Yoga for Speech-Language Development

Yoga for Vocabulary and Linguistic Concepts 99

For another example, in airplane pose, children first lie prone
on their abdomens, then extend their arms and legs while
simultaneously lifting their head. The adult could vary the
sophistication of the verb (or any other word type) depending on
the cognitive-linguistic development of the children’s vocabulary.
For example, some airplanes might “fly” whereas others might
“soar.” Table 7.2 lists verbs that are named as part of the
directions for many children’s yoga poses.

Table 7.2 Verbs related to children’s yoga practice

balance crawl hum release stand tip

bend elevate lean rub stomp tip-toe

blow extend open scan stop touch

breathe flex point shake stretch twist

climb hide reach shift squeeze walk

close hug relax sit tap wiggle

The instructions for yoga poses and breathing exercises contain
additional lexical items that code a variety of linguistic concepts.
These include prepositions that code spatial/positional concepts,
temporal notions, and a variety of attributes. Ristuccia (2010)
discusses the use of the yoga poses to teach opposites, attributes,
and other categories of words to children. In a pose specifically
developed for children called “butterfly hands” (Goldberg 2013),
children pretend that their hands are butterflies, flying them “in
front,” “in back,” out to the “sides,” and “all around.” Similarly,
a small object such as a beanbag or a toy boat, can go “under”
children in bridge pose. Figure 7.2 illustrates a boy in bridge pose
with a small toy boat placed underneath his body.