Yoga for Speech-Language Development

Yoga for Symbolic Play 121

Figure 8.5 Teapot and teacup poses

Summary

Yoga provides a context for children to practice their symbolic
play skills. These develop from the end of the first year of
infancy through the toddler-preschool years. Based on the
levels of increasing complexity delineated by Westby (2000) and
theoretically grounded in a Piagetian framework (Piaget 1962),
symbolic play can be characterized along the four aspects of
decontextualization, thematic content, organization, and self-
other. Yoga can help children who are typically developing, as
well as those who are developmentally challenged, to hone their
play skills in each of these four dimensions. The resource tables
in Appendices 2–8 of this book contain information on yoga
books, card decks, games, CDs, DVDs, and websites to enhance
symbolic play development in children.