We are so excited to plan for the New Year and want to know how we can best help and serve you in teaching yoga to children. Please take our quick Go Go Yoga for Kids Survey for a chance to win a $25 Gift Card to Amazon. The survey closes on January 7th, 2019, and the winner will be announced through e-mail.
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Get ready for the holidays with these quick, fun and easy winter yoga poses you can do with your kids this season. Learn how to practice your Winter Breath during our breathwork exercises. Then go sledding, bake gingerbread cookies. decorate the tree, be like Santa and his reindeer, and finally become a melting icicle. All of this with yoga poses! Definitely lots of fun for kids of all ages.
Are you ready to learn how to teach yoga and mindfulness to children?
You are in the right place. Kids yoga lesson planning is my jam. After nearly 20 years of classroom teaching experience and preparing over a thousand kids yoga classes, I know a thing or two about creating engaging and effective lesson plans. Having a plan in place will help your class run seamlessly with a flow and a purpose.
I used to spend hours planning just one kids yoga class before I felt ready to teach 
it. For those of you who love going to adult yoga classes, you may be wondering, how hard can it be to plan a kids class? It seems like it should be easy enough. Teach the kids some poses, flow them together, and then everyone ends up on their backs in a peaceful bliss known as Savasana. That’s all you need to know, right?
Wrong. Well, not entirely wrong. Kids yoga and adult yoga are similar in that they both include breathing, practicing poses, and end with relaxation, but that is where the similarities stop.
Kids yoga is busy. We are moving, breathing, and interacting with one another pretty much the entire time. That’s why it would take me hours to plan a single kids yoga class. First, I needed an age-appropriate theme, creative breathing exercises (to make breathwork NOT boring), movement, games, challenges, and relevant mindfulness exercises. That was just the beginning!
Don’t forget that you also have to keep everyone engaged, on task, and having fun while practicing yoga and mindfulness. This was never an easy task.
I have cracke
d the code on the exact proven method of how to effectively teach yoga to children. With this step-by-step guide in place, your kids yoga classes will be fun, engaging, memorable, and effective.
And you can begin lesson-planning right from the comfort of lotus position, downward-facing dog, or your couch because it’s all online.
3 Things You Didn’t Know About Teaching Yoga to Children
Winter Kids Yoga Class Video with Snowballs, Poses, and More
Have you ever had that “a-ha” moment where you look back and can recognize a learning opportunity or pivotal moment?
I don’t mean to make this sound like a lightning strike or mountain moment where everything was crystal clear and an obvious path was laid before you. I mean looking back, reflecting, and understanding something in a different way.
I enjoy looking back on what has happened, accomplished, or stories I want to remember. For example, twice a year I take a moment and journal in each of my kids’ memory books about things that happened and that are important or memorable for each of them. I also have a family “year in review” journal that I jot down family memories and accomplishments at the end of each year. Every December when I pull out those journals my children always want to hear what I wrote and it brings back memories that they may have forgotten.
It is important to look back and think about what has changed, what you have made progress in or pivoted in completely and what you have learned.
As I was reflecting on my early years teaching yoga to children, I remembered one turning point that changed exactly how I carried out my kids’ yoga classes.
You see, I got a little caught up in the “how” instead of the “why.”
I had spent hours creating these memorable and teachable lesson plans that I just couldn’t wait to try out with my students. I was so excited to see my lesson plans put into motion and envisioned kids laughing, playing, and being engaged throughout. More times than not, that was the case, and I felt like I had it all mastered.
Then there was one particular class about three months into my teaching kids yoga career when I noticed something was off with my class. We were zipping along and practicing the learned yoga poses, but I felt removed and the students were unconnected. There was no synergy. No engagement. Kids were doing what I asked of them, but it all felt blah and lackluster.
I realized then and there that I could create the most amazing lesson plans and power through it all so that everything was “covered” or “mastered,” but if the kids aren’t feeling known, connected, and cared about then what did it really matter? The whole lesson plan would be completed, but it would feel flat and unmemorable.
It is so very important to take the time to build that connection with your students and for them to engage with one another.
Since that class, I have made time for The Welcome at each start of class. Every child gets a chance to share and be known. It takes only moments, but what a difference it makes in setting the tone for your class. They are involved and invested. You have shown that you care about them as a person and want them to succeed.
I carry this out in my classroom teaching as well. I can have the most amazing lesson plans for my fourth graders on how to write a biography, but if they don’t feel safe, cared for and heard above all, it will not even matter.
Want to know more about how to effectively engage your students from the start? See my tips here for the most important part of how to teach yoga for kids
You may also like:
The Most Important Part of Your Kids Yoga Class
3 Things You Didn’t Know About Teaching Yoga to Children
Are you ready to learn exactly how to plan and carry out your kids yoga classes?
Learn How to Teach Yoga to Kids
I love teaching yoga to kids. I appreciate how each class and interaction is so different. We are busy, active, engaging, and playful. Teaching yoga to children is definitely different than teaching yoga to adults for many reasons.
One of the biggest differences is the use of yoga accessories and props that you use in kids’ classes. Children are very visual and having a few surprising and fun items on hand while introducing yoga poses, breathing exercises, and mindfulness will really help keep your students engaged throughout your time together.
First of all, what exactly are yoga props that you would use with children? Yoga props are items that you introduce and use with children to help keep them engaged and interested. Do not overthink this. Yoga accessories can be simple and inexpensive items. You probably already have several on hand that you haven’t even thought about.
I cannot wait to share with you some favorite yoga props to use with children!
Now, I need to let you in on a little secret. I am slightly obsessed with utilizing yoga accessories with children. There, I said it. You would definitely be able to tell this if you came to visit me and would see my office at my home. I have balls, hula hoops, read aloud books, puppets and more tucked in spaces throughout the room. Now please understand that I do not use all these props at once. I select 1-2 to use per class and rotate through them to help keep your yoga bag fresh.
In our online Kids Yoga & Mindfulness Teacher Training, all participants are invited to be part of our private Facebook Group. In our group, we talk about all things kids yoga related. One of our topics a few weeks ago was favorite props that they love to use with children. Based on the response and discussion, I guess I am not the only one infatuated with yoga props!
Just for fun, if you want to see what I keep in my kids yoga teacher bag, check it out below.
More Favorite Kids Yoga Props and Resources
