Yoga is the practice that involves breathing techniques, yoga poses and mindfulness. The practice to focus attention on present moment is known as mindfulness. Yoga helps to come mind. yoga helps both children and adult to be more active, flexible and mindful that helps to improve overall health.
The benefit of yoga is that it is for everyone and it can be modified to support any age, goal and ability level. Yoga can be practice anywhere as it requires no equipment or very less equipment can make it a great fit for classrooms, play spaces, pre and post school programs and also at home.
The yoga experts suggest that children having age of five years and above can you start yoga practice. The younger children having age between 5 to 10 years are usually practiced the yoga in the form of play or games or songs to engage them effectively in the practice. In this article some of the yoga poses with their benefits for children are discussed that could be fun as well as beneficial.
In This Article
Kids Yoga Poses
The following yoga poses can be considered as a guide for yoga practice at preschool or daycare or an elementary classroom. They are child friendly as well as fun.
Don’t bother children If they don’t hold the pose perfectly. Children can move their bodies freely according to their comfort range. The children learn to remain calm, strengthen or stretch their muscles, or energize their bodies and focus their minds by these yoga poses.
Mountain Pose
It is the first yoga that kids learn. It is simple and contains many benefits. It is basic pose use for many other poses. By this pose kids start to work on balancing and core strength, also enhancing focus as they learn stillness in space.
- Step one: stand tall by touching of toes and feet slightly apart.
- Step two: sway your body move back and forth gently.
- Step three: slowly bring this movement to standstill and stop with weight balanced evenly on feet.
- Step four: press shoulder back and straight arms with open palms beside torso
- Step five: start breathing deeply. Remain in this pose through couple of breaths or as long as you want.
Airplane Pose
Airplane pose is a fun as well as challenging pose for kids as well as adults. It can benefit person of all ages. airplane pose helps to improve balance, strengthening legs and build good strength. it helps to develop concentration and focus by balancing on one leg. In order to motivate while holding this pose, create airplane noises or have conversation about flying.
- Steps one: Make mountain pose
- Step Two: Extend your arms out to either side
- Step three: after having balance slightly lean forward and lift one leg straight behind you
- Step four: Hold this post then return your leg to the ground and arms to your sides
- Step five: Repeat with your opposite
Balancing Table Pose
It is the yoga that helps to strengthen core. Kids strengthen their arms and legs as it involves stretching.
- Step one: start with table pose
- Step two: lift one leg so that it is lined with the floor and the toes would be point behind you.
- Step three: lift opposite arm so that fingers are shown in front of you.
- Step four: remain in this pose through couple of breaths, after that slowly move arm and leg to floor at its previous place.
- Step five: do these steps with other leg and arm.
Balloon Breath
It is simple breathing technique. It is calming for children. It can be easily perform in schools and is very effective pose. This yoga can make children to learn in managing feelings as well as concentration as oxygen flow through body.
- Step one: sit on floor or chair or mat. Cross legs
- Step two: keep hands on belly with your fingertips in the form of circle.
- Step three: start breathing in and make belly big like balloon as air is blown in balloon.
- Step four: now breath out and pull belly in.
- Step five: relax and repeat.
Bridge Pose
It is a pose for children that helps to calm them. It is helpful in decreasing stress. It involves stretching of chest, neck and back. It strengthens legs and back.
- Step one: lay down on back. Keep your arms on floor besides the body.
- Step two: bend knees. Keep feet flat on floor.
- Step three: move your hips in upward direction.
- Step four: remain in this pose and take breaths
- Step five: return your hips to the floor again.
Butterfly Pose
It is enjoyable yoga pose by which children can have fun. The butterfly pose is helpful in regulation of breathing as children concentrate on belly breathing and the wiggle their antennae and lightly flap wings. This is calming yoga By which the children feel stress free and decrease in fatigue.
- Step one: start in Salutation Seal.
- Step two: Place the bottoms of your feet to touch keep your fingers up to touch head.
- Step three: Lightly flap knees as it looks like butterfly wings. Move your fingers like wiggling of butterfly antennae.
- Step four: place hands on lap .
Camel Pose
It is somewhat challenging pose what helps children to improve posture and strengthening of back muscles. The children have to start by the camel pose and gently lower their hands.
- Step one: Start on your knees so that the top of feet rest on the yoga mat.
- Step two: Keep your hands on your back so that fingers pointed downward.
- Step three: lean back so that your hands touch your feet. if anyone facing difficulty to reach to the feet he can lean according to his comfort range or can lift heels.
- Step four: Remain in this post through couple of breaths.
- Step five: Place your hands on lower belly and gently return to upright.
Child’s Pose
It is very easiest and very effective pause that help children to learn manage big feelings. This yoga can help children as well as adult to come into the calmer state of mind.
- Step one: kneel down on the mat and touch big toes together.
- Step two: sit back on your heels, and separate your knees hip-width apart.
- Step three: gently move your head down towards floor in front of you.
- Step four: place your hands comfortably by your side.
- Step Five: Relax and breathe. stay in this pose as long as you want.
Cat Pose
This yoga involves stretching that helps too come a person and the relief tension in the back and neck. For motivation for breathing children can make noises of cat like sound slowly.
- Step one: start with Table Pose.
- Step two: Round your back towards the ceiling so that you can look at belly. tuck your chin into your chest.
- Step three: Follow with Cow Pose for a gentle yoga flow.
Cow Pose
It involves stretching that provide calming effect and relieves tension in the back and neck. Students make quiet mooing sounds for fun.
- Step one: start with Table Pose.
- Step two: make your head directed upward to look up to the ceiling, and make your belly to move towards the floor.
- Step three: This pose can also combine with Cat Pose for a gentle yoga flow.
Final Thoughts
By practicing yoga and mindfulness children can learn to identify feelings and emotions and learn to manage response and behaviors in healthy ways. Stretching in yoga techniques helps kids to focus on present moment and kids start to build capacity and self regulation within their space.
