Many children are fascinated by the sound of a Singing Bowl. Simply playing it and feeling the vibrating sound spread through the room invites them to explore and experiment. This is precisely why Singing Bowls are such versatile companions for children: they can accompany movement and play, as well as moments of quiet, imagination, small exercises, and daily routines.
In this article, you will find simple singing bowl exercises with children for home, kindergarten, and elementary school. You will also learn about the impact Singing Bowls can have on children and which Singing Bowls are best suited.
Are Singing Bowls good for children?
In general, Singing Bowls can be wonderful to use with children—provided the application is age-appropriate, voluntary, and conducted mindfully. What makes Singing Bowls so special is that the sound can be experienced not only through hearing but also through feeling. Children can observe and explore how long the sound of a Singing Bowl lasts, perceive the vibrations on their bodies, try out striking the bowl themselves, and connect sound with movement or their imagination.
This makes it easy to find the right sound exercises for any age. An exercise doesn't have to take long—just a few minutes are enough to explore the Singing Bowl and perhaps experience its effects. It is important to pay close attention to the children's reactions and adjust the volume and duration accordingly. Additionally, Singing Bowls should not be struck right next to the ears.
How do singing bowls affect children?
Sounds can appeal to children on many different levels. They can have a calming effect and promote concentration and body awareness. The long-lasting sound of a high-quality singing bowl invites children to listen attentively for a moment and notice how the sound slowly fades away.
Singing bowls can also spark imagination or help make everyday transitions more mindful. Playful singing bowl exercises can further support combining movement, perception, and creativity. These playful exercises and striking the singing bowls independently can also convey a sense of self-efficacy and strengthen inner balance.
However, how a child reacts to a singing bowl is always individual. While some children quickly calm down and listen intently, others prefer to discover the sound through movement or try out the singing bowl themselves. Therefore, the goal is not to achieve a specific effect, but rather to give children diverse experiences with singing bowls.
7 simple singing bowl exercises with children
You can implement the following singing bowl exercises with little preparation at home, in kindergarten, or in elementary school. Depending on the age group, you can simplify or further embellish the stories and movements.
Note: In these exercises, we refer to "children", but of course you can just as easily do them with a single child.
1. Lion and Mouse
The Singing Bowl is struck firmly. As long as the sound rings out loud and strong, the children move like brave lions – with large steps and a proud posture. As the sound grows softer, they turn into little mice and creep quietly on tiptoe through the room. With the next strong sound, they become strong lions again.
This exercise combines careful listening with movement and makes different sound intensities immediately tangible.
2. Stardust
As soon as the Singing Bowl sounds, the children look up. They imagine sparkling stardust floating down from the sky and settling on their hair, shoulders, hands, and feet. Each star gives something special – perhaps courage, joy, or calm. As the sound fades away, the stars slowly fly back up to the sky.
A short singing bowl exercise that combines imagination, body awareness, and calm.
3. Discovering Colors
The Singing Bowl is struck gently. While the sound rings out, the children look for a specific color in the room, for example red, blue, or green. If they find a matching object, they touch it mindfully. With the next sound, the search for a new color begins.
This is how the Singing Bowl becomes a signal for a short, mindful journey of discovery.
4. Snail's Pace
As soon as the Singing Bowl sounds, the children move forward very slowly – step by step like a little snail. Once the sound has faded away, everyone stops and stays still for a moment. They feel the ground beneath their feet and take a calm breath in and out. With the next sound, the snail walk continues.
This singing bowl exercise is similar to a mindful walking meditation and can bring peace and relaxation.
5. Animal Migration
As soon as the Singing Bowl sounds, the children choose an animal and move through the room like it – for example, like an elephant, a duck, a frog, or a cat. When the sound fades, everyone stops. With the next sound, they transform into a new animal.
This exercise is particularly suitable when sound is to be combined with movement and creativity.
6. Washing Hands with Sound
Even everyday routines such as washing hands can become little rituals with a Singing Bowl. At the first gentle sound, the children wet their hands and lather them thoroughly with soap. When the Singing Bowl sounds a second time, the foam is rinsed off thoroughly. Afterwards, the hands are dried quietly.
This is how the Singing Bowl can help to perceive an everyday process more consciously.
7. Storytime with Sound
The shared storytime begins with the gentle sound of the Singing Bowl. The children find a cozy spot and listen to the story after the sound has faded away. At the end, the Singing Bowl sounds again and creates a peaceful conclusion.
At home, this can also turn into a lovely evening ritual that accompanies the transition from an active day to rest.
Using Singing Bowls in Kindergarten
Singing Bowls are particularly well-suited for kindergarten and can be used in a variety of ways. Alongside short singing bowl exercises and mindfulness games, they are suitable, for example, as a recurring signal for the morning circle, a rest period, tidying up, or transitioning between different activities.
Especially with younger children, movement games like "Lion and Mouse," "Animal Migration," or "Discovering Colors" are popular and allow for initial experiences with Singing Bowls without having to sit still for long.
As experience grows, you can also try out short sound stories, sound journeys, or imagery journeys. It is always important to maintain sufficient distance from the ears and not strike the Singing Bowl unnecessarily loud.
Singing Bowl in elementary school: Sound as a ritual and moment of mindfulness
Singing Bowls are particularly well-suited for use in elementary schools for conscious breaks or to support quiet and concentration. Singing Bowls are also frequently used as signal instruments: For example, the sound of a Singing Bowl can mark the beginning of a quiet working phase, invite everyone to arrive together after a break, or accompany a short breathing and awareness exercise.
Age-appropriate singing bowl exercises and sound stories for children can also be used in lessons and other care settings.
Which Singing Bowl is suitable for children?
When choosing a Singing Bowl for children, quality and good vibration behavior play an important role alongside a pleasant sound. A high-quality Singing Bowl has a long-lasting sound and a particularly fine vibration behavior.
Peter Hess® Singing Bowls are therefore very well suited for working with children—we especially recommend the following bowls.
Singing Bowls for home use or in kindergarten
Peter Hess® Bengali Singing Bowl
The Peter Hess® Bengali Singing Bowl is also well suited for sound work with children and can be used, for example, for chimes, stories, and small mindfulness exercises. For home use or first sound experiences in kindergarten, we recommend size 70.
Peter Hess® Therapy Singing Bowl Universal Bowl
Our Therapy Singing Bowls were developed for professional sound work and offer a particularly refined sound and vibration behavior. Depending on the model, they can also be used in educational contexts. For particularly versatile use, we recommend the Universal Bowl.
Fanello Singing Bowls Set
Fanello combines sound with playful and imaginative applications for children. The Singing Bowl is particularly suitable for sound stories and sounding imagery journeys. The Peter Hess® Fanello Singing Bowls Set offers you everything you need to get started, including a singing bowl mallet and an imagery journey book.
Singing Bowls for use in elementary schools
Peter Hess® Therapy Singing Bowl Set for Children
For use in elementary schools, we recommend the Peter Hess® Therapy Singing Bowls Set for Children. It contains three harmoniously matched Therapy Singing Bowls and various mallets. We put this set together specifically for sound practice with children. It allows you to create varied sound exercises, chimes, imagery journeys, and relaxation phases.
Peter Hess® Tiny Bowl Set
The small Tiny Bowls are particularly suitable as a signal instrument, for example, to announce the beginning and end of an exercise, a quiet phase, or a ritual in elementary school.
Peter Hess® Mini Singing Bowls Set for Kids
The mini singing bowl set gives children a playful introduction to the world of Singing Bowls and invites them to discover and experiment on their own.
Which Singing Bowl or singing bowl set fits best depends on your preferences and whether you want to use them at home, in kindergarten, in elementary school, or professionally in educational sound work.