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HAVE YOURSELF A MINDFUL LITTLE HOLIDAYS

The Holiday Season is here! 

While the greatest PRESENT we can give our children is our PRESENCE, there are so many wonderful resources to share mindfulness and social-emotional learning with your child, students or favorite teacher.  The gift of mindfulness and emotional intelligence will keep on giving as children learn to connect with themselves and regulate their emotions through breathing, yoga, and focusing their attention on what is going on in their INNER world.  

One of the questions I’m asked most by parents is how to make mindfulness a part of their child’s everyday life. My answer is always the same~ make it fun and PLAY! 

That’s why I’ve collected some of my favorite yoga, mindfulness and social-emotional learning tools, toys and games for children ages 2 through preteen is this special MINDFUL HOLIDAY GUIDE!  All these resources have been kid-tested (and loved!) time and time again by the students in my classes and by my own daughter. 

Please NOTE: This blog post and the MINDFUL GIFT GUIDE contain affiliate links. I receive a small commission for purchases made through these links.

My book Lucinda’s Magical Yoga Adventure is the perfect introduction to yoga and mindfulness. Children will join Lucinda in exploring popular yoga poses, breathing and relaxation as they pretend to be the animals and characters they meet in the story.

My Mindful Magic Kit contains all the Mindfulness tools and props your child needs to find their inner calm! This Kit is filled with a Lavender and Flaxseed Cotton Eye pillow for relaxation, a bottle of bubbles for breathing, a bag of pom poms for playing TOE-ga game for focus, a set of 10 animal finger puppets for interactive yoga and movement storytelling all tucked in a a cute cotton pouch so kids can take their mindful goodies ON THE GO!! Comes wth printer Instructions for guiding kids through all the mindful activities.

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Medddy Teddy is a posable yoga and meditation bearwho makes the perfect yoga buddy for children. Kids can choose to bend and twist him into any yoga pose imaginable as they play yoga with him!

The KidScents Little Oilers Premium Starter Bundle has everything you need to surround little ones with the comforting aromas of KidScents essential oils. Includes Feather the Owl Diffuser and a complete set of five Child-Safe Essential Oils to support kids with sleep, congestion, digestion, anxiety and focus for school~ SleepyIze, SnifflEase, TummyGize, Owie and GeneYus.

“My Space to Be” is the perfect companion for children ages 7-11 to explore yoga and mindfulness. The Audio CD guides children through yoga and mindfulness exercises and practices that can be used throughout their day The companion spiral bound guidebook “Space to Be” allows them to identify and their feelings, while visualizing and interacting with the book. through writing, coloring and tracking their mindfulness. When paired together, the CD and book provide youth with a full mindfulness experience. Be sure to use the code BETTY for $5 off your order.

Peacemaker Cards help children and adults connect in daily, playful ways around the things that matter most: our feelings. Each card delivers a unique, affirmation designed to nurture emotional intelligence including self-love, social skills, a growth mindset, confidence, and more. Snuggle Buddies are plush animal toys that help children name and regulate their emotions with 4 adorable mood emojis that live inside each SnuggleBuddies friend.  The Peacemaker Cards and Snuggle Buddies are available from Generation Mindful.

Mindful Buddiez are a collection of sweet plush toys that encourage children to practice mindfulness. The core concept is simple~ it’s about stopping, breathing and giving your body and mind a chance to reset. Teaching kids how to Stop, Breathe & Reset is a life skill that will benefit them long into adulthood. Each Mindful Buddiez includes a guided recording of visualizations, breathing, affirmations, intention setting or soothing sleep meditations, depending on the buddy you choose. Use code BEYOGA10 for 10% off your order.

The Yoga Pretzel Deck is fun for kids of all ages! Kids can stretch their way to a fun and healthy lifestyle with each of the 50 yoga poses in this colorful deck, which include forward bends, back bends, partner poses, and balance poses.

The YOGI DICE game by Yogi Fun is an engaging game that first-timers and yogis alike will have a lot of fun playing! Kids will enjoy rolling the yoga dice and doing the variety of yoga poses. An ideal recreational activity for the whole family, it helps kids form stronger bonds with siblings, friends, parents, and/or grandparents while learning yoga poses.

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Creating a CALM SPACE for Kids

Children, especially toddlers and preschoolers, have BIG FEELINGS.

When kids feel overstimulated or “flooded with feelings”, they don’t know what to do with them.  That is why they usually ACT on them or ACT OUT- by screaming, throwing things, hitting, biting, or some other physical way to release their feelings.   

It’s our job as parents to teach them how to regulate their feelings.  This takes patience and practice.  We can model how it’s done by remaining calm, taking a deep breath and offering them an alternative to having a meltdown or tantrum.

One way to promote mindfulness and emotional regulation is by setting up a SAFE SPACE for kids to calm down and manage their feelings in a healthy way. You can call it a Calm Space, Calm Down Spot, Cozy Corner or Tune In Nook. This offers a more gentle option than Time-OUTS by giving them a safe space to take some Time-IN and move through their feelings in a way that is free from blame or shame.

It’s never too early to make room for a Calm Space. You can introduce your baby to a quiet corner with soothing music and sensory objects like stuffies and a blanket, then continue to build on its use as your child grows by adding tools for mindfulness.

5 STEPS TO CREATING A CALM SPACE FOR KIDS

1. Choose an area in your home that is QUIET and not too busy. It could be an cozy corner or area in their bedroom, playroom or family room.

2. Delineate the space  by setting up a tent/teepee, hanging a canopy or curtain from the ceiling, using a soft comfy chair, or simply laying out a cozy blanket or rug. Make the space COZY and welcoming with pillows, a floor cushion or blankets.  Let your child make the space their own by adding their own items like a favorite blankie or stuffie.

3. Create a CALM DOWN KIT ( like the one below) for your child to use when they are feeling stressed or upset, Fill a bin or basket with mindfulness tools and items that will help calm them down.  A few favorite books (yoga and mindfulness books are a plus), play dough, affirmation cards, breathing props such as feathers or a pinwheel, an eye pillow for relaxation, some coloring sheets with crayons and a stuffed friend to hold and hug.

4. Practice using the space by having a daily routine of spending time there together. Choose a daily affirmation card, practice taking deep breaths, do a yoga pose together, color mandalas or journal together if your child is a bit older. Let them know it’s their special place where they can go when they need break or some time to calm down. You can also have some items for YOU to use in the calm space with your child, like an eye pillow or mask for relaxation.

5. When you notice your child is starting to get frustrated or upset, remind your child that it’s ok for them take a break in their Calm Space.

If you would like a MINDFUL ME KIT like the one below, click on the image below. It comes with a set of adorable animal puppets to prompt yoga poses, bubbles and feathers for breathing, pom poms to play “TOE-GA” and choice of lavender flax seed eye pillow- in yoga cats and dogs or yoga monkey pattern- all in a handy drawstring bag for kids to take their mindfulness tools on-the-go! An instruction sheet of the activities is included.

Creating a CALM SPACE for Kids
By: Category: Books, Breathing, Children, Creativity, Imagination, Kids Yoga, Meditation, Mindfulness, Parenting, Peace, Relaxation, Spirituality, Teaching, Uncategorized, Yoga

Books To Teach Kids about RACE and ANTI-RACISM

The recent acts of violence against people of color, the tragic death of George Floyd and the protests in support of the Black Lives Matter Movement have challenged us to educate ourselves and our children about RACE and RACISM. 

It’s simply not enough to be NOT RACIST. We need to model and teach our children to be ANTI-RACISM. 

Racism can be such a complex, painful topic to talk about, but it’s important that we start these conversations with kids so we can change the culture of white privilege. Luckily, there are wonderful children’s books about race and racism that we can read together to spark conversations with kids of all ages.

As an Author and book lover, I have always chosen books to expose my daughter to all kinds of new topics I want to teach her. The past few weeks, I have made it a priority to choose more diverse books (both at the library and to add to our own collection at home) to read with my toddler. 

Here are 4 books I highly recommend for preschoolers and elementary school age readers (ages 2-8) to introduce race and racial differences to young children.  I’ve also included some books for older kids and high schoolers. These can all be found on Amazon by clicking on the title links or book images below.

ONE LOVE by Cedella Marley

Based on Bob Marley’s classic song ONE LOVE, this heartwarming book brings his timeless “feel good” lyrics to life. It’s perfect for teaching kids about the power of people coming together with love in their hearts to bring about change. It is available in both board book and hardcover versions.

COLORS OF US by Karen Katz

The story, “The Colors of Us” celebrates the many shades of skin color. The story follows seven-year-old Lena, a budding artist who wants to paint herself. As she and her mother take a walk through their neighborhood, Lena learns that brown comes in many different shades and the people all around her come in many colors and cultures too.  When Lena returns from her walk, she’s excited to mix her yellow, red, white and black paints to capture her own unique skin tone. 

ALL THE COLORS OF THE EARTH by Sheila Hamanaka

This book begins with “Children come in all the colors of the earth~”

With its vibrant illustrations and simple wording, the book introduces kids to all the beautiful shades of skin color and their connection to the colors found on nature. It also depicts children, families and friends of mixed races, which reinforces that not all people and families look the same. I love how this book celebrates children of all races and has a positive message that all children be happy and free.

THE DAY YOU BEGIN by Jacqueline Woodson 

This book explores the many reasons we may feel different, maybe the way we look or speak, being from a different country or the food we eat.  The story begins on the first day of school and centers around Angelina, who has curly hair and brown skin.  She feels her “otherness” reflecting on her summer spent home playing with her little sister while her classmates share their stories of their summer vacation travels. This book reminds us that we all feel like outsiders sometimes and that it takes courage to share your stories. It promotes self love and acceptance of others as well as the power of your VOICE and the connection that can emerge when you are being yourself!

BOOKS FOR PRESCHOOL TO AGE 8

BOOKS FOR AGES 6 to12

BOOKS FOR TEENS

 
 
By: Category: Blogging, Books, Children, Diversity, Family, Freedom, Imagination, Peace, Teaching Tags: , ,

Spooky Halloween Yoga Fun!

namaste cat

What better holiday to stimulate a child’s imagination than Halloween?

I have always loved the creativity and self expression involved in  choosing a costume and dressing up for Halloween- it’s a day of PLAY and PRETENDING  that’s fun for ALL!
This year, why not give your children a special TREAT by having them choose spooky poses for some Halloween yoga.
Peek-a-Boo-Halloween-by-Ghost-Coloring-PageBegin by doing a GHOST BREATH
Take a long, deep inhale and then exhale “BOOOOOOO!!” You can even close your eyes and let out a long BOOOO in a spooky voice.
Pretend you are going to a costume party in a Haunted House which is wayyyy up on a big tall Mountain.
Ask your child to come up with ideas on how to get there.
You can Take a Train (Choo Choo BREATH) or a Plane (AIRPLANE POSE), ride a Witch’s Broom (TRIANGLE POSE for Witches Hat), ride a Magic Carpet (sitting on your YOGA MATS) or even a Spaceship!
When you finally make it up to the top, do MOUNTAIN POSE and TREE POSE. 
You can even make some CROOKED BRANCHES  with your arms.  
We you get to the house, pretend to knock on the door and open the creaky door…
Inside you meet some creepy Halloween creatures.
black cat a Black Cat (CAT POSE)
bat        a Bat (Sitting on the ground, lift up your legs in the air and flap them up and down like BAT WINGS)
spider a Spider (CRAWLING or SPINNING WEBS with arms outstretched) singing and doing the movements to the Itsy Bitsy Spider
Of course you’ll see lots of other fun Costumes like
Super Hero Cartoon with Capea Superhero (WARRIOR or HERO POSE)
lion and a Scary Lion (LION’s BREATH)
At the party, there is a Table (TABLE POSE) full of lots of tasty treats.
After DANCING to your favorite Halloween tunes (My favorites are Thriller and the Monster Mash)  it is time to rest.
Pretend to snuggle in bed, all wrapped up like a MUMMY  in your Yoga Mats.
Relax in SAVASANA.
There are so many possibilities for Halloween Yoga and the best part is that kids get to be creative and even make up their own poses!

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5 Essential Ingredients for Kids Yoga Classes

5 Essential Ingredients for Kids Yoga Classes

Planning a children’s yoga class is a lot like cooking.

As a teacher, you get to invent your very own special recipe for yoga by combining some basic poses, a few kid-friendly resources and a whole lot of imagination!
Here are five essential ingredients you will need to plan creative and effective yoga lessons for your students:
1) Start with a familiar theme and make it fun.
Yoga helps children integrate what they are learning in school and apply it to their own personal experience. Matching your theme to the time of year, season or any holiday is a great way to reinforce concepts that children are already familiar with. Yoga allows them to explore familiar themes in a holistic way by using their bodies and imaginations. For example, gratitude is a great theme to explore during the Thanksgiving holidays. Give children the opportunity to share what they are grateful for and then do some of their favorite yoga poses to celebrate and give thanks for all the elements of Nature, such as the Sun, flowers, trees and animals.
2) Add a catchy music playlist to get kids moving.
Just like in an adult yoga class, music is a wonderful complement to yoga. Children love music and it helps them to focus through listening and movement. My students ask me to play some of their favorite yoga songs and enjoy singing along while doing their poses. You can also use music for ‘yoga freeze dance’ by playing an upbeat song and having children freeze in a yoga pose when the music stops. Some of my favorite yoga songs are: “Dance for the Sun” by Kira Willey for Sun Salutations, “Wimoweh” by Laurie Berkner for the Lion’s Breath, “Super Hero” by Patti Shukla for the Warrior/Hero Pose, and Kira Wiley’s “Namaste Song” for Relaxation and closing circle.
3) Mix in activities to keep them engaged.
Variety is the key to planning creative yoga lessons that kids will love. Young children have a limited attention span, so be sure to include a diverse array of activities to keep them active and entertained. Children enjoy practicing breathing exercises like Balloon,  Choo Choo Train, or Volcano Breath, warm-up activities like Sun Salutations, or simply stretching while pretending to “Paint the Sky”. Yoga games, chanting, storytelling, guided visualizations, sharing circle, and art are also excellent activities.
4) Spice it up with interesting props.
Props are fun and provide a focal point for learning. Children love colorful visuals like yoga cards or photographs of animals, which can be used as prompts for yoga poses. Some of my favorite props include books, stuffed animals, scarves, finger puppets, and painted rocks. The possibilities are endless. You don’t have to spend a lot of money on props either. Some of the best props are free and can be found in nature. For an autumn lesson plan, try using real leaves for breathing, creative movement, and of course, doing tree pose.
5) Pour in lots of imagination and play!
Kids yoga is all about discovery and pretending to “be” anything you can imagine. While it is useful to be prepared with your lesson plan, it’s also important to be creative, flexible and willing to improvise when needed. Let your imagination run free as you take your students on a magical yoga adventure. Be open to the children’s ideas during class and let them make up their own poses of their favorite animals, creatures and objects. And most of all, have fun and PLAY!
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FREE YOGA BOOKS GIVEAWAY!!

LucindaandImaginations2I am super duper excited to announce a GIVEAWAY of my book Lucinda’s Magical Yoga Adventure AND Carolyn Clarke’s beautiful book Imaginations 2: Relaxation Stories and Guided Imagery for Kids. You can WIN BOTH BOOKS and take your child on a magical adventure that transitions into one of of Imaginations 2’s soothing guided visualizations! Get your entries in before January 31st at 11:59pm.

Just CLICK HERE or on the the IMAGE ABOVE to submit your entry!
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Bari Koral Music Playlists Your Kids will LOVE!!

Here are some of my favorite kid’s yoga songs by Bari Koral!

Her tunes are fun with catchy lyrics that my students love to move and sing along with!

I can’t wait for her Lollapalooza Live Music & Yoga Extravaganza at Gramercy Theater on Saturday November 21st!

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This playlist is perfect for a Transportation themed yoga class!

Kids can pretend to move like a train, rocket ship, roller coaster and more!

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YOGAPALOOZA Music & Yoga Concert Experience in NYC!

I am super excited to announce that I will be participating in YOGAPALOOZA LIVE at Gramercy Park in NYC on Saturday November 21st.  This amazing interactive concert experience is hosted by award winning kids recording artist Bari Koral.  I will be joining Bari and some the nations top kids yoga instructors in bringing the fun & imagination of yoga to Kids and Families!  This event will feature hand drawn multi media, amazing special guests.  Gaiam will be giving away 50 yoga mats and Mommy Nearest will be sponsoring beautiful mandala drawing activities for children before the show!  Lucinda’s Magical Yoga Adventure will be available at the Kids Yoga Marketplace after the concert!

modified yogapalooza postcard (1)

For more information about Bari Koral and how to purchase tickets for this Magical Event please visit http://barikoral.com/

All tickets $18 plus applicable fees

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Tickets available through ticketmaster and at the Gramercy Theater Box Office

Stay tuned for some special playlists of Bari’s Music.  The kids in  my classes love her music and your child will too!

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5 Day Sale on Lucinda’s Magical Yoga Adventure!

lucinda book lovers 5 day

 

Sunday August 9th is Book Lover’s Day and to celebrate, I’m offering a 5 DAY SALE on my children’s book Lucinda’s Magical Yoga Adventure!

This is my first ever FREE SHIPPING U.S. Only Sale!  Grab your copy now and please SHARE the yoga love with any moms or families you know!

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Much Love,

Betty

 

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Plant Your Own Garden

children flower garden

Teaching kids about gardening helps plant the seeds for self love and peace.

This week we explored  a gardening theme in my yoga classes.  Since the children have been learning about Nature and how things grow, it seemed like a great way to connect everything we have been learning through an interactive story.  We began in circle time by sharing what grows in their gardens at home.

Then I introduced the story:

Are you ready to put on your gardening gloves because we are going to get messy in the soil!  

First we cut the grass with our gardening shears.  Next I taught them PLOW POSE so we could get the soil ready for planting.  The children really enjoyed moving their legs in plow and then rolling back up to a seated position.  We were now ready to dig a hole in the soil with our shovels so we could plant our seeds.

Let’s pretend that you are the little seed in the soil. 

I had them come into CHILD’s POSE like a seed.  I went around with my rain stick to make the sound of the rain as I watered the “seeds”.  I asked them to feel what it would be like to grow and then peek out from the earth.  The little plants began growing and taking in the light of the sun to grow taller into TREE POSE.  We also grew into pretty FLOWERS.

little girl gardening

I asked the children what else we might find in our garden and they came up with some of their favorite yoga poses including BUTTERFLY, RABBIT, BIRD, and FROG, as well as some very creative ideas, such as ladybugs, grasshoppers, ants and snails and spiders.  We all had some laughs crawling, wiggling and hopping around like insects!

Let’s go inside and wash up!

We sat with our hands on our shoulders and “washed” our dirty clothes in the washing machine while making a swooshing sound and then “dried” them in the dryer, while rolling our arms in a circular motion.

After a long day of gardening, we were ready to relax in SAVASANA and I guided them through a visualization of them sitting in their gardens, looking around at what they had planted and taking in the sights and smells and sounds in their GARDEN!

I ended class with a song called In My Garden, that my friend Scott Massarky had created in collaboration with some children for a Peace Garden Mural Project.  It’s a beautiful and catchy song that all the children loved and by the end of class, they were all singing along!  To find out more about Scott’s amazing project, stop by my blog tomorrow because I will be posting a video of the song.

Stop and smell the flowers.

I even brought a live gerber daisy to my first teacher yoga classes this week.  I placed it in the center of our yoga mat circle and told them it was a reminder that we are planting some new seeds by nurturing ourselves through yoga and relaxation.  It was so rewarding to be able to provide some tranquility in the middle of a busy day for these preschool teachers and educators.

You can find more fun Nature Yoga Themes and ideas in some of my previous blog posts here:

Earth Day Yoga Theme 

A Rainbow of Colors     

Be Like a Butterfly     

Spring is in the Air 

plant your own garden

By: Category: Children, Creativity, Inspiration, Kids Yoga, Music, Nature, Self Development, Self Love, Spirituality, Teaching, Theme Classes, Uncategorized, Yoga
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