Cloth dolls have so many potential uses, and one favorite use among child life specialists is as a buddy doll for a “body scan”, a mindfulness technique to teach your mind to signal relaxation and calm different parts of your body.

Ask the child to help their cloth doll do a body scan first, and then the child can go next!

Using a buddy doll to demonstrate a body scan is a non-threatening way to guide children through helpful meditation and relaxation exercises.