Have you ever seen a starfish? Another name for this invertebrate is sea star! Sea stars are really cool and can even regenerate! If you’re not sure what that means, check out this new relaxation story where we go through the life cycle of a sea star. 

Stay well and take care, everyone. 

Today’s Themes

Scientific (curriculum connections): Sea stars (starfish), regeneration (biology)

Social-emotional connections: self-care, importance of rest 

Resources

Starfish, National Geographic Kids

What is Regeneration? (YouTube video) (for older children, adults)

Full transcript of each episode is available upon request. Please e-mail [email protected]. 

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We pretend to whistle with an acorn cap today, bring our hands near our mouth. Feel free to skip this one and/or make sure everyone has washed their hands right before listening.

Did you know that trees talk to each other? They do! Mother trees can send food to their saplings. Trees that are being attacked can send warnings to their neighbours. Trees help each other and that connection is very important for their own survival and health. 

Oh yes, of course we’re doing a tree pose today(!), along with a couple other relaxation exercises. 

We also mention the Australian bushfires. During the time of writing, it was announced that there are no more active fires for the first time since July 2019! Great news, but the devastation from these mass fires will take months and even years to recover from, especially now with COVID-19, and you can help. Here are a few places accepting donations at the link below. (And as with any charitable donation, it’s best to do some research into the organization to ensure you’re happy where your donations are going.)

Here's how to help Australia bushfire victims by Amy Chillag and Lauren Lee, CNN

Of course there are many, many people who need support right now in our own neighbourhoods too, so if you can, think about donating to your local food banks and shelters. 

Stay well and take care, everyone. 

Today’s Themes

Scientific (curriculum connections): Trees, root systems, air pollution 

Social-emotional connections: Connection (support systems: family and friends, neighbours) 

Resource 

I Can Name 50 Trees Today! All About Trees (Dr. Seuss’ Cat in the Hat Learning Library) By Bonnie Worth 

The Hidden Life of Trees: What they Feel, How they Communicate—Discoveries from a Secret World by Peter Wohleben 

Lonely Doug: The Story of Canada’s Last Great Trees by Harley Rustad

How to Whistle an Acorn Cap (this is to keep in mind for the future, right now may not be the best time to do this)

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It’s the end of the week so it’s time to relaaax! Today we’re going to do a top to toes relaxation exercise.

Mindfulness Activity: We are focusing on relaxing our bodies today but it’s also important to keep active and moving. If you can’t get outside to play in the fresh air and sunshine, you can still play some fun movement games in the house. Here are a few ideas (just be careful of the things and people around you):

Walk up and down the stairs 5 times (try doing this in different ways: slow motion, fast without stamping, skipping one step, backwards while holding the railing)Play sports with a beach ball or balloon. You can kick it around, try to keep it in the air, play volleyball, or aim in into a basket. Do yoga! Find some kids’ yoga videos or cards to stretch and move and balance. Yoga poses can help build your muscles, improve your coordination and balance (which is great for sports), and keep your body AND your brain active! Take a long string or ball of yarn and make a path around the room. Balance as you walk along the line. You can make straight and curvy lines! Try walking backwards too. Follow the leader. The leader crosses the room in any way except walking while the other person copies their movement. Take turns being the leader. 

Hope that’s enough to get you started! If you think of other fun and safe movement games to play indoors, please share it with us on Twitter (@peaceoutpodcast), Instagram (@peaceoutstories), or on the Bedtime FM Facebook page! We’d love to see how you’re keeping active! 

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Just breathe! Today is all about breathing as we play the Birthday Cake Breathing Game! 🤤

Mindfulness Activity: Make your own pinwheel to help focus on your breathing! 

Easy Pencil Pinwheel

Pinwheel (with template)

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Think you have a good memory? We’re going to test that out today!

Mindfulness Activity: Share one of your favourite memories with someone by drawing a picture, writing a story, showing them a photo, or just by telling them about it! (Ask them about their favourite memories too!)

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It’s all about the senses today as we do a simple grounding exercise. This good for those who experience anxiety or are having anxious thoughts. 

NOTE: We will explore the sense of taste and smell, so it may be helpful to have a piece of fruit or veggie stick ready! 

Mindfulness Activity: Go outside for a sensory walk! Choose one of your senses to focus on during different parts of your walk (what can you see, hear, smell, touch right now?). 

You can try this listening game outside: find a safe place to stop, close your eyes, and focus on the sounds you are hearing. Put up your fist and then one finger for each sound you hear until your whole hand is open. Share what sounds you heard and see if someone heard different sounds. ** Remember to stay 6 feet / 2 metres (or 3 kids' arm length) distance away from other people on your walk.

Maybe you can bring along some more fruit and veggies to snack on after your walk! 

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Today we do a Loving Kindness practice, sending friendly wishes to four people in our lives, including ourselves! 

Mindfulness Activity: Call a relative or friends to say hello today! 

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Many countries are closing schools in response to the coronavirus, which means students are home for awhile. Things are confusing and changing everyday, so now it’s more important than ever to take time out of our days to pause so we can rest, recharge, and go back to life with a clear and calm mind. 

So we’ve recorded five mini episodes (one for every weekday) that can be listened to at the beginning or any point of your day to help build mindfulness into your child’s routine. We’re calling them “Time to Pause”. You can create a routine and healthy habits by listening to them again on the designated day of the week. 

And remember: Social distancing doesn’t mean emotional distancing. Kids and parents and family can listen to the Time to Pause episodes together, they’re only a couple minutes long! We even add an activity that you can do after the episode is over, most are ways to express kindness to others, something that I really think is needed at this time. 

Peace Out is part of KidsListen, which has put together a round up of educational podcast episodes, including science podcasts explaining the coronavirus, fun and silly story podcasts for screen-free entertainment, and mindfulness and relaxation podcasts like ours. Check it out at www.kidslisten.org/activity-podcast. 

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Are tomatoes a fruit or a vegetable? Today we’re talking about being adaptable while we move, breathe, and imagine that we’re a growing tomato plant and also a buzzing bumble bee!

One of our poses today, inspired by boat pose in yoga, is quite challenging, using a lot of core muscles. A couple of options are given, but one more that can be used is holding behind the knees. Encourage your child(ren) to rest whenever they need it.

If you’d like to tell us about a time when someone did something kind for you, please send a voice recording to [email protected] with “Kindness Story (child’s name)” as the subject. We will listen and respond to each one and choose a few to include on future Peace Out episodes! 

Today’s Themes

Scientific (curriculum connections): plants, buzz pollination, nutrition

Social-emotional connections: awareness and consideration of others, being adaptable to the situation, resiliency

Resource

What’s the Buzz? How Tomatoes are Pollinated by Christine Casey

The Importance of Bees, Canada Agriculture and Food Museum 

Coping with change: teaching adaptability will help children grow, The Conversation

Understanding temperament: Adaptability, The Center for Parenting Education 

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Today we talk about mycelium. To me, this is such an interesting topic, so I’ve included some links below if you want to learn more! 

We also do a Loving Kindness practice today. This is when we think of four people (ourselves, someone we love, someone we find difficult, a neutral person) while we say:

May you be happy May you be healthy May you be safe May you live with ease 

This is a beautiful practice that helps encourage kindness.

And speaking of kindness, if you’d like to tell us about a time when someone did something kind for you, please send a voice recording to [email protected] with “Kindness Story (child’s name)” as the subject. We will listen and respond to each one and choose a few to include on future Peace Out episodes! 

Today’s Themes

Scientific (curriculum connections): mushrooms, mycelium, root systems Social-emotional connections: interconnectedness 

Resources

Nature Anatomy: The Curious Parts & Pieces of the Natural World by Julia Rothman (I love this beautifully illustrated book!) Plants talk to each other using an internet of fungus by Nic Fleming (BBC) Mushroom Tutorial, Brandeis University List of Mushroom Types from A to Z, Gardening Channel Video: Joe’s Big Idea: Inspired By A Fungus, Inventor Creates Biodegradable Packaging (NPR) Video: David Suzuki wants Canada to embrace renewable energy before it's too late (for older children, adults)

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