Children's Yoga??

[Guest guest]

Satnam ji,

I have a 10, 14 and 16 year old. The 10 year old has been to yoga camp for 5

years and it is amazing what kids can do and how well they take to the yoga

if done in way that is appropriate for their age.

One day I could not teach and she asked me if she could teach the class. She

said I know yoga. I can teach what I know and I know a lot. She does know. In

a few years she will be substituting my classes. Iam looking forward to it.

Shatka kaur khalsa in my opinion is a Master teacher of children yoga and I

had the blessing of taking part in a class with her at winter solstice with

toddlers!!! I had a lot of anxiety about being a helper in the class

because....Well by the end I felt the same consciousness that I feel from an

adult class. I was amazed and I am now a convert that the younger you start

the better.

You have to shape that class according to age and parents are usually a

hindrance than a help. With the younger groups Shatka did animal postures

like catcow , camel or she made it into a story. What I got with the younger

ones was that it is a sacred space that is created that comes across. Yoga

makes you feel strong, happy, relaxed and you feel God. The kids love the

chanting but the parents usually have a problem with it because they don't

want their kids to become to spiritual or something and it usually scares

them in terms of religion. Children know the truth and feel it and parents

have their own agenda. My older kids love the kriyas because they are so

different and that takes the boredom out of only doing the same thing over

and over. Creativity is important with the older ones to.

Shatka kaur has a few books out but if you can get to one of her workshops

you can really get a lot from her and the way she approaches children.

Blessings

s.i.r khalsa

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Sat Nam,

 

Can anyone share their experience teaching KY to children under the

age of 11?

 

I got my feet wet teaching children for about a 9 month period in

the form of a family class, but what I found was that the mother's

had pretty much dragged their kids there in an attempt to spend time

with them doing something they enjoyed.

 

The kids didn't really resonate with the postures,even modified,

they found them vary challenging and had a hard time settling down,

until Long deep Relaxation.

 

But! the children enjoyed the chanting! which the mother's didn't

(too self conscious, and every other resistance people come up

against when they begin to chant, when it's foreign to them).

 

So I found myself constantly doing this dance between mother's

looking for deep relaxation time and kids ready to take off at any

moment. It was a large gap to bridge.

 

Any advice on what works more effectively?

 

Should kid classes be just that, kids only?

 

Please contact me off line with any advice,

 

Sat Sangeet