From the category archives:

Children’s Relaxation and Meditation

The Golden Princess: Create Original Fairy Tales to Combine with Yoga and Help Kids Cope with Stress

November 4, 2011

Early one morning my daughter came into my room complaining of a serious stomachache and “nervousness.” She said she felt like throwing up. After talking with her for a while, she revealed the feeling of pressure. Having a learning disability in addition to dyslexia, she is frequently behind in school and gets confused. She complained [...]

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JIgsaw Puzzles as Kids Yoga to Develop Mind/Body Connection, Concentration, Teach Yoga Philosophy and to Have Fun!

September 1, 2011

I love puzzles. As a young child, my grandmother gave me puzzles as gifts. As a four-year-old, I wrestled with the basic pieces, and once mastered, was proud that I could easily fit them together again and again afterwards. I feel that puzzles I did as a child were an integral part of developing my [...]

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Sun Stories and Yoga for Children

July 25, 2011

“The sun, the sun. I salute the sun. I open my heart to everyone. The sun rises, the sun sets. The whole world in my heart rests. Again I arise ready to live, happy to be and ready to give. The sun, the sun. I salute the sun. I open my heart to everyone.” Children [...]

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Three Basho Poems for Children’s Yoga

May 10, 2011

For a contemplative children’s yoga class, try using Basho’s Haiku poetry. • Explain who Matsuo Basho was and what Haiku is. He was a famous Japanese poet who lived from 1644 – 1694). Basho was known during his lifetime for his works in the collaborative haikai no renga form.  Today he is recognized as a master of brief [...]

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Brother Simple – Teaching Children Mantra in this Month’s Story-of-The-Month Club

April 21, 2011

Recently a student asked me for a story that she wanted to include in a meditation that she was recording for military personal so that they could reconnect to their inner child. Thinking soldier, the 12th century story of Brother Simple from the Golden Legend came to mind. The main character is a soldier who [...]

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Kids Knitting for Meditation and Concentration

November 3, 2010

Artisan knitting is popular here in Argentina, and women regularly knit gorgeous sweaters, hats, scarves and other accessories.  What’s more, knitting is a flourishing cottage industry, and women regularly make a living at selling their products and classes. Knitting is a valuable skill that Americans and other Westerners can learn and teach to their children [...]

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Buried Moon: Yoga and Stories for Children in Difficult Times

April 28, 2010

Whether its change in our lives on and inner or outer level or changes in the world, difficult times happen. Children need tools to deal with these changes. May’s League of Yogic Storyteller’s session features Buried Moon: Yoga and Stories for Children in Difficult Times. This English Story uses the rich imagery of the moon [...]

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Storytime Yoga Siestas – Relax with yoga and storytelling after school!

April 16, 2010

I love teaching at Creekside Elementary in Boulder.  I love the children. It’s a rich, diverse school and they have an incredible garden growing in the courtyard just outside the library. We have Spanish-speaking kids, English-Speakers, Chinese, and a girl knew Danish! What fun! I have been teaching there again after school programs, Storytime Yoga [...]

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Teaching Meditation to Older Children using Personal and Traditional Stories

March 6, 2008

Namaste!Last night my 7-year-old daughter asked to meditate with me. Her 11-year-old step-sister was being mean to her, she said.  Of course we will meditate! I said. She brought up her 10-year-old brother. We lit the candle, and naturally now that they are older, beyond the preschool and early elementary stage, we can talk about [...]

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The Grateful Crane

October 3, 2007

At Tuesday’s storytelling class we met in the library and sat in the cushiony area for a while, as the kids talked about how they used story this week. A second-grade girl brought in her drawing from when she heard me telling the Native American story of Jumping Mouse last week. She also made up [...]

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CREATING YOUR OWN GUIDED VISUALIZATIONS for CHILDREN

March 21, 2007

by Sydney Solis The Greeks said that the soul speaks in an image. It is the image that arises from the heart and connects us to the divine within. It’s also the illusion, the obstacle of the sixth chakra, that we must let go of and pass through to realize the ineffable mystery of the [...]

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Yoga and high-energy, distractible and ADHD kids

March 20, 2007

I have had bipolar, ADHD and just generally overexcited kids in many of my classes. No matter. I direct them into awareness of the body by calling out their bottom on the floor, their hands in their lap, and then by beginning with awareness of the breath in and out, in and out, the air [...]

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