Kids Yoga - Blisstout

Namaste

My name is Leanne Campbell, and I am a certified yoga practitioner and teacher for all ages. Over the years, I have had the privilege of specializing in teaching yoga in preschool classroom.
During this most recent experience, I’ve seen countless beautiful little minds flourish by using the tools of the 8 Limbs of Yoga. These tools have helped enhance their focus, concentration, and peace of mind, contributing to their happiness and growth in preschool. I’m passionate about incorporating yoga into the classroom for children ages 3-5 & 5-10, 11-19 as I believe it fosters emotional, physical, and cognitive development in a holistic way.

Yoga is not just about stretching and breathing—it’s a way to grow spiritually and find peace in our lives. The goal of Yoga is to help us reach a state called Kaivalya, which means freedom from the cycle of birth and death. Through Yoga, we can become the best version of ourselves, with a healthy mind and body, living in harmony with the world around us.

In Yoga, there are teachings that help us understand health. One important part of this is the Yoga Sutras by Patanjali. These teachings talk about how we can avoid things that cause harm to our health, and how we can keep ourselves in a state of peace and balance.

Patanjali explains four important ideas:

Heya – Things we can avoid, like disease.
Heyahetu – The cause of disease.
Haana – The perfect state of health and peace.
Haanopaya – The way to get to that perfect health and peace.

When we practice Yoga, we learn how to avoid things that harm us, understand what causes our problems, and focus on staying healthy in both body and mind.

In Yoga, health isn’t just about not being sick—it’s about balance. It’s about feeling good in our body, keeping our mind calm, and connecting with our spirit. Yoga helps us reach this balance through breathing, stretching, and learning to be mindful. By practicing Yoga, we can live a happy, healthy life and grow into the best version of ourselves!

Yoga offers significant mental, emotional, and physical benefits for children at every developmental stage. Introducing yoga at a young age provides tools that help kids develop mindfulness, manage stress, enhance focus, and build physical strength and flexibility. Here’s a breakdown of why yoga is beneficial at each age level:

1. Preschool (Ages 3-5)

Key Benefits:

Motor Skills Development: Yoga introduces movements that improve balance, coordination, and body awareness, all essential for early motor skills.
Emotional Awareness: Simple breathing exercises teach young children how to calm down, helping them begin to identify and regulate their emotions.
Enhanced Focus: Engaging in playful, story-based poses encourages attention span development and listening skills.
Social Skills: Practicing in groups teaches patience, turn-taking, and teamwork, laying the groundwork for positive social interaction.

How It Helps:

Preschoolers develop the foundations of their physical abilities, so yoga supports their natural growth and curiosity while providing a calming, focused environment.

2. Kindergarten & Early Elementary (Ages 6-8)

Key Benefits:

Cognitive Development: Yoga fosters brain development through the combination of physical movement, mental focus, and breathing exercises, which improves memory and cognitive skills.
Self-Regulation: Young children can feel overwhelmed by new emotions and social dynamics. Yoga provides tools to help them calm down and refocus, aiding in self-control and better decision-making.
Confidence: Trying new poses and seeing their progress boosts self-esteem, giving children confidence in their bodies and abilities.
Creativity and Imagination: At this age, children enjoy stories and play, and yoga uses imaginative elements to teach poses, making it both fun and engaging.

How It Helps:

Yoga supports mental and physical development as children transition into structured environments. It enhances focus, emotional control, and helps children adjust to the expectations of school.

What Does it Mean to be Healthy in Yoga?

In Yoga, being healthy means feeling balanced and peaceful inside and out. It’s not just about not being sick, but also having a calm mind and a strong, happy body. Imagine being able to control your thoughts and stop them from making you feel upset or worried – that’s true health!

To be healthy in Yoga, we practice being calm and relaxed. We also learn how to:

Know what’s real and what’s not – this helps us understand what’s important and what’s not.
Get rid of bad feelings – Yoga teaches us how to not be attached to things that make us sad or angry, like being too focused on stuff or people.

A healthy person in Yoga is someone who does their best but doesn’t get upset if things don’t go perfectly. They can stay calm, even when things are tough. They know how to control their body and mind with practice and keep it balanced.

Yoga teaches us that when our mind is always busy and messy, it can cause problems in our body. By doing yoga, breathing, and focusing, we can make our minds calm and strong, just like our bodies!

So, health in Yoga is about being balanced, happy, and calm – both in your mind and your body – and living in a way that helps you grow stronger and smarter every day!

How Yoga Helps Us Stay Healthy

In Yoga, staying healthy means balancing our body and mind, and learning how to stay calm and happy. To do this, Yoga looks at the world in a special way, using ideas from an old philosophy called Samkhya. Samkhya says that everything in the world is made of two things: matter (Prakriti) and consciousness (Purusha).

Matter (Prakriti) is always changing, and it has three different feelings: pleasure (Sattva), pain (Rajas), and confusion (Tamas). But consciousness (Purusha) is always calm and unchanging.

When we get confused or sad, it’s because we forget the true nature of things (called ignorance, or Avidya). Yoga helps us get rid of this ignorance by teaching us to understand the difference between the changing world and our calm, inner self. When we know the truth, we can stop feeling unhappy and unhealthy.

In Yoga, to stay healthy, we need to focus on the good things, like:

Virtue (Dharma) – doing good things and helping others.
Knowledge (Jnana) – learning and understanding things better.
Dispassion (Vairagya) – not getting too attached to things.
Power (Aishvarya) – using our inner strength to stay strong and peaceful.

Yoga teaches us that if we focus on being calm and understanding, we can make our minds and bodies healthy and strong. When we do Yoga, we also learn to calm our thoughts, which can make us feel better and happier!

A Simple and Healthy Life for Kids

A long time ago, kids would live in special places called Ashrams or Gurukuls with their teachers. These places were peaceful and simple, where children learned important lessons, helped with chores like cooking, cleaning, and taking care of animals, and studied ancient teachings. They didn’t have many toys or distractions, just a calm and peaceful life where they learned how to live wisely.

They also followed some important rules, like being kind and not hurting others (Ahimsa), eating simple food, and practicing self-control. The main goal was to study, stay clean, and practice meditation. The children in the Ashrams focused on being healthy and calm, and their life was free from stress.

Challenges Today

Today, kids have many more distractions. There are lots of games, TV shows, gadgets, and other things that can take away attention from studying or playing outside. Having so many choices can sometimes make kids feel confused, stressed, or even tired because it’s hard to focus on one thing.

Making Good Choices

It’s important for kids to learn how to make good choices. This means learning the difference between what is good (like being kind, studying, helping others) and what is bad (like being rude, being lazy, or hurting others). When kids make good choices, they become smarter and stronger. They can focus on what matters and grow into wise, confident people. But sometimes, kids might make mistakes. Just like climbing a staircase, they can always change and go in the right direction again. If they feel confused, yoga and meditation can help them think clearly and make better choices.