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march 2016 | brparents.com 71
yoga
promotes flexibility. the stretching and holding of muscle groups is one of the most obvious benefits of
yoga
. as head football coach jay mayet of parkview baptist
school
says, ?a lot of males are not as flexible as females. a lot of the poses and movement are hard for them. but
yoga
works a lot of muscle groups we don?t get to hit in other training exercises.?
yoga
improves listening skills. for her sixth graders beginning middle
school
, p. e. instructor rayla davis at mckinley middle magnet finds that starting the year off with a
yoga
unit is a key strategy. ?
yoga
starts them off learning to listen. sometimes it?s as basic as, ?i am the instructor; you are the student.? they have to listen carefully to instructions on how to do everything from the poses to the breathing exercises. later in the year, they?ll be doing things like soccer and basketball where they?re all over the place?so to start off with
yoga
where they really have to pay attention is great,? says davis.
yoga
teaches
kids
to focus. coach mayet says, ?
yoga
takes a lot of focus. mentally from an athletic or sports standpoint, that helps a lot. when you get tired, you tend to lose mental focus and make stupid mistakes. that?s what leads to a lot of injuries.?
yoga
teaches students how to breathe better. learning how to breathe deeply and fully with conscious effort provides a ready solution for many challenges during the
school
day (and beyond.) you don?t need any special clothing, equipment, furniture, or even a lot of time to practice deep breathing. breathing better energizes the body; breathing better relaxes the body. one minute of deep breathing? priceless.
yoga
teaches
kids
about balance.
yoga
requires
kids
to be more aware about balance from an exercise standpoint. they learn to stretch equally on both sides of the body. poses require they focus on balancing the body.
yoga
teaches
kids
to take care of their bodies. davis stresses the importance of this with her sixth graders. ?their bodies are really changing, and that can be scary.
yoga
teaches them control and awareness of their bodies. it goes hand in hand with healthy eating and sleeping habits.?
yoga
is just plain fun. davis says her sixth graders always start off
yoga
with a lot of giggles before they settle down, but that?s not only okay, that?s great. if they think
yoga
is fun, they?ll continue doing it after
school
hours. davis says, ?sometimes a student will run up to me and say, ?me and my mom went to
yoga
!? they also think it?s fun to listen to the music during
yoga
or the sounds of the ocean, wind, and water. i get 7th and 8th graders come up to me and ask when they get to do
yoga
like my 6th graders do?so the word is out that
yoga
is fun!? once
kids
have been introduced to
yoga
in
school
, the beauty of
yoga
is that children can practice alone, with a friend or with a group. many
school
s are now teaching
yoga
to young children, and there are many choices of after-
school
or weekend classes for
kids
and their families. everyone can enjoy
yoga
?from tots to great-grandparents! professional organizations that focus on children also support the idea behind
yoga
. for example, the american academy of pediatrics recommends that children should participate in activities that support the development of the whole child. this is exactly what
yoga
is about! ? most of us remember the days when the very word ?
yoga
? conjured images of dimly-lit, kinda creepy (let?s face it) rooms with bodies chanting ?ohmmm?? you could really sound cool if you greeted people with ?namaste? and talked about daily asanas, pranayama, and life force energies or prana. please. fast forward to p.e. classes in baton rouge today and you?ll hear these words sounding from the gym floors instead: cat. dog. tree. bridge. table. gone is the weird mystique. here is today?s
yoga
with
kids
. fun. safe. playful. and when it comes to helping our children focus, reduce stress, and basically improve everything about the body from motor skills and balance to strength and posture,
yoga
?s a winner that is being added to gym classes around town. here are just a few things students are learning from
yoga
: zen sational
yoga
and
kids
in today?s classrooms
school
s by r.t. ripley
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