YOU:
(smiling) I’m glad you’re so good at coming up with ideas.
We’ll have to give that one some more thought.Even if things get silly, the SIFT game is a good way to give your
kids practice at paying attention to their inner landscape. And
remember that just by talking about the mind, you help develop it.
Whole-Brain Strategy #10:
Exercise Mindsight: Getting Back to the Hub
We’ve talked above about the power of mindsight and focused
attention. When kids become ɹxated on one set of points on their
wheel of awareness, we need to help them shift their focus so that
they can become more integrated. They can then see that they
don’t have to be victims of the sensations, images, feelings, and
thoughts within them, and decide how they think and feel about
their experiences.
This doesn’t come naturally to children, but they can readily be
taught how to focus their attention back to the hub. We can give
them tools and strategies for calming themselves and integrating
their diʃerent feelings and desires. One of the best ways parents
can do this is to introduce them to mindsight exercises that help
them get back to the hub. When we help our children return to the
hub of their wheel, we help them become more focused and
centered so they can remain aware of the many rim points
affecting their emotions and state of mind.
Here’s how one mother, Andrea, helped her nine-year-old,
Nicole, get back to her hub so she could deal with her anxiety
about an upcoming music recital. On the morning of the recital,
Andrea realized that Nicole was understandably nervous about
playing her violin in front of her friends and their parents. She