More and more, news stories and articles of “yoga in the classroom” are being reported. Teachers report the multiple benefits children experience from the practice, and students report the pleasure and self confidence they experience from practicing yoga!
Why yoga?
Yoga is simultaneously developmental, preventive and corrective, and therefore, appropriate for children at any stage of development. Children in yoga programs experience multiple benefits. Mastery of poses helps children to develop self-confidence while experiencing success. Poses help children to focus inward, drawing their attention to parts of their body, helping them to gain self-awareness. Physical poses (Asanas) promote muscle tone & flexibility. Breathing exercises develop concentration, breath coordination, increase memory, attention span, verbal and motor skills. All of yoga encourages positive reinforcement of self monitoring behaviours into daily life.
The Yoga therapy approach is recommended for children with: Down syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Microcephaly, Learning Disabilities, developmental delays, AD/HD, and other disorders. Yoga is particularly helpful for children with special needs, as the relaxation and meditation practices help children to focus, decreases hyperactivity and impulsivity. It also improves academic achievement, increases attention span, and improves communications and interpersonal relationships.
What does this mean to teachers and schools?
By integrating a daily yoga practice into the classroom schedule, whether it is for 2 or 10 minutes, teachers will students display the benefits yoga has to offer. Students will perform better academically through increased concentration and memory, self confidence, and the ability to monitor their own behaviours.
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