First off, take a look at this fun video of two Canadians, Rick Mercer (comedian/host) and Rick Hanson (Man in Motion hero/educator) blowing away all ideas of what one can and cannot do when one has a disability:
Pretty Amazing, Eh!
This Friday marks the beginning of the Paralympic Games in Vancouver. It’s another event that shows how ABLE all people are. The first Paralympics Games were held in 1976 in Sweden and this Paralympics has five sports:
- alpine skiing
- biathlon
- cross-country skiing
- ice sledge hockey
- wheelchair curling
Here’s a link to a whole page of activities from Official Website of the Paralympic Movement. I’m looking forward to reading this worksheet in my kids classes: A Fairytale: A Class Discussion of Inclusion it’s a great story with discussion questions included.
I also want to try the Sitting Volleyball Skills Sheet with a soft volley ball for younger kids.
When it comes to yoga, are there any limitations that could prevent a child from joining a class? Considering that kids yoga is already so imaginative I think kids yoga can be done by all.
The best tip for teaching yoga to someone with a disability: talk to the person to find out what works and what won’t work for their particular situation. They’ll be able to tell you what they need to make it possible, what they want to try and what they can’t. Don’t make assumptions!
If you’re stuck for ideas – a simple Google search of “wheelchair yoga” produces over 400,000 results!
Finally, this book Susan Laughs by Jeanne Willis and Tony Ross is recommended for discussing disabilities with young kids. It looks like a great book that I’ve just added to my wish list. Let me know if you’ve seen this book or if you have any other ideas for including all kids in yoga classes.
