I love to use yoga cards in my yoga classes! There are many ways to integrate them into your class. You can also play with them at home with your child for a family game night! Here are my reviews of the card decks that I own:

Yoga & Mindfulness: Practices for Children Card Deck  (by Jennifer Cohen Harper MA & illustrated by Karen Gilmour)

Ideal Age Group: 6 and up

Purpose: Classroom, Therapy

Size: Medium

Number of Cards: 58

Sections: Connect, Breathe, Move, Focus, Relax

 Review:  The Yoga & Mindfulness Practices for Children cards are the newest addition to my collection. I would highly recommend the cards more for a therapeutic or classroom setting rather than for a game due to the limited “move” cards. They could also be utilized one-on-one with a child. I love the integration of affirmations, meditations, visualizations, and the connections to your body and others. The majority of the cards are more for mindfulness practices, which would be a great addition to a classroom. The cards are unique in that I haven’t found other yoga cards with arrow notations. They arrows signify whether the pose helps energize, calm, or remain neutral. This notation helps when you are sequencing a class or if you would like to practice yourself. I could see a teacher using a card or two before a test or reading break. I personally use them more as a preparation for a class than during the class.

 Yoga 4 Classrooms (Lisa Flynn & illustrated by James Vaughn)

Ideal Age Group: 6 and up

Purpose: Classroom, Display Reminders

Size: Large, Thick

Number of Cards: 67

Sections: Let’s Breathe, At Your     Desk, Stand Strong, Loosen Up, Be Well, Imagination Vacation

 Review: This deck is ideal for the classroom teacher or someone looking to integrate more mindfulness into their kids’ yoga classes or homes.  My favorite card in the deck is the “My Special Place” card. I have read this card to many children and families and they absolutely love it! Another favorite aspect of these cards is the “At Your Desk” section. They are very useful when sitting at a desk but also for inclusive reasons. Some children have difficulty with balancing and could use the chair to assist them. It makes the cards more inclusive and fun! The cards are the largest in my collection, which is very useful for large groups. I typically use these cards for planning reasons and focus on 2-3 of the cards as a focus of a lesson in a classroom. I also like to display them on a bulletin board for when the children walk in. I wouldn’t recommend using the cards for games or one-on-one. I think they are best suited for full group instruction or on display in a Calm Down Corner.

 Yoga Pretzels Yoga Cards  (Tara Guber, Leah Kalish, Baron Baptise, and Sophie Fatus)

 Ideal Age Group: 2 and up

Purpose: Games, Partner Yoga, Alone, Partner

Size: Medium, thick cards

Number of Cards: 50

Sections: Game, Balance, Breathe, Stand, Forward Bend, Back Bend, Twist & Stretch,  Partner, Time In

 Review:  The Yoga Pretzels card deck is the first card deck I purchased when I started teaching yoga to kids! They are ideal for “mini teacher” activities because of the descriptive explanations on the back of the cards. There are illustrations with step-by-step instructions on how to practice the poses. The great thing about these cards is they are really ideal for all age groups. Middle schoolers love that they can really teach the poses through the verbal cues and the little ones enjoy looking at the pictures and copying the cards. This is the perfect deck for a new teacher because of the versatility of the cards. The cards also tend to be thicker than other yoga cards, which helps when working with younger children.

 Thinkfun Yoga Cards (Think Fun)

Ideal Age Group: 6 and up

Purpose: Games, Home

Size: Small, Thin

Number of Cards: 48

Sections: None

Review: The Think Fun Yoga Cards are simple cards that I find to be best suited for games, partner work, or at home. I love that I can quickly pass them out for a game of Yoga Freeze Dance or Musical Yoga Mats. They are also very affordable, which is helpful in case you misplace a card or want a card deck that is easy to carry along to many classes.  The pictures and cards are fairly small so I wouldn’t recommend for large group instruction. The Yoga Cards include instructions for Yoga Cards: The Game but I personally don’t play the game. I prefer these cards when I’m looking for something easy and quick to pass out to a large group.

 I hope you enjoy using your yoga cards! Feel free to share what you love about them and how you use them!