April 23, Cultivating Balance and Self-Control

This week we focused on building balance and focus with the younger kids.  The younger kids played one of their favorite games called Toe-Ga, be sure to ask your child about it.  This game involves patience as they can only pick up one pom pom at the a time, and then mindfully walk over and place the pom pom in a cup.  Once they successfully completed this game they had another challenge, they had to balance a stone on their head and walk without dropping it.  We will continue to practice this skill over the next few weeks.  Here are some pictures of Toe-ga and Stone balance for you to enjoy:)

The older kids played a slightly more challenging game whereby we did a series of balancing yoga poses and their challenge was to keep their balance.  I had taken in bubbles and each of us practiced extending our exhalation while blowing out bubbles.  The challenge for those holding their pose was to be steady, as these soft bubbles landed on them.  We had a lot of fun developing our balance, breath and focus as we played this game.  

We also talked about, "Being Strong," and what that means to each of us.  The students shared the importance of both physical and mental strength.  We then ended the class by reflecting on questions such as: What do you draw your strength from, and who are the people you turn to when you need a strength?

Suggested Activity: Talk to your child about what "Being Strong" means to you and as a family come up with a family tree (image of this to be posted next week).   Use the trunk of the tree, to list the names of activities that help you gain strength and then use the leaves of the tree to list the names of people that you turn to in times when you need strength.  Keep this somewhere as a reminder to show you, that we all have different ways we can be strong, and are also fortunate enough to have parents, friends teachers etc. that are our support when we need strength.

April 16th, Mindful Listening

This week, we focused on developing our mindful listening skills.  Here we learned how we can use our breath to focus and calm our minds, so we can mindfully listen.  

With Easter around the corner, we played a fun egg shaker game called "Match the Sound", which put their listening skills to a test.  This game is a fun way to encourage kids to listen attentively, as they try and figure out subtle variations in sounds.  

The first part of the game they had to listen mindfully and match up the eggs that made the same sound.  The second part of the game they had a chance to match up the sounds with the objects.  Every-time, we guessed an object we did a corresponding yoga pose with it.   

Suggested Activity:  You can also use various treats and play the same game and have kids match up the sounds.  Add a corresponding yoga pose or activity, such as hop like a bunny 5 times, flap your wings like a butterfly etc, once they guess the sounds with the objects.  It will be a fun way to get them moving and enjoying their easter treats.

April 2nd, 2014, Space Mission

This was a very exciting class as we all got to travel to space and wear our special capes as we kept calm and completed our mission.  

Here are some of the poses that the space creatures challenged us with:

We had a wonderful mission, with both the younger and older kids and I was very proud to see our super heroes in action.

Suggested Activity:  Think of an exciting place that you and your family would love to visit.  This is a great way to discuss, what sights one would see there and then use your imagination and see if you can do some yoga poses to go with it.

We Are Super Heroes, Mar 24th and 26th

Over the next few weeks, we will be on a journey of discovery that we all truly are super heroes and we don't need to have super powers to be a super hero.

One of the key skills that super heroes have is that they are calm no matter what the challenge.  And our little super heroes have been honing this skill by breathing mindfully, as we went through our quests this week.
Our first quest took us to the rainforest, where we did a lot of fun poses (lion, cat, forward bend, squats, snake pose, plank pose) and our challenge was to uncover the secret path to the treasure.
The second quest took us through the enchanted woods, where we had to put our thinking skills to a test, and mindfully stop, breathe and think and guess and act out the yoga pose.   We got to do many fun poses tree, bridge, boat, bow, downward dog and at the end of solving all our clues, each super hero earned their stars for a mission well done:)
The smiles on the faces as they put on their capes and led the team with a pose was priceless.  We also learned that we don't need to have super powers to be a super hero, simply by trusting ourselves we can be our best and accomplish things just like super heroes!

Suggested Activity:  Talk to your child about what talents they think they have and then have them come up with some talents that super heroes that they like have. 

 In class, we talked about this briefly with the older kids and the list had words such as strong, brave, powerful, anyone.  It made it quite clear for all of us that these are talents that we all have and we can definitely be super heroes in our daily lives)

Feb. 24th and 26th, Reflecting and Relaxation

The younger kids continue to develop their poses, this week we used the song, Head and Shoulders, Yoga pose to put together the mix of poses.  We are working on building our core strength by practicing valley pose.  This one is most challenging for the younger kids, and I encourage them to try it with one leg at a time, and focus on being stable.  We also have been doing some other challenging poses such as bow pose and bridge pose to help strengthen our back and hips.  Be sure to ask them to show you these fun new poses.

I also brought in my breathing ball and we have been spending time quieting our minds towards the end of class in relaxation.  We have been using the ball to remind ourselves to take deep belly breaths and on the exhale letting go of our worries and fears.  We will keep working on this area with the younger kids, Taking time to slow down and focus on deep belly breathing helps relax their mind and rejuvenates their bodies.  

 The older kids, have been practicing more challenging yoga poses and reviewing the alternate nostril breathing technique.
Here is how to practice this Prana-Yama ( Sanskrit word which means Breath Elongation)
1. Breathe in through both nostrils
2. *Close Right nostril and exhale through left and then inhale through left
3. Close Left Nostril and exhale through right and then inhale through right
4. Close Right Nostril and exhale through left and then inhale through left
This would complete 1 cycle, I would suggest you can try 2 cycles
*I have shown the kids 2 different mudras (hand gestures) to close the nostril

 We also talked about opening our hearts through Yoga poses.  We  played a fun game called "Cross the line," I called out various actions that we take on a daily basis that are acts of kindness. Some examples that I called out were "Cross the line
 if you have held the door open for someone
 if you made a card to cheer someone up
 if you took care of a sick pet
 if you ever took part in a charity walk or run
It was wonderful to see their smiles as they crossed the line several times, and realised that we have been using our hearts and being kind:)
To end the class, we reflected on how we could open up our hearts and use our talents to make the world a special place.  It warmed my heart to see what everyone had to share.  We can truly make this school and community a loving place by opening up our hearts:)

Feb 10th and 13th, Connecting and loving affirmations

February was heart month in our Yoga class, so we talked a lot about being kind and loving towards one another.   Building special relationships with one another and connecting with our peers is what we practiced in our yoga classes this week.  The kids were challenged to co-ordinate with their partner and do several partner poses.  We practiced back to back breathing, partner sailboat, partner tree, chaise lounge pose, partner straddle and sufi grind, amongst other poses. 

 In celebration of loving kindness this month, I had handed out hearts to all the students.  Each of them were encouraged to write down one positive affirmation about themselves on the front of the card.  I have posted some pictures what the students said about themselves.  For the younger kids, I had handed out their hearts, alongwith a yoga pose affirmation sticker that best represented them:)

With the older kids, we took the exercise one step further, we randomly handed out the cards amongst the group and this time we wrote something positive about that person whose card we received.  It was wonderful to read out the kind words, that each of them had taken time to share about each other.  It surely fillled my heart:)

Suggested Activity:  I encouraged all my students to think of Valentine's as more than just receiving candies and treats.  Spend some time as a family, reflecting on what makes each of you special and truly take the time, to say something kind and loving to each other, as that is how we can truly enjoy this holiday and make our homes, schools and our community a loving place.

Magical Journey, February 3rd and 5th

With all the snow we have had lately,  I thought it would be such a treat to use our imagination and let our magical mats take us back to the warm Egyptian desert.

We surely enjoyed the sights and did fun yoga poses while sharing and learning about the Egyptian desert.  We talked about what is a Sphinx and what a Sphinx would look like in a yoga pose.  We turned ourselves into a pyramid and then balanced being a cactus in the desert.   We also slithered around the hot desert sand as rattle snakes, crawled around as tarantulas, planked our bodies to be still like crocodiles, opened up our heart centre by going into camel pose and pretended to fly like an Egyptian vulture.  Be sure to ask your child, what part of the desert journey they enjoyed most.

Towards the end of our journey we imagined ourselves being at an oasis.  The younger kids were challenged to place a magical stone, that we found there, on top of their heads and see if they could balance for 5 breath cycles.  The older kids had to transition from seated easy pose to standing mountain pose without dropping the magical stone.  Both groups did a wonderful job focusing and balancing.  We ended our journey by relaxing at the oasis and breathing out any worries we may have had during the day.

Suggested Activity:  Talk to your child about what place they would really like to visit and let your imagination take you there.  Envisioning themselves in their favorite place will bring lots of happy thoughts, and is a great way to unwind before they go to bed.

What is your child's favorite place, please feel free to share and we may just all go there in one of our classes:)

Egyptian Desert and More, Jan. 29th, 2014

Today the young kids got to engage their imagination and visit the Egyptian desert.   During our visit, we imagined ourselves as a camel, pyramid and an Eygptian cat.  Ask your child to show you their pyramid and camel pose.

I also showed them a different kind of breathing that is used to relax and calm our minds.  It is called Langhana breath, where their exhale is longer than their inhale.  As a class we practiced inhaling for 2 and exhaling for 3, pause for 1,  and then continue again.

I have also created Yoga Bingo game (see example below) for the older kids, I find it is a fun way to engage them and go deeper into our poses.  My focus with the older kids is increasing body awareness through each pose.   I asked them to observe what poses they are able to do with ease versus ones that are more challenging. The moving lunge pose is one that challenges most of us, so we agreed that we need to work towards strengthening our leg muscles in order to do this pose with ease.   Some of us observed that we have tight hips, which is restricting our flexibility to practice a challenging pose such as Bound Ankle pose.  So we practiced using butterfly pose to help open up our hips and will slowly prepare our bodies to practice the more challenging pose.  Ask you child what pose is most challenging for them and what part of the body they think they may need to strengthen to do that pose.

Suggested Activity:  Langhana breath can be used along with belly breathing as part of the bed time routine.  Place their favorite plushie on their belly/abdomen and have them inhale for 2 and exhale for 3 breaths, pause for 1 and then repeat 4-6 times.  Please let me know if you have any questions about the breath work, and I would be more than happy to go over these techniques with you.

Yoga Bingo and Bundle rolls, Jan 27th, 2014

We are learning new Yoga poses, with a fun game that I have created for the younger kids, called Yoga Bingo.  I have also incorporated some breath work and affirmations into our game to keep it balanced and fun:)  I have handed out their Yoga Bingo sheet (see example below) to them earlier this week, be sure to ask your child about it.  

I have observed that this game is also building self control; kids that don't have the pose that is called, sit in modified lotus pose, keep their eyes soft and breathe.  It takes a lot of control, not to copy others doing a pose, and sitting still and breathing until a pose they have is called out.   Great job everyone:)

The older kids were in for a treat, we rolled ourselves in our yoga mats and then observed how it felt.  This is a wonderful sensory activity and it was interesting to hear their thoughts, we talked about how our breath and body felt when we are wrapped up so tightly versus when are lying down on our mats. We also connected with each other and practiced following each others cue based on using touch versus words.  This is a fun way to develop mindfulness using one of our senses.  Ask your kids about Massage train.  

Yoga Match and Breath Work, Jan 22

Our young Yogis, got to try some new poses while playing Yoga Match.  Ask them to show you what a turtle and boat looks like.  We are also working on elongating our breath, by inhaling through our nose for a count of 3 and exhaling through our mouth for a count of 3.  Be sure to give this a try and enjoy the various benefits to be had when we mindfully breathe and elongate our breath.

With the older Yogis, we practiced our Sun Salutation sequence; this yoga flow engages the entire body and when practiced slowly by breathing in and out, it will help strengthen our body muscles.  We also reviewed Alternate Nostril breathing, and discussed how it is a wonderful technique to help balance our brain.  We talked about the right (feeling brain) and left (thinking brain) parts of the brain and how breathing in through right nostril reaches the left brain and breathing in through the left nostril reaches the right brain.  This breath work is a wonderful tool in helping us energize our mind and manage daily stress.
Here is how to practice this Prana-Yama ( Sanskrit word which means Breath Elongation)
1. Breathe in through both nostrils
2. *Close Right nostril and exhale through left and then inhale through left
3. Close Left Nostril and exhale through right and then inhale through right
4. Close Right Nostril and exhale through left and then inhale through left
This would complete 1 cycle, I would suggest you can try 2 cycles
*I have shown the kids 2 different mudras (hand gestures) to close the nostril


Suggested Activity:  Practice breathing mindfully with your kids.  To make it fun, use a pinwheel and observe how long you can keep it turning on your exhale.  Note:  I would aim for 3-4 exhales at the most.  I have explained to the kids that we slowly build our lung capacity, so we should never force our breath.  The idea here is not to reach high counts rather to slow down our breath and pay attention to it.

Developing balance with Toe-ga, Jan 13th

This post is a little late, my sincere apologies.  This was our second class after the winter holidays and the kids had lots to share, so we tied it in with Yoga poses.  

Our young Yogis continue to work on developing their balance, and what more fun way then with Toe-Ga.  So we got moving picking up pom poms with our toes and dropping them in our buckets. They were all so proud of themselves as they patiently picked up one pom pom at a time and filled up their bucket.  Ask your child about Toe-ga and make it a family event!

The older Yogis had lots to share, over the holidays a lot of them have been making beautiful bracelets with rainbow looms, so we came up with some poses to connect ourselves and twist and make beautiful yogi looms:)  

Suggested Activity:  Organize a family Toe-Ga night, here is what you will need:
Pom poms - various sizes
Bucket/tall container for each participant
Masking Tape
Some fun music, I use the Toe-Ga song, by Kiddin Around Yoga
How to play:
1. Give each player 10-15 pom poms
2. Create a path that you have to follow, starting from the pom poms to your mat (I use masking tape)
3. See how long it takes you to get all your pom poms in the bucket with your dominant foot
4. Repeat with your other foot, and see whether it takes you the same time
4. Smile often and breathe deep

Peaceful Stone Relaxation, Jan 20

All the young yogis had a delightful time, as we explored new and old poses by playing Yoga Bingo.  I find games to be a fun way to engage their attention and have them practice their poses.  Almost all the kids are getting quite good at holding the core poses for at least 3 breath cycles, great work everyone:)

Today, we used peace stones for relaxation, the challenge was to sit still and breathe while resting the stone on the top of our head.  This exercise works very well, to help develop focus and attention while calming their minds.  We then transitoned to lying down and relaxing with the stone on our belly, gently rocking the stone with our breath.  Ask your children how they felt as the stone rested on their head, and if it was easy for them to stay still.

                                                        

 The older yogis worked on some of the flows from sun salutation, so we can build strength and stamina to do the entire sequence.  I introduced Alternate Nostril breathing this week, and we talked about how this technique helps balance both sides of our brains.  We talked about using it before writing a test or presenting to class or when we are experiencing stress.  We also had a chance to do some fun partner poses before we transitioned to relaxation and quieting our mind with breath.

Family Activity:
Before bedtime, I will often use a peace stone or something light that can rest on the top of my son's head (in his case, his favorite hockey card) and encourage him to breathe, and sit still, balancing the object on his head, as I will read a book.  We find this is very handy on nights when they are bursting with energy; using something sensory engages them and gives them something to focus on.
Have you tried this with your kids?  I would love to hear what works.