers. In the first article,Kristina Marcelli Sargent, LISW,and Jonathan B. Singer, PhD,LCSW, describe how to teachmindfulness techniques to youth.In the second article, DianaCoholic, PhD, describes severalarts-based mindfulnesstechniques used in her 12-weekschool-based Holistic Arts-BasedProgram. She focuses on theuse of arts and movement as away of teaching mindfulness ina group setting.

Jonathan B. Singer, PhD, LCSWLoyola University Chicago School ofSocial WorkSocial Work Podcast

objects also adds an extrasensory component and funtwist. Examples includebreathing on pinwheels (youcan even have a game of whocan make their pinwheel movefor a longer period of time, thusencouraging slower, morefocused breathing), breathingon a tissue while holding thecorner to keep it in mid-air, andusing a Hoberman expandingsphere (one of those expandinggeometrical spheres) to guidedeep inhales and slow exhales.You can even pretend theseexpanding spheres are the child’slungs to illustrate breathing in tofill the entire lungs (bellybreathing). Glitter bottles can beused to teach children how theirminds can become less clutteredand settled as they focus ontheir breathing (shaking theglitter bottle, then breathingwhile watching the glitter settle).

3. Learn to stay in the presentmoment. Even though very youngchildren live in the presentbecause they lack the capacityfor past or future orientation,adults can help them identifytheir basic senses and whentheir senses are activated ineveryday life. After the capacityfor past and future orientationhas been developed, olderchildren and adolescents canlearn to stay in the present viathe concept of grounding oranchoring. You can print coloringpages of anchors from theInternet and have teens write or

draw their own groundingtechniques (things that helpthem feel more present in themoment). This could be anythingfrom conscious breathing tolooking around the room for acertain color, to imagining youare putting your worries intoballoons and watching themfloat away in your mind as youchoose to let them go.

4. Practice mindful listening.Children of all ages can practicemindful listening with a chime.Simply hit the chime and havethe child or teen focus andindicate when he or she can nolonger hear the fading sound. Ifyou want to provide a bit morestructure, give the child a smallobject (penny, pebble, etc.) andhave them imagine a stoplight.When the chime starts, thepebble is on green. As the chimefades, they move to yellow (whenthe chime sounds softer), to red(when the chime has completelystopped). Focusing on what theyare hearing, seeing, and doingis the essence of mindfulness. It’samazing to see how calm andrelaxed children are during andafter this activity! Step three: Practice, practice,practice—until it becomesyour practice. Integrating mindfulness intoyour therapy with children,adolescents, and young adultswill take time. We hope thatthese suggestions inspire you totry it out. And if you try and itfails miserably, then you’ll get

an opportunity to practiceradical acceptance, to let thejudgment go, and to know thatnext time might be different.

Kristina Sargent, LISW, is a child andfamily therapist practicing in Cincinnati,Ohio. She is the author and illustratorof the children’s picture book onmindfulness Ursula Unwinds Her Angerto help children learn such skills asbreathing mindfully, acknowledgingfeelings and letting them go, andslowing down to notice how othersare feeling (empathy). You can findmore mindfulness skills, tips, andinterventions on her blogArtofSocialWork.com.

Jonathan B. Singer, PhD, LCSW, isassociate professor of social work atLoyola University Chicago, founderand host of the Social Work Podcast,and chair of NASW’s Child, Adolescent,and Young Adult Specialty PracticeSection. He is the author of Suicide inSchools: A Practitioner’s Guide toMulti-level Prevention, Assessment,Intervention, and Postvention.

REFERENCESSteinberg, L.D. (2014). Age of

opportunity: Lessons from thenew science of adolescence.Boston, MA: Eamon Dolan/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Wikipedia. (2016). Respiratoryrate. [Online.] Retrieved fromhttps://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Respiratory_rate&oldid=706402074, onFebruary 23, 2016.

RESOURCESSargent, K.M. (n.d.). Art of

Social Work. Available at:https://kristinamarcelli.wordpress.com

Sargent, K.M. (2013). Buttonsthe brave blue kitten. XlibrisCorporation.

Sargent, K.M. (2014). Ursulaunwinds her anger. XlibrisCorporation.

BACKGROUNDOver the past 10 years,mindfulness-based interventions(MBIs) with children and youthhave emerged as promisinginterventions for a variety ofchallenges, such as stress,anxiety, and schooling1. Kabat-Zinn (1990), who was one ofthe first practitioners to developa MBI for adults in NorthAmerica, defined mindfulnessas activity that encouragesawareness to emerge throughpaying attention on purpose,nonjudgmentally, in the presentmoment. Mindfulness is muchmore than a set of techniques; itis a holistic philosophy thatencourages us to explore whowe are, question our worldview,and foster appreciation for ourexperiences.

MBIs with young people canhelp them to improve theirabilities to pay attention, developemotion regulation and self-understanding, and build self-compassion. When a childunderstands her feelings andthoughts, she can make betterchoices regarding her emotionalexpression rather than actingout in response to a trigger.Learning to be mindful can helpyouth to view their negativethoughts as passing eventsrather than valid reflections ofreality, and it may promoteflexible responses as opposedto rumination (Ciarrochi,Kashdan, Leeson, Heaven, &Jordan, 2011).

HOLISTIC ARTS-BASEDPROGRAM (HAP)2

My colleagues and I developeda 12-week mindfulness programcalled Holistic Arts-BasedProgram (HAP) based on our

work with children (Coholic,2011). As illustrated in the HAPMap, it is a combination of arts-based methods, mindfulness-based practices and concepts,and social group workmethodology. The children whoparticipated in the HAP werebetween 8 and 13 years oldand were involved with thechild welfare and/or mentalhealth systems. The goal of HAPwas to improve self-esteem andresilience in these children.

There is a myth that mindfulnessworks best with affluent children

who attendhighlyresourcedschools withdedicatedmeditationrooms, and thatkids in highlystressfulenvironmentswho attend low-resourcedschools wouldneither beinterested innor benefit frommindfulness.Nothing couldbe further fromthe truth.Children whoattended HAPconsistently

reported their experience as funand beneficial. We found thatchildren reported improvementsin their emotion regulation,mood, coping and social skills,confidence and self-esteem,empathy, and ability to payattention and focus (Coholic &Eys, 2016).

Most of the children whoparticipated in HAP were notdiagnosed with a specificdisorder or problem. They had

a variety of challenges,such as unstable livingarrangements, poorschool performance,teachers who did not understandhow to attend to their needs,low self-esteem and confidence,past abuse and neglect, andfeelings of anxiety. For example,Edward, a 10-year-old boy whowitnessed his mother beingphysically and emotionallyabused by his father for severalyears, would ask questionsunrelated to a group activity,throwing off the group’s efforts,and would verbally put downthe other group members.Rachel, an 8-year-old girl whowas living in foster care andwas very quiet, had troublemaintaining eye contact withthe group members and judgedher arts-based creationsharshly, saying that they were“no good” or “stupid.” Susan,a 12-year-old girl also living infoster care who was quitetalkative and gregarious,desired instant friendships withthe other group members,wanting to repeatedly hug themand the group facilitators.

Many of us work with thesechildren across schools andhealth care settings and withinmental health agencies, childwelfare services, and community

ARTS-BASEDMINDFULNESSGROUPInterventionDIANA COHOLIC, PHD, RSW

development programs. Oftenthese children are in need of(but lack access to) strengths-based services and supportsthat can help them to shore uptheir strengths and defenses;build basic skills, such as theability to pay attention andfocus; and effectively get alongwith others. One of the benefitsof facilitating an arts-based MBIis that it can accommodate thechildren’s diversity, as it is notfocused on a specific clinicalproblem or outcome but is apreventative type of programaimed at helping youth improvetheir resilience by way oflearning about, and practicing,mindfulness-based skills andconcepts. Indeed, many childrenand youth need to learn basicskills of paying attention andsustaining this attention overtime before they can effectivelyengage in school and learning.One student said3: “Before, Iwas never really mindful. I’dalways go off, but now I’mmore concentrated, like,especially at school.”

MINDFULNESS IN SOCIAL WORKCompared with other disciplines,social workers have taken upMBIs in different ways.Importantly, more traditionalMBIs emphasize meditationactivities that require attention,focus, and sitting still. In ourexperiences, many childrenwho deal with the issuesdescribed above can becomeeasily frustrated and disengaged,have poor listening skills, andhave trouble remainingphysically still. These might besymptomatic of coping skillsdeveloped to deal with chaoticor abusive households.Traditional MBIs, such asmeditation4, might be triggeringfor youth whose copingmechanisms involve movementand distraction. We believe thateven for these kids, teachingmindfulness techniques has

value. Once a child is in a saferenvironment and/or gainsaccess to supports within theirenvironment, these types ofbehaviors, which aresymptomatic of their lifeexperiences, interfere with theirability to learn, to relax andfeel calm and in control, and toform positive and effectiverelationships with others.Developing one’s self-awareness and understanding—and learning not to judgeoneself—can provide afoundation for making moreeffective choices around one’sfeelings and behaviors. TWO EXAMPLES OF MBI: TAICHI AND THOUGHT JAR Tai ChiTeaching children to be awareof their breathing is one of themost basic ways to becomemindful. We use tai chimovements to improve the abilityto focus on one’s breathing(mindful breathing). Yes,mindfulness can happen whenkids are moving around. In fact,for children who have troublesitting still, these activities canpromote success. One of themore simple movements entailsvisualizing yourself as a butterfly:

• Take a deep breath. Placeyour feet shoulder-widthapart, bend your kneesslightly, and relax the arms at your side. Exhale.

• Slowly lift up your arms up to shoulder height whilebreathing in. Keep your eyesslightly open whileperforming this movement.

• Repeat the up and downmovements seven times. Eachtime, breathe in while liftingup the arms and breathe outwhile lowering the arms.

We facilitate 10 different tai chimovements, and we introduceone movement in each groupsession, beginning in the secondweek. By week 11, the

movements can be combinedinto one fluid motion. Becauseeach of our group sessions istwo hours long, we usuallyintroduce a tai chi activity afterthe group break midway throughthe session. However, if thechildren ask to do the activityearlier, that is fine too. In fact, itis a great sign of progress if theyouth understand when theyneed to do it to feel calmer.Usually, we do not spend morethan 10 minutes practicing amovement. The children do notalways fully engage with theactivity; sometimes they can besilly or feel frustrated, as it isnot easy to slow down andfocus on one’s breathing. Theemphasis is to encourage thechildren to participate as bestthey can and to practice ontheir own outside of the group.

Thought JarArts-based methods arestrengths-based, fun, relevant,and engaging for youth andcan include drawing, painting,sculpting, music, and much more.The arts-based activities wefacilitated are simple and donot require expensive supplies.The goal of the “Thought Jar”activity is to introduce theconcept of mindfulness. Idescribed this activity in my2010 book Arts Activities forChildren and Young People inNeed, published by JessicaKingsley Publishers (Coholic,2010). You need a glass jar,water, and colorful beads (thekind you can find in any artsand crafts store). The colorfulbeads represent thoughts andfeelings. Here’s how it works:

Fill your glass jar (small- tomedium-sized jars are mostmanageable) halfway withwater. Each person takes variouscolored beads and drops theminto the jar one by one. Eachperson takes a turn and says outloud what their bead represents

(you will have to go around thegroup a few times). The groupmembers listen to each othersharing, which buildsunderstanding of each other’sexperiences. For example, Peteput a shiny blue bead into thejar because he felt sad todaywhen his best friend didn’t wantto sit with him at lunchtime.When I do this activity withsomeone one-on-one, we’ll goback and forth until we haveenough bobbles in the jar (oryou can throw a handful in ifit’s taking too long!). Each childin a group can have their ownjar, or a group jar can be usedfor this activity. When you haveenough material in the jar, haveeveryone take a turn swirlingand shaking the jar. We areusually seated in a circlearound a table for this activity(otherwise you might end upwith hundreds of beads all overthe floor), and the children passthe jar around (if we’re usingone jar). Make sure you have asecure lid on the jar(s) so thewater doesn’t spill out!

As you’re shaking the jar, havea discussion about how we feelwhen we have many thoughtsand feelings all swirling aroundin our minds (like a tornado)versus how we feel when ourminds are calmer and morefocused (when the objects havesettled to the bottom of the jarand we can see what’s inside).It is more difficult for us to makegood choices and decisionswhen we are not feeling calmand focused. Mindfulness isintroduced as a practice thatcan help us understand what allthe beads swirling around inour minds represent. With abetter ability to focus and payattention to our thoughts andfeelings, we have a chance tobuild self-awareness, which inturn can lead to making betterchoices and decisions, ratherthan acting out a feeling.

The way we would communicatethis to the children is to ask themsuch questions as: Do you everfeel like you have a tornado inyour mind with too many feelingsand thoughts all swirling aroundso fast that you can’t tell whatyou’re feeling or thinking? Whathappens when you’re like this?What kinds of decisions canyou make when this ishappening? When you feelcalmer (when the beads havesunk to the bottom), you cansee what’s in your mind. Whatkinds of choices can you makethen? When you’re mindful, itdoesn’t mean you have lessfeelings and thoughts (yourhead isn’t empty, just like the jarisn’t empty) but you can actuallysee what these feelings andthoughts are. We can look intothe jar and see what’s there.You can’t see what’s in therewhen things are spinning toofast. When you know what’s inyour mind, you can makechoices about these thingsinstead of acting out. We oftenhave several Thought Jars in thegroup room and often the youthwill pick them up and spin themaround when they come in forthe group session. We alsoremind the children of theactivity when they are having ahard time paying attention.

ARTS-BASED APPROACHES:DRAWING/PAINTINGArts-based creations are usedas tools for teaching, exploring,sharing, and discussing aconcept. These works are notcreated so that the therapist can“interpret” them. While we mightform opinions about a drawing,we need to ask effective open-ended questions and statementsthat can confirm (or not) ourinitial thoughts without directlyasking a young person whatsomething means or why theycreated something; the latter isusually met with a shrug of the

shoulders or “I don’t know.”Consider if the image evokes afeeling. Does it take up thewhole page, or is it containedin a specific area? Does part ofthe image appear to be off thepage? What colors are used?Does it appear solid, or faintand wispy? Do parts of itappear to be moving? Arts-based methods are a highlyeffective way to facilitatemindfulness-based practiceswith children who may lack theskills (or interests) to engagewith a more traditional MBI.When a child is drawing, he orshe is learning to pay attentionto his or her imagination and isfocusing on an activity. He orshe is learning to expressthoughts and feelings in creativeways and may even discoversomething about him- or herselfin the process, which developsself-awareness. By exploring thearts-based creations in open-ended ways, we are learningabout children’s experiencesand developing empathy forthem in an in-depth manner.

SOCIAL GROUP WORKMETHODOLOGYWhile HAP activities can easilybe used in an individual setting,there are many benefits to doingmindfulness work in a group.Groups are an ideal setting forchildren to learn and practiceinterpersonal skills and to gainpeer support. Working withyoung people in a group settingpromotes normalization,validation, and a sense ofbelonging. Many times, childrenhave commented on howaffirming it is to be in a groupwith peers who share theirexperiences, such as living infoster care or having a challengesuch as anxiety. Group work isalso an opportunity to supportone another and to buildunderstanding and mutual aid,thereby fostering skills in

empathy and compassion. Infact, one of the things that thechildren have repeatedlyreported to like most about HAPwas the opportunity to “makefriends.” In HAP, the facilitatorsalways participate with thechildren in the activities, whichpromotes a strengths-basedapproach. Also, expectationshave to be realistic; for instance,we don’t expect the children tosit still and attentively listen toinstructions. They move aroundand interrupt, and discussionsusually occur while the activitiestake place. It is important tounderstand that every momenthas the potential to teach andpromote something valuable,and to utilize these moments totheir full capacity within acontext that is compassionate,meaningful, safe, and fun.

Diana Coholic, PhD, RSW, is anassociate professor and the director ofthe School of Social Work at LaurentianUniversity (Sudbury, Ontario, Canada).See: https://laurentian.ca/faculty/dcoholic. She can be reached atdcoholic@laurentian.ca.

REFERENCESCiarrochi, J., Kashdan, T.,

Leeson, P., Heaven, P., &Jordan, C. (2011). On beingaware and accepting: A one-year longitudinal study intoadolescent well-being. Journalof Adolescence, 34, 695-703. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2010.09.003

Coholic, D. (2010). Artsactivities for children andyoung people in need:Helping children to developmindfulness, spiritualawareness and self-esteem.London, EnglandUK: JessicaKingsley Publishers.

Coholic, D. (2011). Exploringthe feasibility and benefits ofarts-based mindfulness-basedpractices with young peoplein need: Aiming to improveaspects of self-awarenessand resilience. Child andYouth Care Forum, 40(4),303-317.

Coholic, D., & Eys, M. (2016).Benefits of an arts-basedmindfulness group interventionfor vulnerable children. Child& Adolescent Social WorkJournal, 33(3), 1-13.doi:10.1007/s10560-015-0431-3.

Kabat-Zinn, J. (1990). Fullcatastrophe living: Using thewisdom of your body andmind to face stress, pain andillness. New York, NY: Delta.

RESOURCESBoone, M.S. (Ed.). (2014).

Mindfulness and acceptancein social work: Evidence-based interventions andemerging applications.Oakland, CA: Context Press, New HarbingerPublications, Inc.

Hick S. (Ed.)., (2009).Mindfulness and social work.Chicago, IL: Lyceum.

We made two short films withthe children we have workedwith that illustrate theirexperiences in our program: (1) Kaarina’s Story is a greatdescription of the program,told from the perspective of a10-year-old girl; and (2) Self-Growth and Group Work is aClaymation film made by teenswho recently participated inHAP while attending an in-patient mental healthprogram. You can watchthe films by clicking here:www.dianacoholic.com/my-work/films

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