As you may already know here at We are Happy Playing, we are celebrating Moving it in May, making May the month that we try to incorporate more movement in your lives. As part of this commitment to more movement I decided to look into the art of yoga and how it can be practiced by young children.What is Yoga?
To be honest I don't know where to even start with this question as yoga encompasses so much and it is not just one practice, there are several different types of yoga all with a different focus. The best way I could sum it up was- Yoga is a is a physical, mental and spiritual practice or discipline that includes holding particular poses, meditation and breathing techniques among other things. Apparently the word yoga means "union": of the individual consciousness or soul with the Universal Consciousness or Spirit.
So what are the benefits of practicing yoga for your child? If you have ever looked at the literature online, you will quickly learn that the benefits of practicing yoga are many and not only benefit the child physically, but when done with intention, can also benefit the child mentally, emotionally and spiritually.
Benefits include
- Enhanced physical flexibility and physical strength
- physical fitness
- Better body awareness
- Refinement of balance and coordination
- Strengthening core muscles
- Better focus and concentration
- Boost in self-esteem and confidence
- Strengthening of the mind-body connection
- improved posture
- reduce physical and mental stress
- enhance discipline
- improved breathing and circulation
- Constant self-discovery and inquisitiveness
What I have found most surprising is that yoga has been found to be particularly beneficial for children with special needs.Visi Tilak in this article explains that "Studies have shown that yoga benefits children with autism and ADHD. The National Public Radio has reported that researchers surveyed teachers at a Bronx public school that had a daily yoga program and found that the program reduced kids' aggressive behavior, social withdrawal, and hyperactivity, compared with a control group of kids with autism who did not practice yoga." Kristie Patten Koenig, Ph.D., an associate professor of occupational therapy at New York University says yoga was effective because "it seemed to play to the strengths of kids with autism while also reducing stress." It has also been shown that yoga helps address kids' heightened anxiety, poor motor coordination, and weak self-regulation, all of which are typical with children with Autism.
Eliyabeth Rowan talks about Autsim and Yoga in her article "As we know children with autism often suffer from a highly sensitive nervous system and are easily over stimulated by their environment. Yoga’s natural setting of dim lights, soft music, smooth mats, and “inside” voices creates a comforting environment that helps children with Autsim relax. Also as Elizabeth Rowan states "Yoga’s physical poses allow nervous energy to be released from the body in a controlled manner, also leading to a calming sensation. Less stimulation means less uncontrollable behavior, outbursts and repetitive nervous movement. Elizabeth also says that "Yoga is particularly instrumental in helping kids with autism learn self-regulation. By becoming aware of their bodies and aware of their breathing, yoga provides them with the ability to cope when they start to feel anxious or upset." Furthermore yoga is orderly and consistent which helps children with Austism stay calm as many thrive when things are ordered and predictable. Whilst I am no expert in yoga, I can only imagine that the deep pressure on the joints and limbs from some of the poses must also be beneficial in calming a child who seeks out deep pressure and who benefits from any heavy work or weighted vests and blankets.
How to introduce yoga to your child
Option 1. Fork out money and enrol them in a kids' yoga class.
There are quite a few advertised on the Internet run by teachers who are experts in yoga and working with children. There are even classes specifically designed for children with special needs.
Option 2. Get hold of some beginner yoga books and do teach your child yourself.
If you ask me that seems a little daunting. When I look at that list of benefits listed above, I can't help but think to myself, how can 'I' achieve that with my child through yoga? There must be special teaching techniques that you need to know about to achieve so much. I might be able to do the poses but I have no clue about breathing techniques etc.
All I can say about option 1 and 2 is that I want an option 3! I don't have much money for classes but I don't feel confident in just doing it myself. Is there a way I can spend little or no money to access some online classes? Looks like there is!
If you go to YouTube and type in Yoga for kids you will find that there are some videos of kids' yoga classes. Below are two I came across that I think are really good.
I love how the teacher talks about breathing and describes the poses using language children can relate to like "hold your hand up like they are carrying a big ball" I am only disappointed that I can't find anymore videos like this although the two together are over an hour's worth of yoga so that could be enough.
I also found a lot of Cosmic Kids Yoga Adventure videos. I can see these videos being very attractive to young kids. Combining a story with poses and songs makes this a wonderful yoga experience. The only problem I had was that I felt the poses were done a little too fast for a child to follow. I personally would like to hold some of the poses longer. Also there is no focus on breathing which isn't all that bad if you are doing it with toddlers it might be enough for them to just try and make the poses. Below are two examples of YouTube videos I found for this series.
I recently also came across YogaDownload, a website you can subscribe to for 1, 3,6 or 12months at a cost which I think is reasonable. For a month with unlimited classes and 4 free classes to keep, you pay just $10.00. For 12 months and unlimited classes costs $90.00 I know when I did pregnancy yoga classes were around $10.00 a pop so this is much cheaper especially if you do one everyday. Now there are not only adult classes but there are around 10 kid's classes and about 5 guided meditations for children.as well, hence why I'm mentioning it here. If you were to get the unlimited 1 month subscription for $18.00 I think you could cover all that and download the kids classes to keep and play forever.
If you have a tablet, there are also various kids' yoga apps you can try for free or buy for a few dollars. Some that I have tried recently with my daughter are Mon p'tit Yoga, the free version, and I am Love, Kids' Yoga Journey, which cost 99 AUD cents. Both are available on android powered tablets. (not sure if it's also available for IPads too)
I am Love, Kid's Yoga Journey is my favourite app. It has beautiful water colour illustrations as backgrounds and clear photographs of children going through the 13 poses. Each pose is explained perfectly and shows how you transition from one into the other.There is also instructions regarding when and how to breath and a button you can press to find out what the pose is good for. The app also is accompanied by beautiful guitar music which can also be muted if you like.
Whilst not my favourite of the two, Mon p'tit Yoga or My Little Yoga is also a lovely app that has two component,s the poses and a game related to the poses. The poses are illustrated through different animals and the graphics are very much targeted at toddlers. The poses are explained in writing and you can also play an audio clip that tells you how to perform the pose. Some poses also has a bonus story to enjoy. The game is simple and not really a feature worth mentioning, just a simple matching game. Still, a good little app for beginning yoga.
Anyway I hope you have found this post inspiring and informative. Mabe you've even tried yoga with your child before? We personally have decided to use the I am Love, a Kids' Yoga Journey app to kick start our yoga journey. My daughter has found it the most appealing and accessable of all the videos and apps and I like it too. We will let you know how we go in a future post.
Let us know what you think and if you end up trying any of these videos or apps. Until next time, keep moving and happy playing.
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