3 Ways to Connect with Your Little Ones Using Yoga

Wowzers, it’s been a month in quarantine, and a lot of us still haven’t quite found our groove in this new life.

Teachers are struggling to homeschool their own children, while learning new technology and creating engaging lesson plans—all without much feedback from the families and not knowing if the children are enjoying the lessons.

Parents are juggling home life, work life, and homeschooling. We are inundated with long lists of all the things we “should” be doing and not feeling like we are doing anything well. We’re feeling big emotions of guilt, shame, and exhaustion.

So, what’s the next step? How do we dig out from under this emotional disaster?

We have to get back to the basics. We have to figure out what really matters.

When I look back over the past month, those miracle moments were when I was connecting with my daughter—times when we were having a crazy dance party, laughing hysterically while trying to get into partner poses, and biking together around town.

So today, I thought it might be helpful to share three ways you can connect with your children using yoga practices.

1. Practice partner yoga poses

For some reason, partner yoga always gets my daughter and me into fits of giggles. One of our favorites is trying to get into Boat Pose together. Once we’ve got our legs touching, balancing on our buttocks to reach each other’s hands is a challenge, but we cheer when we get there!

We’ve got a few partner yoga blog posts here on the site and Partner Yoga Cards in our shop to download. Or check out this downloadable partner pose poster below.

partner yoga poses for kids | Kids Yoga Stories

2. Play yoga card games

My daughter and I have loved playing yoga card games during our quarantine homeschool movement breaks. We make up new games all the time, and the rules change as we go along. The important thing is that we’re moving, stretching, and having a laugh together.

If you don’t have a deck of yoga cards, you could certainly create your own. Check out the “How to Play with Yoga Cards” , check out our “Games” tab on our shop for eBooks to download instantly, or print out this poster below.

3. Add simple yoga ideas

It’s often the simplest, most spontaneous ideas that are the most rewarding. When I think about the times that I’ve felt a deep connection to my daughter, it’s been those things that just take a minute, like:

choosing a new positive affirmation card each day and chatting about it,
stopping along our nature walk to listen to the birds,
talking about what we’re grateful for,
or creating a new yoga game board to play together.

If you don’t have time to practice a longer yoga session together right now, try any one of these quick yoga ideas that might only take you a minute—and are easier to integrate naturally into your day.

This is definitely a time for us to focus on developing a sense of safety and security for ourselves and our children. I truly hope some of these yoga practices invite “connection moments” to your life.

As always, please let us know how we can support you during this time. If you have any special requests, don’t hesitate to reach out.

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