“Play is our brain’s favorite way of learning.”
-Diane Ackerman
Happy full moon! To me, full moon is a time of pause and celebration, and what better way to celebrate than to play. Also, what better way to do yoga than play? When we do yoga with our young kids, it’s usually best done through play and in that way, kids yoga is always a celebration!
It seems like every little kid loves to dance. Since one of the tough things about traditional yoga is holding the poses without collecting tension, movement is a great way for kids to break the ice with yoga. Flowing sun salutations, stories told with yoga poses to represent some of the characters and objects in the plot, and freeze dances are always favorites with the little yogis I practice with.
The nice thing about good ol’ fashioned freeze dance is that probably every kid is familiar with it; all you have to do is add a yogic twist by having them strike a yoga pose when the music stops and they freeze. Some good poses for this are: tree pose (vrksasana), mountain pose (tadasana), dancer pose (natarajasana), star pose, and goddess pose. Of course, you don’t have to stick to standing poses but these are the easiest ones to get into quickly.
Put on any music that you and your kiddos enjoy — it doesn’t have to be yoga-related music. Maybe guide them through the way they hold the poses; for instance, freezing when the music stops doesn’t mean that they have to hold their breath! Maybe you call out which pose to hold if your little one isn’t super familiar with different yoga postures. Or you can let them choose the pose if they’re eager to decide for themselves.
And of course, no need to be super rigid about alignments, as long as no one is getting hurt. You can even let them make up their own poses now and then. After a song (or two, or three, or more), take a moment to rest in a seated pose or savasana bring a moment of stillness and meditation to the session. It’s much easier for kids to sit or lie still after a good dance party.
Life with little kids is full: full of noise, of messes to clean up, emotions to wade through, and dozens of tiny transitions from one activity to the next. Let it also be full of fun, yoga moments, and the stillness that feels so good after the storm of a good freeze dance. Try it! Let me know how it goes.
And some Sanskrit mantra love on the full moon:
Om purnam adah, purnam idam,
Purnat purnam udachyate
Purnasya, purnamadaya
Purnameva vashishyate
Om, shanti shanti shanti
Translation:
This is full, that is full
This fullness came from that fullness
Though this fullness came from that fullness
That fullness remains forever full
Om, peace peace peace
Every Friday I’ll post ideas and inspiration for practicing yoga with kids and every Tuesday I’ll share a micropractice that helps busy moms (and dads and kids, and really anyone) to incorporate brief yoga practices into their day. Here’s the post to kick off this biweekly series that will last until the end of the year! This one’s a day late, but hey, now I’m posting for the full moon, too:)