The first few weeks of lockdown and homeschooling might have felt like a bit of an adventure for some children, but that adventure is beginning to become much trickier. There will be many children who are feeling increasingly stressed and anxious. They will be missing their friends and family and struggling at not being able to go outside.
There are concerns that this extended period of isolation will increase mental health difficulties in both adults and children. So as parents and carers, we need to find ways to help our children and young people find strategies that will help them during the lockdown.
Now is the time when we can try and introduce new tools.
Many adults engage in yoga, with a large number of classes in communities and online. But there is also a growing number of people using yoga with children, with schools and nurseries bringing yoga teachers into their settings. But is it worth it? Let’s have a look at some of the benefits:
Support in calming children
Yoga and mindfulness exercises are increasingly being used as calming techniques for children. Some children need support to find calmness, either because they have become dis-regulated or are being very overactive. The movement and breathing exercises in yoga encourage a slowing down but also a concentration which can help bring some calmness to children.
Support for anxiety and stress
A key part of yoga involves breathing techniques. When we are stressed and anxious our breathing often becomes shallow and our heart rate quickens. When we calm ourselves through our breath it brings an increase of oxygen into the blood, which lowers our heart rate. Learning how to calm ourselves through our breath is an important technique for children which they can call on throughout their life.
Support for mindfulness and recognising what is happening in our bodies.
Throughout yoga exercises, you are encouraged to be aware of what is happening in the body, what you are feeling, what you are noticing. Yoga practice encourages a curiosity around the body and awareness of feelings. It invites a mindful noticing of how our bodies are responding to what is going on around us and can help us see where we might be tense or recognise how anxiety, stress or worry feels in our body. These are important life skills and support an emotional understanding for children to learn.
Support body confidence.
As young children learn new yoga poses and experience moving their bodies in new ways, this can help them grow confidence in what their body can do and its strength. It can also support co-ordination and balance.
If you want to try yoga with children, it is always important to join in with them! If we model to them that we can’t always do the poses, it encourages the children to see it’s ok to get things wrong, but to give things a go and to have fun by learning together. We can also use these moments to talk about how we are feeling and noticing our emotions and how that feels in the body.
New Kinderly partnership
Kinderly have teamed-up with YOGADOO, the award-winning children’s yoga and meditation company, to offer weekly themed yoga sessions for children via video for all Kinderly Together subscribers.
Click here to try the first yoga session, which is all about spring!
Sonia Mainstone-Cotton is an early years participation trainer, consultant and author, specialised in wellbeing and mental health. She’s the author of “Promoting Young Children’s Emotional Health and Wellbeing” and “Promoting Emotional Wellbeing in Early Years Staff”.