Yoga Games

5 Activities for Kids Yoga Summer Camps

It’s finally summer! A perfect time for a Kids Yoga Summer Camp.

I remember the first time I offered a full day/full week kids yoga camp, it was not what I expected.

The biggest learning curve was not the yoga part. I had taught a lot of kids yoga, it wasn’t hard to think of activities.

No, it was sorting out the washroom routine! There were no public washrooms at the playground so if one child had to go, that meant the end of the playground visit for everyone.

If you’re planning a summer camp for kids, don’t forget to plan these details and if you also want kids yoga ideas, we’ve got that covered here.

Mini Training Highlights: Summer Camp Activities

Here are some of the key takeaways from the topic of Kids Yoga Summer Camps from our live mini-training for June 2022:

There are many wonderful activities that take too much time for a regular kids yoga class so camps are the perfect time for them,
Choosing an activity that is age-appropriate is key! We talked a lot about the age for each activity.
A one week camp with 10 kids can be a good cash injection, you just have to make sure you don’t burn yourself out.

Check out my 5 Favourite Camp Activities and the discussion around them in the video replay in the June Free Mini Training because some of you might be looking for activities to do during your camp.

These 5 activities will enhance your camps. Some are of my favourites because with a camp you have a lot more time to do activities that you can’t fit into a one hour class.

Preview: Kids Yoga Summer Camps

Here’s a preview of the video with the first 3 activities from our YouTube channel:

Watch the full video in the June 2022 replay in the free course here.

5 Kids Yoga Activities to Enhance Your Camps this Summer

1. Chakras

If you’re doing chakras for children, try presenting them over a series of classes.

If I was teaching the chakras to children, I would limit this to a yoga studio. That’s because if you’re doing chakras in a school or a daycare, they may be a little too esoteric, some people might mistake it for some kind of religious teaching. You just don’t want to have any problems in that department. I really recommend this for a private camp, yoga in the park, in a yoga studio or in your home studio.

Here’s what the activity could look like if presented at a camp from Monday to Friday:

Monday: What are Chakras (see April 2022 Mini-Training for Lesson Plan). Introduce the concept of the chakras.
Tuesday: The Lower Triangle (Chakras 1, 2 + 3)
Wednesday: The Heart Centre (4th Chakra)
- You can include all kinds of social-emotional learning and empathy lessons into that one lesson plan.
Thursday: The Upper Triangle (Chakra 5, 6 +7)
Friday: Your Chakras are your talents, how will you use them? For those who have the workbook from the chakras for children training, you can do use the questionnaires in those worksheets. Or the kids can reflect on which of the talents are associated with the chakras

Watch the April 2022 Free Mini Training – Chakras for Children here.

Consider getting the 4 hour Chakras for Children Certificate here.

2. Mandala Activities

These Mandala activities can take a while to complete so they are great for camps.

This activity requires some big paper, some stamps, and stamp pads.

One of my colleagues tried doing this at home but she said her mandala turned into an oblique shape. The secret to stamping a mandala is very similar to why we meditate. It about starting in the center and moving from the centre to the outside.

If you start at the outside, trying to make a circle, its will be a lot harder to make it look even the way a mandala does.

The idea is that you meditate you check in with yourself, this is what my meditation teacher used to say to us. If you want to love yourself, the way you do that is to know yourself.

We start in the center and then from there we create our vision for our life based on what we want to achieve and what we can do. Whereas if you’re always trying to create your life from what other people are telling you to be, that is a very difficult existence because it’s really hard to please everybody.

We should create a mandala just like meditation, from the inside to the outside.

Then you can move this activity into yoga by making a group yoga pose in Mandala shapes as pictured in the image above.

3. My Song

The My Song activity is where you ask the children to share a song that is meaningful to them. Each child can say their song and talk about why they like that song. Then everyone can listen to the song.

When I started doing the My Song activity, I actually had an iPod!

My Song - Kids Share Why They Like Their Favorite Songs - part of the Young Yoga Masters Kids Yoga Teacher Training

One bonus of this activity is it’s a great way to discover songs to add to your music playlists. I don’t listen to pop music very often so this is one way to find out the songs that are popular with children.

When it comes to music, I use a lot of playlists when I teach classes, to sort the music by the mood.

When I’m teaching classes I’ll have relaxing songs, warm-up songs or songs with the moves built right into them. When the time comes and we’re ready to relax, I can go to the relaxing songs playlist and find a song.

A little back story about the My Song activity, I did this for the first time when I was in high school and one of my teachers did it with our class. I still remember people’s songs to this day. It was a nice way for us to get to know each other in the class.

People chose all types of songs so not only did it expose us to different genres of music that we might not listen to, it also gave everyone a way to talk about something that was meaningful to them without it being too risky.

4. Eye Pillows

This is a very simple activity that can be done a number of ways.

When I have a lot of time we sew eye pillows in class with a needle and thread and rectangles of material. We sewed an outer pillowcase that we can wash and an inner pillow that we filled with rice.

The class of students, mostly over six years old, really enjoyed it. They were amazed that they can just make their own thing.

I remember one camp we did sewing, and I helped a student sew up a hole in their sock. They were both amazed and happy that the sock was fixed.

When I have the time, I like to sew with kids, but if I don’t there is another option. You can buy socks from the store and use fabric markers to draw on them to make a colourful pillow case. You have to set the drawings by putting the sock in the dryer or pressing with an iron.

Kids Making Eye Pillows using socks filled with rice and Pillow Cases coloured with fabric markers. - part of the Young Yoga Masters Kids Yoga Teacher Training

Then you fill the inner sock with rice and tie the end with an elastic.

You can incorporate scents if it is appropriate, like lavender or other herbs, or essential oils, to add to the eye pillows. Make sure to check first if that’s okay with the kids because not everyone likes scents. I would advertise the use of scents in the class description so there are no surprises. ikm

You can use the eye pillows for the rest of the week. There are more activities with the eye pillows in the Inclusive Yoga Certificate.

5. Yoga Names + Names

We developed the Frog Yoga Alphabet especially to help keep kids busy during kid’s yoga and yoga camps. You can print and play all kinds of games with them.

Sometimes people think a Yoga Alphabet is just for children learning the alphabet, but with a little imagination, those letters become words and the words become games and stories!

In this activity, we used the Frog Yoga Alphabet to spell children’s names. Every letter has its corresponding pose and children can colour different letters each day.

We also do yoga for the letters.

In the picture above, we had an afternoon camp that was about three hours. Lauren finished colouring her letters and we also did the yoga poses. Then we came back to colouring and do another person’s name.

Lauren stapled her letters in the corners after she coloured in the pictures. She got to take home a name banner that day to put on her wall.

I like Lauren’s idea for a banner. I had been stapling the poses like a book.

If you were in a studio where you could hang up all the names and leave them up throughout the week, you could inspire others with the activity.

Then, when kids arrive they could to their own name, or a friend’s name, and do all their poses as a warm-up.

Kids Yoga Summer Camp

Yoga and fun go hand in hand. So when you’ve got the extra time in a Yoga Camp let these activities inspire you to enhance your camps.

Watch the full June 2022 Free Mini Training here or click the button below.

watch the Kids Yoga Summer Camp – jUNE 2022 free mini training

Get these Free Earth Day Kids Yoga Activity Pages

While planning my kids yoga classes for the daycare’s theme “Earth Day” I set to work looking for a book or some kind of visual for supporting material.

First I remembered a children’s book I bought a while ago but never used called, 100 Facts – Saving the Earth by Miles Kelly. Great, a lesson plan ready to go!

But when I flipped to the first page, there sat a message of doom and gloom: the earth in danger, the planet a mess, temperatures rising, extinction probable!

I quickly closed the book as if trying to put Pandora back into her box. The idea of the end of human existence simply wouldn’t do as a theme for Earth Day. I needed plan B – to share the message of hope and mindfulness about our big blue planet.

Now I’m curious if this negativity pervades kids attitudes about the Earth.

Getting to Know the Mind in Kids Yoga Class

The negative mind, as it’s called in Kundalini Yoga, is akin to the part of the mind that sees danger and helps you avoid getting into trouble. The negative mind is the first and fastest function of the minds, so it’s no surprise we are bombarded by information that feeds into our fears and insecurities. Marketing all around us tries to connect to that negative mind to get your attention.

The solution to counteract this way of thinking is to use the Positive Mind to cut through the negative. Then the Neutral Mind can weigh the negative and positive to make a decision.

In the Yoga Sutras it is called Pratipaksa Bhavana.

“34. When disturbed by negative thoughts, opposite (positive) ones
should be thought of. This is pratipaksa bhavana.”
Book 2.34, The Sutras of Patanjali, Translation and Commentary
by Sri Swami Satchidananda p. 120 -122

Use Your Curiosity to Teach Children about Mindfulness and the Mind

I’m curious about the level of negativity children experience when they think about the Earth. I’m going to start my kids classes by asking them what Earth Day means to them. I wonder if it will be negative or positive? The rest of the yoga class will flow from their answers.

We may become Earth Warriors to cut through the negative and find a positive.

Or maybe we’ll do yoga poses for all the earthly elements and animals that are happily named.

Whichever way it goes, we will to finish with hope and gratitude for all the Earth provides for the plants and animals on the planet (including humans). We can practice Pratipaksa Bhavana to combat the negative thoughts. Then Earth Day will be a reason to celebrate the hope the planet offers.

Earth Day is April 22

Earth Day parnter yoga coloring page for kids yoga — Earth Day Printable Colouring Page

And if you’re looking for some Earth Day activity ideas for your kids yoga classes, you check out the links below.

Earth Day Warrior Printable Colouring Page for Kids Yoga — Earth Day Warrior Printable Colouring Page

Download both printable Earth Day colouring pages here:

Download the Earth day colouring pages

More Earth Day Activities for your Kids Yoga Classes:

Kids Yoga makes a World of Difference!

Easy Breathing Activities for Kids Yoga

Children's Yoga Teacher Blows Bubbles and Kids try to pop them with their feet in the kids yoga teacher trainer certification

An Amazing Way to Get Kids’ Attention

It’s amazing how much use you can get out of a 99c bottle of dish detergent.

Picture a classroom full of young students, some eager to move and learn while others remain nervous or disinterested. A kids yoga teacher asks the kids to sit still and close their eyes, and when they are ready, the teacher reveals a bubble wand and soap.

The excitement is audible.

Students are directed to lie down beside each other, and the instructor blows bubbles above them encouraging them to pop as many as they can – with their feet. There isn’t an apathetic student in the room when they learn they’ll all get a try.

This method of getting kids engaged is shown towards the end of this video from the Young Yoga Masters Kids Yoga Teacher Certification:

While this simple prop introduction may sound insignificant, it promotes a safe and engaging environment while teaching incredibly relevant lessons. When kids pop bubbles by kicking the air, they get moving. More importantly, it prevents them from getting lost in the excitement, chasing after bubbles with minimal regard for their own safety, let alone that of the other kids.

Incorporating Bubbles into Kids Meditation

This activity is also a fantastic prompt for discussion. Think of the associations or lessons which could be learned by analyzing the use of bubbles:

Blowing bubbles requires a relaxed and smooth breath which requires practice and patience.
Students may notice how delicate and short-lived the bubbles are. They are present for a brief time, and we appreciate them while they last rather than focusing on the loss. The fragile and temporary nature of bubbles is an easy connection to detachment and the idea of letting go. This makes for an excellent meditation prompt, as students can be encouraged to slow down their thoughts and imagine themselves dismissing a negative idea with each bursting bubble.
Students may also be encouraged to visualize themselves filling each bubble with a positive thought and letting these go, too. This is an important practice for avoiding fixation on things, and finding contentment.
The simplicity of bubbles permits nearly anyone to easily sketch them, and thought-bubbles or charts are an excellent way to visually keep track of discussion points and ideas.

The opportunities are truly endless.

“I remember teaching at a retreat and giving children a choice of activities, they chose the bubbles. We went outside and spent a half hour blowing bubbles, without any other activity necessary. The adults were in a three hour workshop and so for the last half hour of our time with the kids we blew bubbles. I considered it thirty minutes of deep breathing, and we all felt incredibly relaxed by the end. It was an added bonus that after this activity the children returned to their parents super calm.”

– Aruna Kathy Humphrys, Lead Trainer, Young Yoga Masters

Nowadays, it is easy to forget that kids enjoy uncomplicated activities too, especially with the accessibility of video games and wide array of complex entertainment; simplicity can be refreshing.

Keeping kids safe and engaged can often be challenging for parents and teachers, yet it benefits all to stay creative with lesson plans and remember that even a small grocery store purchase can have an incredible impact.

Share your fun kids yoga breathing activities in the comments section below.

Upcoming Events

Kids Yoga Teacher Training Yoga Alliance Registered Childrens Yoga School — Click this link for all the upcoming Kids Yoga Teacher Certification courses

Kids Yoga Teacher Training is always a welcome adventure you’ll be glad you explored!

3 Quick Attention-Getters

It’s handy to have a few quick attention-getters for those moments when your yoga class is getting excited, maybe even too excited.

a boy smiling after doing a downward dog tunner — Attention Getters in Kids Yoga

I have used many different tricks over the years, I like to change it up to keep it interesting for the kids and myself.

So here are 3 of my current favorites.

Please share your favorite attention grabber, and for any bloggers reading, share your favorite blog post about getting attention. What do you do to help kids heads turn and start paying attention?

Reminder of Early Registration Deadline Today on Summer Kids Yoga Teacher Certification

Also, don’t forget that today is the super early registration deadline for the 95 Hour Kids Yoga Teacher Summer Certification, You can save over $270 if you register today. This summer get a thorough training with a Yoga Alliance Registered Children’s Yoga School, including practicum with actual kids classes, all in one training this summer. Check out the 2 locations and full details here (with all the registration buttons now working!).

This is the time we need to make deposits on our training location, so by registering early, you’ll help us get an idea of our numbers, and you’ll save by signing up early. Thanks to those who have already registered from around the world!

Now back to our tips:

Attention-Getter #1

Give Me a Hip, Give Me a Lip

This one is as simple as it sounds. You say “Give me a hip.” and put one hand on your hip. Then say, “Give me a lip.” and put your finger to your mouth like you’re saying ssshhhh.

Now give it some attitude: Give me a hip, give me a lip.

Oh no you didn’t! Oh yes you did! Even tweens like to do this one – especially with attitude.

Attention-Getter #2

The Big Old Alley Cat Looking for Mice

kids do child pose in kids yoga pretending they are a mouse hiding from a cat — Kids Learn Child Pose as part of a simple yoga flow.

For the younger yogis, I play on an activity from a short yoga flow we do using Cat, Dog, Snake, and Mouse pose. When we get to Mouse, we’ve got to stay very still because Cat is just around the corner. This big old alley cat is looking for some lunch. Stay very still so the cat doesn’t find you!

After we’ve done this game in a few classes, I can pretend I’m the alley cat anytime and the kids will quickly go into child pose and quiet down.

Sometimes I don’t have to say anything, I just do my alley cat walk and once the first child sees it, they react, and soon all the kids are doing mouse pose without even a word from me.

Attention-Getter #3

Breathe In the Big Me, Breathe Out the Little Me

a kids yoga teacher points to her nose as she takes a deep breath in and 4 kids follow along doing yoga breathing — Breathe In the Big Me is a Breathing Routine that Helps Kids Pay Attention

My classic yoga attention-getter is a big yoga breath. I call out, “Breathe in the Big Me” and you fill yourself with air and stretch your arms up to open up, your ribs too. When you are full of air you feel big and powerful! That’s the big me.

Then it’s time to “Breathe Out the Little Me” and exhale and let your arms float down. This is when you let go of anything that may be troubling you or making you feel small. It’s a way to let go of doubt and insecurity. Let the Little Me go out with each breath.

I use this breath to finish most yoga poses. I use it so much it may not seem like I’m doing it to get attention, but I know that it’s a routine that kids know and follow, and helps kids keep their focus.

Now Share Your Favorite Attention Getter

Please leave a comment to share your current favorite Attention-Getter. Do you stick with the same one or do you switch them up? What do you do to get the attention of your kids at home?

Upcoming Kids Yoga Teacher Training

Summer Certification Super Early Bird Pricing Ends Today

Register Early to Save!

Details Here.

Teachable Moments: The Story of the Teacher and The Student

A Kids Yoga Teacher Training Yoga Story

a boy holding a toy called a breathing ball, a ball that expands and contracts and helps kids understand deep breathing — A breathing ball is a great visual for showing how learning expands our minds. Everyone Gets a Breathing Ball with registration in the Branching Out Weekend in January

A student once asked a teacher, “How do I learn best?”

Without hesitation, the teacher said to the student, “Teach!”

So the student became a teacher.

The teacher then asked a student, “How do I teach you best?”

Without hesitation, the student said to the teacher, “Learn!”

To be an effective yoga teacher, learn as a student leans!

Imagine you’re a parent wanting to teach your child about obstacles in life and how to overcome them. You’ve probably had many experiences to draw from and different ways you’ve managed to rise above the challenge. You’ve had practice.

But for a child, how can you help them? How can you give them experience and practice or explain it to them?

We do an exercise in our kids yoga teacher training to teach you how to teach children this lesson at their level.

Yoga for Children: The Hula Hoop Game

While holding hands in a circle, we ask a group of students to pass a hula hoop from left to right around the circle trying not to let go of each others hands. Passing it is a challenge, just like the challenges we face in our lives. We use a game to practice overcoming challenges so that when we are challenged by real life, we are not overwhelmed or floored by it!

Yoga, meditation, and games are ways we can learn how strong we are in moments of challenge as well as moments of bliss and relaxation. In the Kids Yoga Teacher training, you would learn and practice games like this and more. We use games as a teaching moment.

Yoga Alliance Registered Children's Yoga School Seal — Young Yoga Masters is a Registered Children’s Yoga School approved to offer the 95 Hour Certificate.

Whether you are a parent, grandparent, school teacher, or already teaching kids yoga you can benefit from learning how to teach yoga in new ways that kids will understand. You’ll also be accumulating hours towards your 95 Hour Certificate through our Yoga Alliance Registered Children’s Yoga School.

No matter how long or short a time you have been doing yoga or teaching, like the story says, to teach kids best, you’ve also got to learn.

Registration is now open for All Teacher Training Certificates

Get More Information On Earning Your Certificate Here

Teach to Learn, Learn To Teach! Namaste

6 Tips from 6 Kids Yoga Teacher Training Weekends

The Summer Certification is a popular way to get your 95 hour Certificate. It’s fast. It’s fun. It’s packed with information.

To give you an idea of what you’ll get, check out these 6 Tips on teaching yoga to kids. One tip from each of the 6 weekends of Kids Yoga Teacher Training.

If you are thinking of getting your Kids Yoga Teacher Certificate Here’s the link with all the details. We’d love to meet you there.

6 Tips from 6 Kids Yoga Teacher Training Weekends

Tip #1 from the Yoga Literacy Weekend

Yoga Alphabet and Storytelling: In the Yoga Literacy training the Yoga Alphabet turns any kid into a storyteller. Why? Because letters make up words and words make up stories. With our Yoga Alphabet we play all kinds of word games, but the favorite by far is Yoga Hangman (also known as Yoga Wheel of Fortune for some youth). The clues can be any words and phrases related to school curriculum, yoga themes, or pop culture. Choose what will interest your group. Now here’s the yoga part: before you reveal whether the letter is in the clue, everyone does the yoga pose. One game of Yoga Hangman can equal 10 or more yoga poses. Now that’s a good stretch for body and mind.

Tip #2 from the Inclusive Yoga Weekend

Yoga to Include Children with Special Needs: One mother described how difficult it is at school for her daughter because she didn’t have any friends. At eleven years old it can be a lonely world for a child with special needs. In the Inclusive Yoga weekend Kids Yoga Training you get lots of ideas to help kids feel they belong in a yoga class.One effective way is by creating a Yoga Obstacle Course. It’s basically a huge visual schedule that eases anxiety for a lot of children on the autism spectrum. The great thing is, all kids love obstacle courses. You set up stations around the room with different yoga poses and fun ways to get from one spot to another. Try hopping like a frog, walking in downward dog, or taking a human train. Leave a spot at the end for kids to rest when they complete the cycle. Start by going through the whole Obstacle Course as a group. That eleven year old girl will feel better when she is sitting in the resting spot just like all the other kids.

Tip #3 from the Ages and Stages Weekend

a paper drawing of human anatomy for kids witha brain made of macaroni - part of the kids yoga teacher training — Kids don’t mind learning Anatomy when it’s fun and neither do adults.

Anatomy and Physiology: Talking about bones is one thing, but bringing a skeleton into yoga class will take bones to the next level to capture kids attention. You can look for an anatomically correct skeleton, the kind a doctor or chiropractor uses. Or you can look for a big skeleton at Halloween time and you won’t have to be so careful transporting it to and from your classes.

Tip #4 from the What I See, I Can Be Weekend

Yoga In the Classroom: This weekend includes so many tips on how to include Yoga in the classroom. One of my favorites is what course author, Janet Williams, of Childrens Yoga Books.com calls a Two-For-One. This is what you get when you teach two topics at the same time. Not only does it help a teacher get through their curriculum and fulfill their daily physical activity requirement, it helps children get much appreciated kinesthetic learning opportunities.

Tip #5 from the Themes and Dreams Weekend

kids yoga class with a teacher talking to a child doing yoga — Seeing Eye to Eye with Kids in Your Class

Classroom Management is a big concern for many kids yoga teachers. Each teacher must discover how to get to the heart of classroom management and better connect with kids. For instance, if you present your lesson plan and a child protests, there are a number of ways to deal with it. First and foremost, the teacher strives to not take the protest personally. Just like when we meditate we try not to add energy to thoughts or distractions, we let them float by. It is equally important for a teacher to focus on the yoga class and refrain from arguments or power struggles. When a teacher does not react it is easier to figure out what to do. One of my favorite responses when a child says they don’t want to do something is to sincerely and energetically ask them, “What do you want to do?” Their answer gives me a big clue about how to manage the situation. Sometimes you find out they are sick, tired, or they have something else in mind. You can use the information to adjust your plan accordingly. Sometimes you can turn the protest into a positive, by involving the child in your lesson plan. Just like in life, we want to develop a yogic mind, a neutral mind, and become a role model for children.

Tip #6 from the Branching Out Weekend

Branching Out to Family Yoga: finally here’s a very sweet meditation that I call the Stroke of Genius Meditation. I wrote about it here and it is a wonderful way to help parents and kids connect in a family yoga class. You’ll find this tip may help your mornings go a little smoother too.

These 6 tips from our 6 kids yoga teacher training weekends are just a small part of a comprehensive course registered with Yoga Alliance.

If you’ve thought of becoming a kids yoga teacher, full time, part time, in your classroom or living room, take a look at what you get with the Young Yoga Masters training.

Register early to take save your place and take advantage of the early registration rates. Here is the link to the information.