"Mindfulness is paying attention to the present moment with curiosity and kindness" - Mindful with Me

I'm so happy to share a new book with you today: Mindful with Me: Connecting with Your Child Through Daily Mindfulness, written by Sarah Dennehy, M.Ed, illustrated by Natalie Garber Martin, and published by The Collective Book Studio.

This artful book talks about intentional time spending and how to curate a mindful connection with growing humans. The six chapters (breathe, focus, feel, care, rest, and go) each hold four varying types of activities. Each category: Let’s pause (breathwork), let’s connect (games), let’s move (movement to energize or wind down), and let’s create (crafting for creative minds), have options that can be actioned within five minutes or less. 

The book is filled with practical activities, offerings to share, and the guidance to help readers put them into practice. While it’s definitely geared towards a younger population, it was engaging and informative. The target audience is ages 4-8, although it could easily be modified to fit other ages.

I enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it.

Sarah Dennehy, M.Ed, is a trauma-informed yoga and mindfulness teacher and licensed behavioral specialist located in Eastern Pennsylvania. She is the program director for Shanthi Project, a nonprofit that provides trauma-informed mindfulness and yoga to area youth, non-profits, and organizations in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley.

Sarah began her mindfulness practice while working as a behavioral specialist one-on-one with parents and in schools. Seeking new effective ways to help young clients deal with stress and anxiety, Sarah earned teaching certifications for children’s yoga and mindfulness. She then founded The Mindful Space, which offers mindfulness education for kids, parents, teachers, and therapists. Her first book, Mindful with Me: Connecting with Your Child through Daily Mindfulness was published in 2024.

Sarah lives in Eastern Pennsylvania with her husband, Eric.

We were able to catch up with Sarah and ask her about the book, life's work, changing for the better, and more. Here's what she had to say... 

Please tell us what inspired you to write this book… 
The short answer is that mindfulness changed my life in so many positive ways and I want to share it with as many people as possible!

The longer answer: In my years as a mindfulness instructor and program developer, I’ve realized that there are many misconceptions about mindfulness. A lot of people aren’t exactly sure what it is, and many think that it’s synonymous with meditation. It can be viewed as something that’s inaccessible or difficult to understand. In reality, mindfulness as a concept is very simple -- it’s the daily practice and consistency that may make it seem out of reach. So, I wrote Mindful with Me to help children and their grownups not only learn what mindfulness is and some fun ways to practice it, but also how to set up systems and routines to make it a part of their every day.

Mindful with Me is written for adults, but everything from setting up the practice space to planning the mindful routines is meant for adults and children to share. Even though the activities and breaths are fun to do, it’s highly unlikely that children are going to consistently do them on their own – they need adults guiding them and practicing with them. Everyone benefits!

I’ve often wondered how my life -- or my parents’ lives, or their parents’ lives -- would’ve been different if we’d learned and practiced mindfulness as children.

How does this book fit into your life's work? 
I began my career as a behavioral specialist, where I worked closely with families of children who were experiencing anxiety, autism, and ADHD. When I discovered mindfulness, I quickly figured out how beneficial it could be for the families I worked with…and pretty much everyone else! My career shifted to teaching children’s mindfulness and yoga, and eventually becoming the program director for a non-profit that shares mindfulness with students and communities (Shanthi Project). I want to get the word out to as many people as possible, and I’d always wanted to write a book, so Mindful with Me was the natural next step!

How do you think teaching mindfulness to both parents and children can change the world for the better? 
There are so many benefits to parents/caregivers and children practicing mindfulness, especially together. When we, as adults, share mindfulness with children, we’re modeling that mental health matters. We’re teaching children how to work through difficult emotions – that feelings, even the unpleasant ones, are meant to be noticed and processed. We’re building self-awareness and empathy, and demonstrating the importance of social connection. We’re learning to pause and respond, instead of automatically reacting to what’s happening inside of us and around us.

Mindfulness reminds us that even when things feel heavy, there’s also a lot of joy and goodness all around. This world needs more connection, compassion, and kindness, which is all learned through mindfulness.

What's up next for you? 
Definitely another book or two! I have a couple of ideas for children’s picture books, and a fun project related to Mindful with Me that I hope to share with the world later this year. Stay tuned!

Where can readers find your work? 
@the_mindful_space (Instagram); www.createamindfulspace.com; www.mindfulwithmebook.com

Stacey Ebert, our Educational Travels Editor, is a traveler at heart who met her Australian-born husband while on a trip in New Zealand. Stacey was an extracurricular advisor and taught history in a Long Island public high school for over fifteen years, enjoying both the formal and informal educational practices. After a one year 'round the world honeymoon, travel and its many gifts changed her perspective. She has since left the educational world to focus on writing and travel. She is energetic and enthusiastic about long term travel, finding what makes you happy and making the leap. In her spare time she is an event planner, yogi, dark chocolate lover, and spends as much time as possible with her toes in the sand.

Check out her website at thegiftoftravel.wordpress.com for more of her travel musings.