YogaBuds™ for Children
An ancient art for the new millenium

By Temmi Ungerman Sears, MA, ATR, OACCPP
Director of YogaBuds™

Our world is a complicated one; we live in an extremely fast-paced and highly stressful time as we stand on the front edge of the new millenium. With more and more stressors experienced by children today (school and peer pressures, over-programming, competitive sports, increased violence), combined with the effects of our highly mechanized modern society replete with television-watching, computing and Nintendo-playing, children need physical activities and exercise more than ever. Current studies fully substantiate this.

Daily exercise, good nutrition and yoga play an intrinsic part of a healthy lifestyle. As a mother of three young children eight years of age and under, it is very important to both my husband and myself that we model healthy life patterns and skills for our children. Learned at an early age, children will then be armed with positive lifestyle habits that provide them with a head start on life. Emerging from a deep wellspring of love for my children and for all children, and from a long commitment to and strong belief in the value and benefits of yoga, the YogaBuds™ for Kids program was borne.

This program is a unique, non-competitive and non-performance oriented yoga program designed for children aged five to thirteen years. In the program children playfully move, bend and stretch their bodies in easy and natural fun-filled yoga ways. The objectives of the YogaBuds™ program covers three main areas: objectives relating to mind and body; to self-esteem and confidence; and to socialization. Through consistent participating in the process of yoga, many of the objectives are met. Children experience success in YogaBuds™ because improvement naturally occurs through the consistent practise of yoga. The skills acquired and the benefits experienced are all very important.

Yoga is an ancient art with a five thousand-year old tradition. It is a healthy, safe and enjoyable activity that brings the joy of exercise to children. In YogaBuds™, yoga poses and breathing techniques are taught through simple exercises, movements and games. Participating in this gentle and fun yoga program, children derive great benefits from yoga and from using the whole body. Physically, yoga practises help to improve posture; increase strength, muscular coordination and balance; maintain flexibility, and enhance body awareness. In addition, concentration improves, confidence builds, the mind becomes centered and a sense of calmness prevails.

YogaBuds™ offers children the opportunity to connect more deeply with the inner self. An appreciation and reverence for nature and for all of the interconnections within the universe is developed. Animals and plants inspired the ancient yogis thousands of years ago as they developed the yoga asanas, or postures. Children naturally respond with enthusiasm as they embody the qualities of trees, snakes, dogs and various other elements of nature. The ancient and beautiful language of Sanskrit is used in class, and the children intuitively experience pleasure in the aspect of sound and resonance that opens up through the use of the language. They quickly learn the Sanskrit names of the postures. The yogic principles taught enable the child to develop empathy, compassion, and an attitude of openness and nonviolence. When children participate in the yoga experience they become grounded, focused, and confident. Their self-esteem soars as their inner source of strength is developed.

Herein lies the magic, the appeal, and the sound foundation for the success of yoga for children. It simply makes sense: the marriage of the spirit of yoga and the spirit of children. The nature of children – like the practise of yoga – is ever-changing, dynamic, infinitely expressive and creative, and exploding with potential. Kids learn by playing, doing and creating, and little bodies have a natural and vital need to move and to play.

With a Masters of Arts degree in Expressive Therapies and a Bachelor of Education degree in special education, I have long believed in the importance of an intermodal or interdisciplinary approach to learning. In YogaBuds™, many creative and expressive forms of the arts are integrated into the teaching. All of the senses are called upon. YogaBuds™ provides a creative, fun and safe environment to nurture and engage the whole person. Children begin to understand and appreciate that they are more than just thinking beings from the neck up as they begin to integrate mind, body and spirit. Yoga is a potentially powerful catalyst for transformation. The yoga acts as both the process and the metaphor for their empowerment as the children become the masters of their own learning.

Dr. Howard Gardner is an author and a Professor of Education at Harvard University. In his theory of multiple intelligences (MI) which was first introduced in 1983, he discusses the importance of children being given the opportunity to develop as many of the eight distinct forms of intelligence innate in all of us. These include: linguistic-verbal, logical-mathematical, visual-spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, the two personal intelligences (interpersonal and intrapersonal), and the naturalist. Gardner suggests that all of us possess the eight intelligences but in varying degrees of strength and skill. Children learn best while at play, and since every child is unique in his or her own areas of strength, integrating various modalities and intelligences with yoga asanas is a very powerful method of learning. In YogaBuds™, great variability is observed in the participants, and all these differences are valued so that all children may be guided to achieve their maximum potential.

Children are imbued with the natural ability to focus. Yoga asks of us to also surrender to the moment in a deeply attentive and mindful way as we devote ourselves wholeheartedly to a particular pose. Observe a child at play and you will likely see this single-minded concentration, and an ability to truly focus on the activity.

As a result of the previously mentioned stressors, including increased stimulation, over-programming, and high academic, social and personal expectations, I have found it crucial to teach breath awareness and relaxation skills to children as part of the YogaBuds™ program. This is also in response to the many requests that the children make for the relaxation component of the class. Although the students initially fidget and find the relaxation component of the class the most challenging (as do adult students), it is by far the most requested part of any YogaBuds™ class. They thoroughly enjoy the quiet repose that the visualization, and relaxation pose called "savasana" or corpse pose provides them. Initially, I found the children’s responses perplexing as I had been advised by my teacher in India, the world reknowned author and yoga master Dr. Geeta Iyengar, not to teach savasana to young children as it goes against their true nature. However, after allowing the children to guide me, I have surmised that the success of this part of the class may simply reflect our cultural differences.

One night while teaching an adult class my two eldest children quietly entered the studio with the hope that I wouldn’t send them away. They brought their index fingers to their lips, and mouthed "ssshh!" After having signaled to me that they understood the rules, they sat down on the stairs to observe. The class was almost over, and the students had just begun to practise savasana, the corpse pose. Within moments, my two children joined in. Each child sprawled horizontally across a step, feet dangling down with arms outstretched and palms upturned. Seeing their eyes closed, and observing how they responded so well to the instructions, I welcomed them into the group by placing the same silk eye pillows on them that I had placed on the other students’ eyes. As I observed their breathing patterns change, I felt such gratitude that my children were growing up experiencing yoga firsthand without any judgments, stereotypes, or preconceived notions. With natural curiosity and openness of pure minds and spirits, learning to relax and to breath consciously at this juncture in their lives is perceived by them as simply another skill to develop along with reading and math.

Improved posture is one of the most important benefits experienced by the participants in YogaBuds™. As you read these words, observe the position of your neck and shoulders. At what angle is your back to your buttocks? Imagine sitting at the dinner table with your family. Suddenly, a little finger is wagging at you and you hear from your youngster, "bad posture, Mommy; bad posture, Daddy!" Many of the participants in the YogaBuds™ program have shared stories in which their comments reflect an increased awareness of the importance of correct posture. One student commented that he became aware of the need to improve his position while riding his bicycle. Another student informed us that her teacher had announced that she had the best posture in the class. The varied and enthusiastic comments of the YogaBuds™ participants have continuously illuminated for me the personal meaning and importance that their yoga practise has taken on for them in their lives.

On occasion, children will arrive for their YogaBuds™ class after school with unbridled energy. It is an exercise in futility to attempt to restrain them and to get them to quietly focus. Instead, I simply begin to jump in and out of poses. I smile, I laugh, I move. And there in front of me, the children begin to join me, enjoying the moment. Their concentration increases and their chatter diminishes as the yoga both moves them and through them. Their energy is released in a healthy and positive manner. As they learn to focus their attention inward, they become more fully present in the moment. During the relaxation component, the silence has sound for as they learn how to observe their breath, their breathing steadies and deepens. By the end of the class, they are refreshed, calm and energized. As they prepare to leave, I observe that the children appear more alert while being tranquil. At the door, they always state "thank you." In this sweet and well-mannered way, I believe that they are simply verbalizing their appreciation for the yoga experience.

Both children and adults alike are plagued by the constant demands on their time, and the underlying sense of urgency about the limited time that is available to us. Even young children have commented about how much they would like to take yoga but that they don’t have the time to do so. Many parents have a dual career family and also struggle with the challenge of juggling individual time, couple time and family time. As a result of many requests, the YogaBuds™ program has also expanded into ongoing Parent-Child classes and workshops. These courses enable parents and children to practise yoga together and provides family members with a magical interaction that grounds them as equal partners. They are able to experience one another in a very unique and health-promoting way. Parents and children develop beautiful, strong bonds as they rely on and assist each other with yoga postures.

Today’s parent struggles not only with external pressures but also with many self-imposed standards and expectations. We are educated about various parenting styles and techniques and as such we attempt to bring to our parenting a mindfulness coupled with the desire to be the best possible mother or father that we can be at this most demanding and rewarding job. Perhaps the greatest gifts that we can give our children are positive self-esteem and a head-start on their lives with healthy life skills and lifestyle habits that we wish we had had for ourselves. Like brushing teeth and eating broccoli, yoga is good for you. What differentiates yoga for children, however, is that it is simply fun and it feels good. Yoga works to create better self-esteem, and strengthens our ability to relate to others, our planet, and ourselves. Children naturally respond to the practise of yoga with joy. They experience a new feeling of accomplishment, and have an improved general sense of well being. Practising yoga produces a very pleasant feeling, regenerating and rejuvenating the mind, body and spirit. The bottom line is quite simple: the children like it.