200hr | 350hr | 500hr Yoga Teacher Training
Restorative Yoga Teacher Training
Meditation Teacher TrainingPart-time | Intensive | Online
Fully accredited | Senior Teachers
http://www.yimi.com.auyimi
With 20 years of experience,
Loraine Rushtonis a leading
authority on yoga for children
and teens. Worldwide, she has
trained thousands of people how to teach
children’s yoga in a way that is educational,
meaningful and fun.Mindful breathing
Have your child lie down on their back
with their legs relaxed and hands placed
on their tummy. Instruct them to
breathe out all the air in their lungs.
Then say, “As you breathe in, feel your
tummy rise and as you breathe out, feel
your tummy fall.” They can imagine
their tummy is like a balloon fi lling up
with air as they breathe in and like a
balloon defl ating as they breathe out. To
release tension, anxiety or stress say, “As
you breathe out, imagine all your
worries and troubles leaving your body.”
Mindful action
The mindfulness jar is one of the most
powerful visual metaphors for how the
mind works. It teaches how to settle
a mind full of swirling thoughts and
accumulated emotions and, at the same
time, results in a very calm child. It’s
a great activity to do together and one
your child or the children in your class
can use to self-calm or self-soothe
whenever they need.
To make a mindfulness jar, you can
use a mason jar, a spice jar, or a plastic
water bottle.
Fill the jar to the top with water. Ask
your children to choose two colours of
glitter that will represent their thoughts
and feelings. Add the glitter into the
water and seal the jar with its lid,
tightly. Adding some glue or glycerin to
the water slows the fall of the glitter.
Once the jar is made, allow the glitter
to settle and then ask children the
question, “What kinds of things disturb
the glitter and have it swirl around in
the jar?” Answers may be fi ghts,
arguments, mean words, worry about
school, failing tests or sporting
activities. Children may also have
positive answers like getting good
grades, a party or having a play date.
With each answer, swirl the jar,
emphasising how our thoughts and
feelings become stirred up, making it
diffi cult to be aware of how we are
feeling and what our thoughts are
saying.
Watching the glitter settle creates a
sense of calm and control. The analogy
of glitter being their thoughts and
feelings gives children something
tangible to understand and, by watching
the glitter settle, they feel their ownminds calm and their feelings become
more peaceful.Mindful rest
Releasing excess energy through
movement, calming the mind with a
breathing exercise or the mindfulness jar,
children are now ready to move into
stillness. Deep, rejuvenating rest is as
important as exercise, and one of the best
ways to lead children there is through a
guided relaxation or Yoga Nidra. You
can fi nd many scripts and videos online,
including a free download on my website.
Follow these steps and you will not only
have calmer, content and more confi dent
children, but you will have taught them a
powerful tool for life ... how to be in
control of your thoughts, feelings and
actions in order to make clear decisions
and develop good judgment. What a gift!