It seems like most young kids love making animal sounds; in fact, before my daughter could even talk, she was barking like a dog and mooing like a cow. She also loves to imitate me while I do yoga in the living room, so for her sake I repeated a Cat-Cow-Downward Dog...
Almost any young child loves to imitate animal sounds and behavior. Luckily, there are so many yoga postures with animal names that creating songs and stories about animals is easy! I decided to try incorporating animal sounds into a sun salutation and came up with...
"Self-care" is perhaps as big of a buzzword as "mindfulness" these days, and for a good reason: we need it! As yoga teachers, we often get into the business of teaching because we care about other people, sometimes to the point of forgetting about our own needs. I...
Back in the 90’s before I had even heard the term ‘mindfulness,’ my older brother came back from a trip abroad, full of stories. One of the things he found funny was a sign that read “Mind your head.” As a practitioner of Buddhism, he automatically interpreted it as...
A few years ago, I participated in a course called “The Happiness Program.” One of the activities we did was to go to every member of the group, look them in the eyes and say, “I belong to you.” The whole situation brought out awkwardness, shy smiles, and some...
Saucha, or purity, is one of the key ideas Patanjali wrote about in the Yoga Sutras. It is vital in clearing the mind and creating a strong, healthy body. Most kids are probably not concerned with purity, especially when making messes is so much more fun! Of course,...
What is the earth element? Whether or not the groundhog sees his shadow this year, winter is alive and well. The days are still sort of short and we still have weeks before spring and months before summer. Winter is still here in the northern hemisphere, and it is a...
Kids have so much energy….until they don’t. When little ones complain that they’re too tired, sometimes they really are tired and other times, it might be their way of saying, “I’m bored,” “I don’t want to do that,” or “I’m sad.” At this point in the year, as we...
What is sangha? What is a sangha and how can we bring this element into kids’ yoga classes? Sangha is a community, specifically a spiritual community. The term began in the Buddhist tradition to refer to monastic communities and it is also used to refer to communities...
It’s pretty easy to show kids the connection between summer and the element of fire. What’s less obvious is the connection between autumn and the element of water. While not all systems regarding the elements make this particular association, read on to see how you...
Hula hoops are a natural symbol of yoga: circles represent unity, inclusiveness, and a hole you can jump through, into, and around in creative and fun ways! I also use hula hoops when teaching kids gymnastics and creative movement as they provide a clear, external...
Many adults tend to think of yoga as a solitary practice. However, with kids it tends to be very much a social event, so ice-breakers are a very important element. For classes where kids don’t already know each other, we can bring in fun ways to help them learn names;...
How often have you asked a child what they did that day, only to hear the answer, “I don’t know” or "Nothing"? This is something I have often come across in teaching kids. After class, they run to put their shoes on and line up for a stamp or sticker. When I say,...
You can begin a Spring-themed class with a guided visual during meditation: kids sit in BUTTERFLY or CRISS-CROSS APPLESAUCE. Tell them to close their eyes and imagine a beautiful flower with lots of petals in their favorite color. Next, tell them to reach out and...
February 2nd is not only Groundhog Day, it has also historically been, and continues to be, celebrated as the midpoint between winter solstice and spring equinox. It has been called Imbolc, Candlemas, and Oimelc, and is a time of celebrating the lengthening of days...
Watch at your leisure!
Watch at your leisure!
