Being happy is the ultimate goal in life but also in yoga. Yoga in fact can be the ONE STOP ANSWER to what is missing in that curriculum filled with grades and achievement. Let’s teach our kids to breath and let go. Let’s teach our kids about kindness and gratitude…
Yoga in the classroom is a marvelous way of introducing kids to all the different aspect of yoga. To get you started here are 10 ways you can also introduce yoga in your classroom:
- DUST OFF: Standing up ask your children to start dusting off making relieving noses as they go. As they do this ask them to imagine that they are getting rid of negativity, tiredness, boredom and more…
- BALL PASS: increase focus in the classroom by passing a soft ball around the room. When ball is passed to the next person go into a yoga pose (eg.tree) so that is is obvious you had a go. At the start of the term ask children to call out names as the ball is passed to get to know each other, while you learn their names too. Once the ball is passed to everyone, ask kids to do the same thing in reverse.
- YOGA POSE OF THE DAY: Select a pose from a deck of yoga cards and ask children how many things or animals it can be; how to do the pose in pairs; sculpt (in pairs) the pose into something else, or make it “better”; make a song for the posture; explore the benefits and so much much more.
- SHORT CHAIR BASED VINYASA: Start by leading a little chair based vinyasa and then ask the children to add their own poses to the sequence. For each pose added repeat sequence from the start and you will increase the kids’ focus and memory as you go (tip: no more than 12 poses per round).
- HANG THE YOGI: This is like the hangman game. Choose a yoga pose to guess and make lines on the board for the letters in the pose. Call out a letter and do a pose starting with that letter. If it is right, write it down, if not slowly hang the yogi. (or build a house if hanging a yogi does not resonate with you).
- YOGI SAYS: Playing yogi-says is like simon says with yoga poses but no-one loses. If you act when you are not supposed to, you have to come up with the next yoga pose to stay in the game.
- YOGA WHISPERS: Play this fun game like chinese whispers. Sitting or standing in a circle whisper a yoga pose, or affirmation or action. Listen to how it changes as it goes around the circle.
- REMEMBER ME: A great way to practice meditation with the children. Ask children to observe each other in facing pairs for a minute. Then ask them to close their eyes and start remembering their friend with their eyes closed. This can be done holding a yoga pose also.
- ALIEN BREATH: Imagine you are in space and the only way to breath is the way shown by a (mini) teacher. Raise one arm up for inhalation, across to retain the breath, down to exhale.
- SOUND MEDITATION: Ask your students to rest their head on the desk and (try to) close your eyes. As the students rest ring a bell (or chimes, etc) around the room. Ask students to follow ring with their mind and think of the direction ringing is coming from.
Let me know how you get on with any one of these and if you want to learn more about how to do yoga in the classroom, please get in touch <3
