​Yoga is a great way to introduce children to the practice of mindfulness and meditation, while also providing a fun and engaging physical activity. As a certified Rainbow Kids Yoga instructor, I believe that kids yoga should be interactive and educational. I have created six different lesson plans that I want to share with you. Each lesson has a different theme and is designed to be a 45-minute parent participation class that is both fun and informative. In this article, I will be focusing on the fourth lesson plan, which is centered around the theme of “Going to the Zoo and at The Farm”.

To begin the class, we start by sitting in a circle and singing the song “Rub your hand” by Karma Kids Yoga. After the song, we discuss the value of helpfulness. I ask the children how it feels to help at home and how they can lend a hand and make a contribution. We also talk about other words that mean the same thing as helpfulness, such as appreciation, usefulness, kindness, and giving.

Next, we move on to the yoga poses. For this lesson, we will focus on farm and zoo animals. We start with the Scarecrow pose, which is similar to the Mountain pose, but with arms slightly extended like a scarecrow. We then move on to the Tree pose, the Horse pose (a plié squat), the Barn pose (a Triangle pose), the Farmer Driving a Tractor pose (a Chair pose with hands on the wheel), the Duck pose (a Squat pose where we waddle like a duck and quack), the Dog pose (a Downward-Facing Dog pose), the Donkey pose (a Handstand Prep where we carefully kick-up each leg like a donkey and say “hee haw”), the Goose pose (a Pigeon pose where we relax and say “honk, honk”), the Mouse pose (a Child’s pose where we take a few deep breaths and say “squeak”), the Cat pose (a Cat pose where we stretch up like a cat and say “meow”), the Cow pose (a Cow pose where we lift our head while on hands-and-knees and say “moo”), and finally the Pig pose (a Knees to Chest pose where we roll in the mud and say “oink”).

After the animal poses, we move on to the zoo animals. We start with the Brown Bear pose, where we spread our legs wide like a bear and fish for food with long claws. We then move on to the Flamingo pose, where we stand on one leg and flap our wings. Next is the Lion pose, where we take a deep breath in and roar like a lion. We repeat this pose twice to release tension and calm the mind. We then move on to the Elephant pose, where we stand in a Wide-Legged Standing Forward Bend and make a trunk with our arms. We finish the zoo animal poses with the Crocodile pose, which is either a Plank pose or lying on our belly, and the Tiger pose, which is a Cat pose.

To end the class, we play some games and sing some songs that fit the theme. Some of my favorite songs to use with this theme include “Old MacDonald had a Farm” by the Countdown Kids, “Going to the Zoo Tomorrow” by Rafi, and “I know a Chicken” by The Laurie Berkner Band. We also use the book “Zoo Zen” to help the children relax and unwind after all the activity.

In conclusion, teaching toddler and parent yoga is a great way to introduce children to mindfulness and meditation while also providing a fun and engaging physical activity. By using fun themes like going to the zoo and at the farm, we can keep the children interested and excited about the practice.