A Canadian children’s entertainer from Toronto has introduced an online resource to help children and parents cope with the pandemic.
Taes Leavitt, known as Boots from the music duo Splash’N Boots, recently created The Big Heart Journey toolkit.
The kit provides guided meditations to help children and their families move through big feelings and develop resilience. It tackles topics like connecting with loved ones when you are physically apart, managing anxiety, and missing the people you love.
Leavitt originally spent over five years studying meditation and mindfulness, but realized that this wasn’t exactly a fun method for children. So she researched and created a program that kids and families would enjoy.
She says that at the outset of the pandemic, “I was receiving tons of emails from parents” about the stress, nightmares, and emotions that people’s children were going through. Those emails planted the seed that became The Big Heart Journey.
Now, Leavitt is creating My Big Autism Journey in collaboration with Autism Canada, aimed at bridging communication gaps, growing ‘superpowers,’ and opening emotional conversations with kids on the spectrum.
Listen to Leavitt talk about The Big Heart Journey on CBC’s Here and Now.
