Each yogi-parent ever tried teach his child to practice.
And if children can perform the asanas with pleasure, but meditation is very difficult because of concentration is low. Kids are not peculiar to sit and just do nothing for a long time, not to mention the observation and concentration by their nature.
However, children also occur with stress, uncontrolled behavior. If we look deeper into this question, then of course more attention should be given by parents practice. When parents are calm, harmonious in their behavior and attitude to life, then child learns to do the same.
We offer you 12 meditations in a playful way which will help to calm down child:
1.Third eye (more than 2 years)
Child lies on back and put on their forehead stone or crystal. Let babes close their eyes, try to imagine and realize color of the object, its weight, shape. The stone becomes warm, radiates light, and child fill with it.
If child is tired lie in one position it’s possible to change it, for example, throw back legs behind head or make birch without moving the stone from the place.
2.Stop and listen (2 years)
For this practice you will need singing bowl, bell, or any other item that will make a long ringing. Children run around room to play, but as soon as the bowl or bell sounds, they have to stop, stand still and listen to the sound carefully, until it ends.
3.Voiceless bell (from 2,5 to 3 years group)
Sit down with the children in a circle and pass bell from hand to hand, if child wants, he may ring. Then change rules of the game, the bell must be passed in such a way that it don’t ring, you will need to keep quiet, do not talk to each other. If it’s not easy, you can seek to pass the bell to a child who is furthest away from you. This exercise teaches children of control and awareness of their movements.
4.Play with Light (in the group of 2.5-3 years)
You can do earlier exercise with a candle. Children have to pass it to each other so that fire is not extinguished.
5. Circle of the bell (in the 4-5 years group)
Children sit down in a circle and close their eyes. The task is to sit motionless and don’t open eyes. One child takes the bell and walk with it around circle without ringing. Then he stands up over some child quietly ringing near his ear. Child gets up and continues to walk around circle and the first child sits in his place. The game lasts a few minutes. When everyone open eyes, they see all children changed their places.
6. At the ZOO (from 2.5 to 3 years)
For this exercise you will need singing bowl. Select some animal, and let the children portray him, make his sound. When they hear the sound of the bowl, they need to stand still in the animal posture and maintain this position until sound dies down.
7. Silence (from 4 years)
For the next practice you will also need singing bowl and blindfolds. Children need to lie back with a blindfold (or you can just switch off the lights), pull hands alongside the body. As soon as singing bowl sounds, they will need to put hands on stomach and lie down until the sound disappears. They again put their hands along the body. The game lasts few minutes, till you notice that children stopped to concentrate and get tired of the game.
8. Sleeping Elves and Fairies (2 years)
Children are in the child's posture (stomach on knees, hands alongside the body) with closed eyes, all they are Elves and Fairies. You gently walk past kids and touch them with your fingers as if covering them with a magic pollen, which gives them strength to be as long as possible in a fixed state. Who will hold longest?
10. Ocean breathing (2 years)
Children need to sit upright or lie on the floor and close ears and eyes. Then let them breathe deeply, smoothly and will try imagine and hear sound of the ocean.
11. To find the center (3 years)
This exercise is better to do in supine position or sitting. Let the children sway left - right, forward and back as long as they find center or position in which is better to keep balance. Let them feel the center of the body from feet to crown of the head.
12. The Board Buddha (1 year)
This is a special board where you can draw with water and water vaporized from surface after a minute. Such boards marketed ready-made in stores. You can also try to draw with wet brush on asphalt or school board.
Buddha told about inconstancy, that everything passes. In the same way all painted images, inscriptions vaporized in this exercise. Before you draw something new, you have to wait until the old disappear and give place to new. These lessons will help child to develop mindfulness.
You can try yourself to come up with these exercises to develop in your child attentiveness, calmness and balance. The most important thing is your non fanatical attitude to such practices. Stop to obtain from the child's special states of mind. After all he is child and all this is his nature.
The material prepared by Yoga Teacher: Inessa Ilyutkina
And if children can perform the asanas with pleasure, but meditation is very difficult because of concentration is low. Kids are not peculiar to sit and just do nothing for a long time, not to mention the observation and concentration by their nature.
However, children also occur with stress, uncontrolled behavior. If we look deeper into this question, then of course more attention should be given by parents practice. When parents are calm, harmonious in their behavior and attitude to life, then child learns to do the same.
We offer you 12 meditations in a playful way which will help to calm down child:
1.Third eye (more than 2 years)
Child lies on back and put on their forehead stone or crystal. Let babes close their eyes, try to imagine and realize color of the object, its weight, shape. The stone becomes warm, radiates light, and child fill with it.
If child is tired lie in one position it’s possible to change it, for example, throw back legs behind head or make birch without moving the stone from the place.
2.Stop and listen (2 years)
For this practice you will need singing bowl, bell, or any other item that will make a long ringing. Children run around room to play, but as soon as the bowl or bell sounds, they have to stop, stand still and listen to the sound carefully, until it ends.
3.Voiceless bell (from 2,5 to 3 years group)
Sit down with the children in a circle and pass bell from hand to hand, if child wants, he may ring. Then change rules of the game, the bell must be passed in such a way that it don’t ring, you will need to keep quiet, do not talk to each other. If it’s not easy, you can seek to pass the bell to a child who is furthest away from you. This exercise teaches children of control and awareness of their movements.
4.Play with Light (in the group of 2.5-3 years)
You can do earlier exercise with a candle. Children have to pass it to each other so that fire is not extinguished.
5. Circle of the bell (in the 4-5 years group)
Children sit down in a circle and close their eyes. The task is to sit motionless and don’t open eyes. One child takes the bell and walk with it around circle without ringing. Then he stands up over some child quietly ringing near his ear. Child gets up and continues to walk around circle and the first child sits in his place. The game lasts a few minutes. When everyone open eyes, they see all children changed their places.
6. At the ZOO (from 2.5 to 3 years)
For this exercise you will need singing bowl. Select some animal, and let the children portray him, make his sound. When they hear the sound of the bowl, they need to stand still in the animal posture and maintain this position until sound dies down.
7. Silence (from 4 years)
For the next practice you will also need singing bowl and blindfolds. Children need to lie back with a blindfold (or you can just switch off the lights), pull hands alongside the body. As soon as singing bowl sounds, they will need to put hands on stomach and lie down until the sound disappears. They again put their hands along the body. The game lasts few minutes, till you notice that children stopped to concentrate and get tired of the game.
8. Sleeping Elves and Fairies (2 years)
Children are in the child's posture (stomach on knees, hands alongside the body) with closed eyes, all they are Elves and Fairies. You gently walk past kids and touch them with your fingers as if covering them with a magic pollen, which gives them strength to be as long as possible in a fixed state. Who will hold longest?
10. Ocean breathing (2 years)
Children need to sit upright or lie on the floor and close ears and eyes. Then let them breathe deeply, smoothly and will try imagine and hear sound of the ocean.
11. To find the center (3 years)
This exercise is better to do in supine position or sitting. Let the children sway left - right, forward and back as long as they find center or position in which is better to keep balance. Let them feel the center of the body from feet to crown of the head.
12. The Board Buddha (1 year)
This is a special board where you can draw with water and water vaporized from surface after a minute. Such boards marketed ready-made in stores. You can also try to draw with wet brush on asphalt or school board.
Buddha told about inconstancy, that everything passes. In the same way all painted images, inscriptions vaporized in this exercise. Before you draw something new, you have to wait until the old disappear and give place to new. These lessons will help child to develop mindfulness.
You can try yourself to come up with these exercises to develop in your child attentiveness, calmness and balance. The most important thing is your non fanatical attitude to such practices. Stop to obtain from the child's special states of mind. After all he is child and all this is his nature.
The material prepared by Yoga Teacher: Inessa Ilyutkina