Tell the child: 'Close your eyes. You're going on a journey to anywhere you want. You can go right now.' Then walk away. They lie there and go somewhere in their mind. Some children will be genuinely absorbed for 10-15 minutes. Others will draw or describe the journey afterward without being asked. An invitation to daydream productively. More restorative for a sick child than screen stimulation, and requires nothing from the parent after three sentences.

How to do it

1Say: "Close your eyes. You're going on a journey to anywhere you want — in the world, or beyond it."
2Say: "Go right now." Then leave quietly.
3Don't check in. Let them travel as far as they need to.

Variations

If they keep their eyes open or say they can't think where to go: close your own eyes first and describe your destination out loud for a few seconds — "I'm on a beach, the water's warm" — then leave without waiting for them to answer.
How it ends: build the return into the instruction from the start — "and when you're ready, come back down and open your eyes" — so waking up from it is part of the trip, not an interruption of it.

💡 Parent tip

Don't ask 'Where did you go?' until later, or not at all. Sometimes they volunteer it. That's when the best conversations happen.

What your child develops

Directed daydreaming — purposeful imagination is more mentally engaging than undirected mind-wandering
Mental self-regulation — choosing a mental destination and dwelling in it is a proven calming technique