How to Start Teaching Kids Yoga
Children can benefit from the mind-centering effects of yoga just as well as adults can. However, setting out to teach kids yoga without taking into account their shorter attention spans can set you up for disappointment and them up to feel inadequate. Instead, reorient sessions so that they play on children̵7;s natural tendency to engage with the world -- by mimicking objects and noises, pretending to be things they aren̵7;t, and using sound and movement freely. By doing so, you̵7;ll pull them in long enough to teach them the deeper benefits of practice, such as stillness, balance and concentration.
Things You'll Need
- Music player and calm CDs
- Yoga mats for you and your child
- Sack or pillowcase
- Stuffed animals corresponding to yoga poses
- Magic wand
Instructions
Begin by introducing the idea of learning yoga as a fun way to use the imagination and the body at the same time. Tell kids they will get to pretend to be a wide variety of plants and animals. Put on soothing music. Instruct kids to step onto their yoga mats. Start kids younger than 3 off with the ̶0;magic animal sack,̶1; a bag or pillowcase in which you place stuffed animals that correspond to traditional yoga poses, such as dogs for downward dog or snakes for cobra. Allow kids to pull animals out of the sack one at a time, then demonstrate the pose for that animal and have them mimic you. Use a magic wand to ̶0;turn̶1; kids into the animal by tapping them on the head, after which they should assume the pose. Tie yoga into story time. Let your children tell you a story, taking turns to add pieces to the story if you have more than one child. Each time an animal or object is mentioned that can relate to a yoga pose, do that pose -- for instance, a mountain can lead to practicing mountain pose. Build up the amount of time kids spend in each yoga pose gradually. Have them hold each pose for a certain amount of time, such as the time it takes to count to a certain number or slowly recite the ABCs. Allow them to make the noises that simulate animals when they̵7;re doing animal poses; for example, you might instruct them to hiss like a cat and moo like a cow as they move through the cat-cow pose. Pretend you̵7;re going on a trip and use the geography of a certain region to inspire your poses. Do pyramid pose and camel pose when you go to Egypt or snake pose and tree pose when you head to the jungle. Narrate the trip or allow kids to narrate it for you. Build in moments of silence. Instruct kids to assume seated positions, such as lotus, and close their eyes for as long as they can. Tell them to think about nothing, a classic meditation assignment, then ask them afterward how well this worked.
