Stretching Minds and Bodies: Children’s Yoga at Imagine Childcare

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The 2024 theme for International Yoga Day is “Yoga for Self and Society.” Providing a holistic approach to health and well-being, yoga has been proven to assist in restoring balance in our busy lives.

International Yoga Day was officially adopted by the United Nations in December 2014 after the Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, gave a speech proposing that the day fall on June 21st to align with the Northern Hemisphere’s summer solstice – the longest day of the year.

While yoga has been known in the past for bringing improved posture, flexibility, and balance to adults, it has grown increasingly popular for children over recent years with benefits proven to encourage physical health, build on emotional regulation, improve concentration, boost confidence, and increase social skills.

 

Unsurprisingly, children’s yoga is very different to any kind of yoga session you would attend as an adult. Most children’s yoga sessions incorporate games, storytelling, and singing to assist with their shorter attention span. Children’s yoga sessions often are a mix of practicing yoga poses suitable for younger children and song and dance.

At Imagine Childcare, we believe so strongly in the benefits we have seen through children’s yoga that we have yoga as a weekly extracurricular at 22 of our centres located across Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia – and it is included in our daily fee.

Imagine Childcare and Kindergarten Holmview blends their weekly Yoga Bears sessions with a mix of song, dance, yoga postures, storytelling, and interactive games, each designed encourage strength, flexibility, balance, and coordination of the children in our centre.

At Imagine Childcare and Kindergarten Coburg, The Educators and children engage in fun bubble blowing activities to practice stretching, jumping, and breath work. These activities help to introduce the children to yoga in the earlier stages.

Imagine Childcare and Kindergarten Nerang participate in their weekly yoga sessions to encourage their gross motor development and practice their breath work exercises. By regularly practicing breathwork, the children can better manage stress and focus while boosting their overall mental health.

Late last year, The children in our Imagine Childcare and Kindergarten Rochedale South centre had a visit from the team at House of Wellness, a wellness and lifestyle program on channel 10, to discuss the collaborative efforts between Imagine Childcare and Yoga Bears.

Yoga Bears founder, Simon Kerle, told the House of Wellness team that he saw the benefits of yoga across adults and wondered, “why can’t children also enjoy these benefits?”

Are you looking for ways to celebrate International Yoga Day with your family? Why not try out some of these common yoga poses and test your skills!

We are proud to provide children’s yoga as an extra-curricular included in our daily fee at the following centres:

By incorporating yoga into our weekly routine, we are providing children with invaluable tools to navigate life’s challenges with grace and resilience and guiding them towards a healthier, happier, and more balanced future. Namaste!

If you are interested in finding out more about our children’s yoga program and other extra-curriculars we offer as part of our early education program, please phone us on 1300 001 154.

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