Many yoga and fitness studios are beginning to offer yoga practice for kids options. Some schools are even incorporating yoga for students into a morning routine. As adults, we know that yoga, and practices associated with yoga, have incredible benefits that help relieve stress and anxiety. We’ve explored ways to bring yoga into our daily lives – what are some of the best yoga practices for kids that move beyond traditional poses.
Let’s explore the most effective and proven techniques centered around yoga for kids that include:
- Breathwork
- Movement
- Mindfulness
Breathing Techniques – Yoga Practice for Kids
Breathwork is a yoga practice that anyone can adopt at any age. Here we have taken two breathwork practices and adapted them into a yoga practice for kids.
Magic Square Breath
Use the magic square breath to help to calm the mind and bring balance. Children are especially good at imagining things, so this breathing exercise is excellent since we encourage participants to visualize a magic square. Magic square breath can be done as a yoga practice for kids any time of the day. It is incredibly calming before bed and equally helpful at the beginning of the day.
- Have the child find a comfortable seated position
- They are welcome to close their eyes if it feels comfortable
- Now, imagine a square – with four sides
- Is the square large or small? What color are the sides? Is the square colored in or see-through?
- Next, take the pointer finger and trace along the imaginary square while counting to four
- Up – 1, 2, 3, 4
- Across – 1, 2, 3, 4
- Down – 1, 2, 3, 4
- Across – 1, 2, 3, 4
- Finally – let’s pare our breath with the square
- breathe up, 2, 3, 4
- hold across, 2, 3, 4
- Exhale down, 2, 3, 4
- hold across, 2, 3, 4
- Repeat
Five Finger Breathing
There is a lot of exciting science behind the five fingers, mindful breathing exercise. Its simplicity makes it an excellent yoga practice for kids.
- First, bring your hands in front of you.
- Then place the index finger of your right hand on the outside of the pinky finger on your left hand.
- As you breathe in, trace from the bottom of your pinky finger to the tip of your pinky finger.
- And as you breathe out, trace down the inside of it.
- Repeat that with all of your fingers before you start to reverse it and go the other way back to your pinky.
Bring awareness to the senses used during this practice: The breath and lungs are actively working and in motion. Notice the sense of touch as one finger traces the other.
Movement Techniques – Yoga Practices for Kids
We’ve explored the many ways that yoga asanas can help our bodies – head here to learn more. Any type of movement is also great option for kids to practice yoga. There are many sites devoted to adapting yoga poses for kids. Here we’ll explore yoga practices for kids that involve movement and are a little outside the typical poses modified for little ones.
Shake it Off
Shaking therapy is one of the techniques used by Dr. Peter Levine, Ph.D., the developer of Somatic Experiencing(R) and the Director of the Foundation for Human Enrichment. He holds doctorate degrees in both Medical Biophysics and Psychology. During his thirty-year study of stress and trauma, Dr. Levine has contributed to various scientific, medical, and popular publications. Leveraging Dr. Levine’s work – shaking it off is a fun yoga practice for kids involving movement.
Children are much more open to this technique, as most adults feel uncomfortable. We encourage you to try this out alongside a child, which may make it feel more acceptable to you. Should you need further proof about the validity of this technique, think about what animals do after they have been frightened, angered, or excited. Once they have gone through the emotion, they literally “shake it off.”
How to “Shake it Off”:
To slowly build into this activity, begin by allowing the hands to remain loose and limp at the wrist joints. Begin flapping them back and forth. Build to a slow shake and then continue moving faster and faster. Once you are shaking your hands vigorously for about ten seconds, pause, raise the hands above your head, close your eyes, and focus on the feeling of the blood moving from the hands and flowing back towards the arms.
You may appreciate this sensation and be more open to another round of shaking. This time, start again with your hands. Add in your shoulders. Next, shake your hips and your legs, and finally, your head. Add each new body part to the shake. Eventually, your whole body will be moving. This technique will help move out any feelings you are trying to rid in your body – anxiety, anger, and sadness are three emotions that work remarkably well. If nothing else, this motion is known to spark spontaneous laughter. You have been warned!
Another option to try if your child is struggling with anxiety are yogic breathing exercises for anxiety. Deep inhales and long exhales is what can help your little one to heal from this pest.
Inversions
Have you hung upside down with your head off the couch to let blood flow to your head? It turns out that was an inversion – any pose in which your heart is higher from the ground than your head is considered an inversion asana.
Inversion asanas release tension, increase circulation and energy levels and strengthen muscles. It’s also thought to promote emotional growth, calm the mind and spirit, and guide energy toward the heart.
Downward dog is a fun inversion yoga pose that kids are drawn to because of its name. If you’d like to make the pose extra fun for kiddos, try a one-legged dog by alternately lifting one leg in the air and then the other. This variation will test balance and activate the core in new ways. Invite little ones to explore if the one-legged downward dog is easier on one side vs. another.
Legs Up the Wall is another inversion; however, this is more of a restorative pose. (We’ve written more on the power of restorative poses for self-love and honoring the mind, body and spirit here.) This asana is good for reducing foot swelling and relaxing before bedtime. It is another pose that will feel pretty natural for kids to test out and makes adults feel equally relaxed.
Do not practice inversions if you have high blood pressure, a heart condition, a history of stroke, osteoporosis, if you are pregnant, have glaucoma, retinal detachment, or an ear infection.
Mindfulness Activities – Yoga Practices for Kids
Any activity that brings awareness to the present is a wonderful way for kids to practice yoga. There are many ways to come back to the present moment and below are a few of our favorite calming techniques.
EFT Tapping
If you’ve never heard of EFT tapping, there are many videos available on YouTube to explore. It is one of the techniques that can feel a little on the woo-woo side; however, there have been over 100 studies done with a lot of focus on PTSD and EFT tapping. In part, this technique is scientifically-backed because it uses a SUDS scoring system to measure perceived pain, stress, and anxiety.
This technique can easily be taught and shared with others and is a good yoga practice for kids. EFT, which stands for emotional freedom techniques, focuses on firmly tapping nine meridian points on the body.
Image Source: HeidiWells.com
Based on Chinese medicine, meridian points are areas of the body’s energy flow. These pathways help balance energy flow to maintain your health. Any imbalance can influence disease or sickness. Acupuncture uses needles to apply pressure to these energy points. EFT uses fingertip tapping to apply pressure.
Child-Friendly Explanation of EFT Tapping – One of the Most Fun and Effective Yoga Practices for Kids!
In his book “Gorilla Thumps & Bear Hugs,” Alex Ortner describes these points in child-friendly language.
- Karate chop point: side of the hand
- Monkey: top of the head
- Hairy Eyebrow: inside of the eyebrows
- Eagle eye: outside of the eye near the temples
- Lion’s cry: underneath the eyes
- Dragon’s breath: underneath the nose near the divot above the upper lip
- Wolf’s howl: chin
- Gorilla thump: underneath the collar bone
- Bear hug: about 3 inches below the armpits
Begin by taking two fingers and tapping each point. The more profound benefits happen when paired with statements connected to any negative feelings. However, the tapping alone can help to alleviate some concerns.
While EFT isn’t the be-all-end yoga practice for kids, it’s one to consider if it provides relief, even from a placebo effect. It is one of the easiest things we can do to help self-regulate – with little to no risk.
5 Senses Activity
This activity allows for a quick pause in the day to bring you or your child back to the present moment. It is a simple activity that one can practice anywhere, making it a tremendous mindful yoga practice for kids.
5: Acknowledge FIVE things you see around you. It could be a pen, a spot on the ceiling, anything in your surroundings.
4: Acknowledge FOUR things you can touch around you. It could be your hair, a pillow, or the ground under your feet.
3: Acknowledge THREE things you hear – this could be any external sound. If you can listen to your belly rumbling, that counts! Focus on anything that produces sound.
2: Acknowledge TWO things you can smell. Maybe you are near a desk and smell a pencil, or perhaps in your bedroom and smell a pillow. If you need to take a brief walk to find a scent, you could smell soap in your bathroom or nature outside.
1: Acknowledge ONE thing you can taste. What does the inside of your mouth taste like—candy, toothpaste, or the sandwich from lunch?
Using the five senses allows us to become aware of the present surroundings; to come back into the present moment. Counting serves as a distraction, and the brain focuses on particular things to recall.
Kid-Friendly Metta-Meditation
In Metta meditation, we send kind thoughts and well-being to others. Metta Meditation has so many benefits, making it one of our favorite yoga practices for kids. We often believe that meditation requires that we turn off our brains. Instead, Metta meditation is a guided practice that enables kiddos to focus on others rather than themselves while taking a short break in a hectic day.
- Begin in a comfortable seated position – close the eyes if it feels comfortable. Notice the cool breath as it enters into the nose. Bring awareness to the expansion of the chest and belly. If it helps, place the hands on the belly and notice how it rises and falls with each breath.
- Send loving words of kindness to yourself – In your mind, imagine nice words like love, family, smiles – anything that makes your heart happy. Silently think, “I am happy. I am safe. I am loved.” Notice how this makes you feel. Continue repeating it for about a minute or two.
- Send loving words of kindness to your friends and family – Picture your friends, family, pets – everyone you think of lovingly. Silently repeat to yourself, about each of them, “I hope they are happy. I hope they know they are safe. I hope they know they are loved.” If helpful, invite the child to imagine their heart like a balloon, and the love they are thinking of is a string connected to their loved one’s kindness.
Next, focus your Metta meditation of others before coming back to yourself
- Send loving words of kindness to anyone who bothers you – As you start this part of the meditation, acknowledge that this may be tough. Invite the child to think of a teacher, classmate, or even sibling who brings them grief. Please encourage them to remember that we are all human while they may not appreciate the individual’s actions. Ask them, if they can, send kind whatever kind thoughts they can this person. “I hope they have happiness, love, and safety.” Feel free to move through this one a little more quickly, especially if the child seems uncomfortable. Remind them that they may not like the other person’s actions, but they can hope for their happiness on a human level.
- Bring thoughts back to self, favorite pet, or family – Repeat phrasing from the beginning of the meditation – “I am happy. I am safe. I am loved.”
- Take a deep breath in and open the eyes – roll the neck and the shoulders. Check in to see how this yoga practice for kids made them feel. Invite time and space for conversation if needed or allow room for nothingness. Either reaction is perfectly acceptable.
We’ve written about Metta meditation and how, together with yoga and mudras, it helps with developing empathy here. In that article we also described a similar type of meditation that comes form Tibet. It’s name is Tonglen and perhaps your child can try it in combination with Metta meditation.
Bringing Yoga Practice for Kids into Everyday Life
Encouraging Daily Use
The key for any technique is to practice them regularly. Doing so will solidify the practices in our minds, and when we find ourselves in a state of stress, overwhelm, or increased stimulation, they will be accessible for use.
Every day, each of us begins with a certain tolerance for stressful events. This information is good to share with the little ones in our lives to know we all suffer from stress and anxiety. If it helps, picture this tolerance as a burning wick. If the wick burns out, an explosion may occur.
Some days the wick starts a little shorter. Other days our wick is longer. By using these calming techniques, we can help our wick to burn more slowly.
How to Leverage Yoga Practice for Kids
It is natural that when we see someone taking on more stress or frustration, we encourage them to calm down or take deep breaths. Try to resist this urge. When pressure is noticeable, beginning with breathwork isn’t always the best starting point. Instead, start with the body. By focusing the mind on movement, we give our brains a break in the cycle of focus and frustration.
After working through movement, use calming breathwork and then the five senses exercise or another mindfulness exercise. Metta meditation is a great way to end or begin each day.
Shanti Arunkumar, Senior Contributor At L’Aquila Active
Learn more about Shanti by reading her bio below.
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