Many children and young people have difficulty concentrating. They sleep poorly, worry often, and are constantly under tension. Relaxing or doing absolutely nothing seems almost impossible for them. The "on button" always seems to work, but not the "off button."

How can we teach children to calm themselves? How can we help them stop worrying, develop confidence in their own qualities, and remain resilient in the demanding world of the 21st century? Mindfulness can play a valuable role in this. It offers children the tools to consciously deal with their thoughts and emotions, to find calm and focus, and to be more resistant to the challenges of modern life.

Mindfulness Child Trainer at the AMT
During the Course to become a Mindfulness Child Trainer at the AMT, you will not only learn as a professional to give an eight-week Mindfulness training to children from 4 to 12 years old, but you will also learn it for yourself. After all, you learn to play the piano from someone who has experience with it and practices daily. The Eline Snel Method has been developed in practice with great compassion and dedication for and with children. The Method is known worldwide as the Mindfulness training for children and young people!
Eline Snel Method®
The Eline Snel® Method is universal, practical, complete, and compassionate. Eline developed all the training courses for children, young people, and professionals who work with children and young people, in practice. You can feel this in everything. The roots of both the course and the development of the Eline Snel Method lie in Eline's 30 years of experience as a therapist, mindfulness and compassion trainer, and come to life together with the age-old wisdom of the Vipassana meditation tradition.

Content Mindfulness Training

The complete content of the courses is extensively described in the trainer's manuals. This training is "teacher-proof" and evidence-based. Both the course to become a trainer and the children's courses themselves are experiential and offer a solid foundation for providing effective mindfulness training. The course focuses on the following aspects:

Becoming familiar with the structure, content and essence of the lessons
Becoming familiar with the different working methods
Becoming familiar with preparing and delivering lessons
Practicing the art of inquiry
Practicing intake interviews and training evaluations
Awareness of the importance of (self) compassion
Research on the effect of Mindfulness on the young, developing brain
Implementing the training at the school, in the (private) practice, or institution where you work

Level and study load

The course to become a mindfulness child trainer is designed at HBO level and offers an extensive foundation for professionally guiding children in mindfulness.

The Course to become a Child Trainer comprises a total of 95 hours:

45 hours of training at the Academy for Mindful Teaching incl. preliminary discussion, supervision/interim coaching
20 hours of studying required literature and preparing lessons
25 hours of preparation and execution of an eight-week pilot training
5 hours of writing a final report

After your certification, an annual refresher course of 6-8 hours is required.

Learning outcomes of Mindfulness training

Main learning outcome:

After certification, the student can independently provide mindfulness training according to the principles of the Eline Snel Method for children aged 4-12 years in schools, private practices, or their own institution.

Sub-learning outcomes:

The participant knows the structure, composition, and essence of the lessons in the Eline Snel Method and the trainer's manual, and can follow these in practice.
The student understands the art of inquiry and can conduct conversations with children based on this theory.
The participant understands the importance of (self-)compassion and the dangers of transference, and can apply this knowledge in the lessons.
The student can name the effects of mindfulness on the development of the young child and the brain.

What can you expect from the course and what is expected of you?

What can you expect from AMT trainers during the course?
During the AMT course, you can count on the warm involvement of the trainers. Thanks to their many years of experience in teaching according to the Eline Snel Method in various settings, such as regular and special education, mental health care, hospitals and private practices, they have built up a wealth of knowledge. Our goal is to guide you as well as possible throughout the entire training process.

What do we expect from you?
To obtain the certificate, you must meet the following conditions:

Embodiment of mindfulness during and after the lessons.
100% attendance of all training days (catching up in another group is possible).
A mandatory supervision meeting to monitor and deepen your personal learning process.
Make your own appointment for the supervision meeting with a supervisor.
Conducting a pilot training in your own target group (minimum of three children who are not family).
Writing a report of 12 to 14 pages about your pilot experiences.
After certification, make the frog quality mark visible on all your own promotional material and your website.

Conditions for participation in the Course to become a Mindfulness Child Trainer

Completion of an eight-week MBSR or MBCT training by a certified trainer. Or completed participation in the eight-week Mindfulness in Education & Parenting training. This eight-week training must be completed or near completion before the start of the Course to become a Mindfulness Child Trainer.
Higher vocational education (HBO) or higher vocational level of thinking/working (internationally known as Bachelor’s level of thinking and working)
Working with children (or intending to) aged 4-12 in schools, private practices, institutions, or after-school care
Participation in a Mindfulness silent retreat of at least five consecutive days to deepen one's own Mindfulness practice. This silent retreat must be completed within 2 years after the start of the Course to become a Mindfulness Child Trainer.

If you have any doubts about the requirements, please send an e-mail to [email protected], we will be happy to assist you.

Certification and Refresher Training

Certification as a Mindfulness Child Trainer according to the Eline Snel Method takes place after 100% attendance, successful completion of a pilot project, conducting a supervision interview, and submitting an approved final assignment. After certification, each child trainer receives a certificate and a personalized frog logo, the official quality mark of our course. This quality mark may be visibly used on all your PR materials, website and correspondence.

After certification, you will also be registered with "Find a trainer" on our website. To keep this registration active, it is mandatory to follow annual refresher training.

In addition to the annual refresher course, there are also further training opportunities. You can choose to follow the Course to become a Mindfulness Youth Trainer or the Course to become a Mindfulness Trainer in Education & Parenting. This latter training qualifies you to offer teachers, parents and healthcare professionals a fully-fledged eight-week Mindfulness training.

What can you do with this course?

After completing the Course to become a Mindfulness Child Trainer, you will be certified to teach mindfulness to children in a playful and accessible way. This offers several possibilities:

In education: Integrate mindfulness in your classroom or at your school.
Within your own practice: Start or enrich your own practice as a mindfulness child trainer and guide children individually or in groups.
In healthcare: Support children in (youth) healthcare.
Workshops and training: Organize mindfulness lessons in schools, community centers, or sports clubs.

With this course, you contribute to the well-being and resilience of children, so that they are stronger and more aware in life.

Costs and reimbursement Mindfulness training

These costs for the Course to become a Mindfulness Child Trainer at the Academy for Mindful Teaching are € 1795 for the in-person training, €1595 for the partially in-person and partially online training (French only) and €1395 for the online training (Spanish and English only). This price includes:

Two copies of the trainer's manual, for the age groups 4-8 and 8-12 years.
Access to an online learning environment (AMT Classroom)
1 supervision session (any additional supervision sessions cost 75 euros)
Downloadable material for students for both age groups
An extensive syllabus with information about the Eline Snel Mindfulness Method
AMT PowerPoint presentation for giving an information evening (to parents or colleagues)
Coffee, tea, and lunch/light meal (only for the physical courses in the Netherlands)