Many families say meditation and mindfulness help their child focus, cope with stress, and “quiet the mind.” These eight apps can help your child learn to meditate and be mindful. Many of them include guided meditations. You can also check out self-control apps for young kids and for teens and tweens.
Price and availability may vary but were accurate as of March 12, 2020. Understood does not endorse or receive financial compensation for the sale of any of these products.
Mindful Powers
Mindful Powers is a good app for introducing grade-schoolers to mindfulness. It guides kids through a series of meditations, called “stories,” that each build on each other. This is different from many meditation apps, which require kids to pick and choose what to do on their own. Kids work with a “Flibbertigibbet,” a cute round sea creature that helps them stay focused and breathe. The app uses a child’s voice, and it has a youthful look and feel.
Price: Free to try ($4.99 for the full app)
Available for: iOS
Smiling Mind
Smiling Mind offers hundreds of mindfulness activities for all ages. In addition to breathing meditations, the app has sensory exercises, like listening to music. There are programs for kids in different age groups, as well as for schools, workplaces, and sports. The app also keeps track of when kids meditate. Smiling Mind was created by a nonprofit with the mission of improving mental health in Australia. So the app uses voices with Australian accents. Since the app has so many options, your child may need your support to use it.
Price: Free
Available for: Android, iOS
Breathe, Think, Do With Sesame
This free Sesame Street app isn’t specifically for meditation, but it’s great for introducing very young kids to the concept of calming down through breathing. The app teaches kids the “Breathe, Think, Do” method. Kids help an animated monster facing a frustrating situation to calm down by taking long, deep breaths. Afterwards, they help the monster think of a solution and do it.
Price: Free
Available for: Android, iOS
Headspace
Founded in 2010, Headspace was one of the first meditation apps on the market. It has a sleek, cool look, and it uses fun cartoon videos to teach how meditation works. The app has tons of guided meditations, read by a voice with a British accent. Originally for adults, Headspace now has specific mindfulness activities for kids, with five themes: Calm, Focus, Kindness, Sleep, and Wake Up. Each activity is customized for three different age groups, Under 5, 6–8, and 10–12, and each has a role for parents. Teens can also benefit from the app, which offers reminders to help kids stay on track, and a buddy system so different users can encourage each other.
Price: Free to try ($12.99 per month subscription)
Available for: Android, iOS
Three Good Things: A Happiness Journal
Although not for meditation, this free journaling app can help kids build mindfulness based on a simple premise: If kids write down three good things that happen to them each day, they’ll feel happier. The app is very easy to use. After kids enter their name, they’re asked to write a few words about something good that happened that day, then a second and third thing. They can use the app to set a reminder to write each day, and they can look over past journal entries.
Price: Free
Available for: iOS
Stop, Breathe & Think
Stop, Breathe & Think is a simple meditation app for kids in middle school and older. It has guided meditations and breathing exercises, as well as written instructions on how to meditate. Kids can share how their mind and body are feeling, and the app suggests a meditation based on that. The app also tracks total meditation time and how “settled” kids report they feel.
Price: Free to try ($9.99 per month subscription)
Available for: Android, iOS
Super Stretch Yoga HD
Super Stretch Yoga HD is for yoga, not meditation, but it can help kids learn the importance of relaxation and breathing. The app teaches kids how to do 12 different yoga poses. Each pose is introduced with a short animation, a live video with a child doing the pose, and an explanation. Kids can choose to do one of the poses, or they can do all of them in rotation. The app gives gentle encouragement while kids do the yoga poses, and it reminds them to breathe. Super Stretch Yoga HD is best for kids in grade school and Pre-K.
Price: Free
Available for: iOS
Calm
The Calm app offers a new meditation every day, along with 7- to 21-day meditation programs like “7 Days of Calming Anxiety” or “7 Days of Focus.” Most of the meditations are guided, but there are options for unguided timed meditations, too. Guided meditations are read aloud by a pleasant, soothing voice. Kids can also listen to sounds like ocean waves or wind. It’s free to try the app’s first program and a few stand-alone guided meditations. There’s a fee to access more. Calm is best for older teens and young adults. Parents may want to try the app too. And if you have a younger child, Calm offers sleep stories to read to kids to help them relax and sleep better.
Price: Free to try ($69.99 per year)
Available for: Android, iOS
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Common Sense Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping kids and families thrive in a world of media and technology.
Reviewed by
Reviewed by
Keri Wilmot is an occupational therapist who works with children of varying ages and abilities in all areas of pediatrics.