Learning through play month 23: Morning stretches

Yoga and stretching help to improve Your Child’s focus as well as encourage gross motor skills and physical development.

Morning stretches can be a great way to start your day if you can implement it in your and Your Child’s daily routine. But if you don’t have enough time in the morning, any time of the day will do!

What to prepare
Find your space on the floor or a yoga mat and reach around to check that you and Your Child will have enough space.

Let’s play!
Turn on background music of your choice, and encourage Your Child to imitate your yoga pose. Start with something super simple like; trying to touch your toes and count to ten, or trying to reach as high as you can to catch some stars. Then progress to downward facing dog’, ‘butterfly pose’, ‘tree pose’, and ‘boat pose’. If you don’t know any yoga poses, search ‘yoga for kids’ on Youtube.

Caution
Don’t overdo the poses. Encourage Your Child to try, and if the little one can’t do it, don’t make them feel bad. This might be a good time to learn about failure and practices.

Thank you note
This article about learning through play was made in collaboration with Sprouts Kindergarten, a play-based learning center for children ages 1.5 – 6 years old.