Zane and Draper are back, this time teaching young kids how to breathe mindfully in a fun way.
Angela Murphy’s new book, Breathe Up, Wonder Pup, is the second book of her self-regulation series. It stars her two dogs Zane, a young pup who learns a lot from his big brother, Draper.
In the book, Draper teaches Zane how to breathe mindfully using what Murphy calls “animal breathing.”
“I really wanted this book to be interactive,” she said. “The whole point is for it to be interactive and bringing kids into the here and now by using their bodies.”
Kids learn to visualize, breathe in, hold their breath for four seconds, and then breathe out like an animal.
One animal Zane breathes like is a horse, and when kids read the book and make the horse sounds, “their lips vibrate and they have to feel that so it brings them into the moment.”
Her first book, Speak Up, Wonder Pup, was released in June. Murphy will be writing 10 books in total — one for each month of the school year, and every book will be a new strategy for self-regulation.
“Kids love [breathing mindfully] but they’re not going to do it on their own, they need to be told and shown,” she says. “It’s called self-regulation but really it’s co-regulation up until kids’ brains are developed — until adulthood.”
She says it’s important that teachers and caregivers practise the breathing with the child to help calm their bodies when their energy is a little too high.
Murphy is having a book launch and signing on Wednesday, Dec. 11 at The Town Butcher from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Kids are welcome from 7 to 8:30 p.m. (Zane and Draper will be in attendance during that time, too), and then it’s adults only from 8:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. during which appetizers and wine will be served.
The book will be $15 on Dec. 11. It is also available on Amazon.ca for $14.99.
Murphy is also available in Chilliwack and Agassiz to do book readings in classrooms. The books are geared towards kids in Kindergarten to Grade 3.
Murphy is an educator and school psychologist at Sts’ailes Community School, and also a complex trauma coach. Breathe Up, Wonder Pup is illustrated by Eleanor Loseby.
READ MORE: Wonder Pup book series by Chilliwack author teaches kids self-regulation skills
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