Most of us have experienced or heard about the benefits of yoga for adults. But did you know there are many advantages for children? We’ve highlighted seven benefits of yoga for kids including physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. As an excellent non-competitive method of exercise that allows kids to develop their sense of self and improve their self-confidence, it’s worth exploring it more.
Here are the top 7 benefits of yoga for kids:
- Emotional Regulation
When children learn the strategies to quiet their minds, their bodies follow. It’s never too early for them to learn breathing and relaxation techniques to help manage stress and anxiety. Yoga is not only beneficial in the moment. It has long-lasting effects over time.
Yoga classes for kids teach valuable life skills allowing them to move through day-to-day challenges with a little more ease, a life skill they’ll draw upon well into adulthood.
- Improved Focus
During yoga practice, children need to focus on each pose as well as their body, balance and breath. This helps them draw their attention inwards instead of any distractions around them. The ripple effect is improved focus, concentration and memory in everyday life. Many kids’ yoga poses even assist the central nervous system by improving circulation to the brain helping with focus and clarity of mind.
Several studies have found that yoga can be an effective complementary treatment for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and can also be very beneficial for children with autism.
- Supporting Growing Bodies
Physically, yoga helps to stretch growing limbs, boosts flexibility and builds strength.
Many yoga poses help children strengthen core muscles assisting with good posture and oxygen flow around the body to support physical, mental and emotional wellbeing and development.
- Development of Spatial and Motor Skills
Spatial awareness starts developing from the time children are born until well into primary school. Moving in and out of yoga poses helps children develop their own body awareness and awareness of where they are in relation to others. Yoga also helps kids with coordination and motor skills which can be particularly helpful for younger children in kindergarten.
- Improves Self-Esteem
With learning new skills comes improved self-confidence. Whilst our Yoga Time is a group class, yoga is at its core a solo practice that encourages meeting yourself where you’re at in the moment. This differs from many children’s sports and activities that focus on competition.
Yoga teaches children about self-acceptance whilst providing a supportive environment for them to grow and improve. So whether your child has done yoga before or is a beginner, they can enjoy the practice.
- It Teaches Kids it’s OK to Take a Break
As a parent, are you always busy, busy, busy? It’s often what children see. But it’s important they learn a different pace.
In today’s fast-paced digital world, it’s important to teach children that taking a break is not only good for the mind, body and soul – it’s necessary!
One of the benefits of children’s yoga is that it’s not only wonderful for mindfulness but also teaches our kids that it’s important to take time for themselves to feel happy and content.
- It’s Fun!
A 2021 study conducted by Kumar Laxman at the University of Auckland titled, found that:
“Doing yoga together as a collective group not only created a learning environment that was fun and joyful but one that also embodied social mingling and bonding.”
Yoga is empowering, non-competitive and allows kids to be in the moment. We’ve found yoga is made even more fun for school-aged children through the use of stories and props.
Academe time offers age-appropriate Yoga Time classes for kindergarten and primary-aged children as a valuable wellbeing incursion program.
Contact us today to see how we can bring tailored yoga programs to your school.
