138 Yoga for Speech-Language Development
Power’s The ABCs of Yoga for Kids, can also guide the children.
Appendix 4 at the end of this book contains additional examples.
Another activity that can be used to foster alphabet knowledge
is having the children make letters with their bodies. For example,
a child practicing boat pose with raised arms forms the letter “V”
with his body. Children can also practice as pairs to form letters of
the alphabet. Figure 9.3 presents two boys in a partner boat pose
variation to form the letter “W.” Similarly, two children practicing
downward facing dog pose side-by-side form the letter “M.”
Figure 9.3 Partner boat pose variation to form the letter “W”
Yoga and emergent literacy for special populations
The yoga-literacy activities and strategies described in this
chapter can benefit children who are typically developing as
well as those with a variety of neurodevelopmental disabilities.
Children with primary language disorders exhibit difficulty with
the comprehension and production of written as well as spoken
language (Paul and Norbury 2012). Children with persistent
speech sound disorders, including articulatory, phonological, and
praxis-based issues, are at risk for literacy problems. Children
with intellectual disabilities demonstrate difficulty with academic
learning, including literacy. Some children with autism spectrum