Teaching yoga to kids

When I was first asked to develop a yoga curriculum for a local Christian summer camp, I was hesitant at best. Though I had been teaching yoga to adults for many years, I wondered how I could effectively share this powerful spiritual practice with a group of rambunctious kids? I didn’t want to teach yoga as merely a physical practice or just another PE class. I wanted to honor the roots of yoga and share the path of yoga as a Christian spiritual discipline.

But how could I make yoga accessible for kids? And better yet, how could I make it fun? After all, this was taking place at a summer camp and the other activities for campers would include rock-climbing, archery, mountain biking, kayaking, and riflery!

I started dreaming about how I could share Christ- centered yoga classes with kids in a way that was meaningful, but also fun and engaging for kids of all ages. I wanted to help kids:

… connect with their bodies and feel comfortable in their own skin

… clear their minds, set distractions aside, and improve their ability to focus

… experience peace, and awaken to the loving presence of God

I worked closely with camp counselors brainstorming breath-work and embodiment activities that would hold the attention of campers. We researched kid-friendly meditations and mindfulness activities and prayed about what Bible Scriptures we might include… and Kids Yoga Camp was born!

What I never imagined is that yoga would become a camp favorite. Filling every session with campers who were hungry for the stillness and peace that the practice offers.

Benefits of yoga for kids

Did you know that humans are said to have an even shorter attention span than a goldfish?

According to a study by Microsoft Marketing, human attention spans appear to be on a sharp decline. Even scarier, the National Institutes of Health has continued to report a steady increase in ADHD found in children and adolescents throughout past years.

Our fast-paced, technology-driven world is NO DOUBT affecting our kids ability to focus. But research shows yoga improves concentration and mental clarity. In fact, the mindfulness and meditation practices of yoga teaches the skills of concentration, awareness, and the ability to focus.

In her article, Marlynn Wei, MD, board-certified psychiatrist, certified yoga teacher, and co-author of the book, Harvard Medical School Guide to Yoga writes:

“Yoga and mindfulness have been shown to improve both physical and mental health in school-age children (ages 6 to 12). Yoga improves balance, strength, endurance, and aerobic capacity in children. Yoga and mindfulness offer psychological benefits for children as well. A growing body of research has already shown that yoga can improve focus, memory, self-esteem, academic performance, and classroom behavior, and can even reduce anxiety and stress in children.”

In fact, research conducted around yoga for kids shows that the practice offer many therapeutic benefits including:

  • Yoga strengthens muscles, promotes balance, improves gross and fine motor skills, and increases flexibility.
  • Yoga enhances body awareness, knowledge of the architecture, how the body moves, and how it carries emotions.
  • Yoga encourages mindfulness and facilitates greater ease in connecting with themselves, with others, and with their surroundings.
  • Yoga increases emotional intelligence, improves resilience, teaches patience, and the ability to self-regulate behavior and emotions.
  • Yoga improves concentration, clarity, and teaches the ability to focus.
  • Yoga builds confidence, self-esteem, and self-respect.
  • Yoga balances the nervous system, teaches stress management, controls anxiety, and promotes the relaxation response.

When yoga is taught as more than just a physical practice it can help kids to build healthy habits that will help them through adolescence and later on into adulthood..

Christ-centered yoga for kids

Kids need the physical, mental and emotional benefits of yoga, but now more than ever, kids need to know that they are loved by God and fearfully and wonderfully made in his image!

In this fast-paced, post-pandemic world, kids are longing for connection. Yoga helps kids learn how to form healthy connections with themselves, with others, and with God. In fact, yoga is a holistic, spiritual practice with many spiritual benefits.

  • Yoga teaches a child how to live in the present moment- this is where we encounter the Presence of God.
  • Yoga purifies the mind and gives us mental clarity, helping us to have “eyes that see”.
  • Yoga encourages us to draw inward and to listen, tuning our ears to hear the still small voice of God.

The ability to set distractions aside in order to become more aware of God’s presence is an invaluable skill for the follower of Christ. By teaching Christ-centered yoga classes at Kids Yoga Camp, we empowered kids to cultivate healthy habits, attitudes, and lifestyles that would last a lifetime all while sharing the love of Christ!​​​​​​​​

Learning to teach Kids Yoga Camp is perfect for educators, therapists, church leaders, parents and grandparents, coaches, camp-counselors, and babysitters – anyone who loves Jesus and is passionate about building healthy kids!

3 tips for teaching kids yoga

    1. Keep is simple. Yoga is a low cost activity! You don’t need much to practice yoga. A mat is really all you need. Though you are paying a teacher to demonstrate, there is no other equipment to purchase.
    2. Keep practices short and accessible. While adults are used to at least an hour-long yoga practice, kids’ attention spans will vary. Keep practices short and create a lesson plan (but be ready to change things up).
    3. Get creative! While you should establish a basic structure and routine to your kids yoga class, you also need to allow plenty of room for creativity. Loosen up on technique and cuing. Instead, listen to kids’ feedback, encourage imagination, remember the importance of play and be prepared to change up the activities if needed..

Interested to know more about sharing Christ-centered yoga with kids? Start training today in my online course Kids Yoga Camp or join the waitlist to  learn more Yoga for Christians.