Self-control
Toddlers observe a caregiver (or older child) engage in a tree pose (yoga).
Be Prepared: Become familiar with the tree yoga pose demonstrated to toddlers in this activity. Consult online resources or the Optional Reading book. If you do not wish to personally demonstrate the yoga pose suggested in this activity, make arrangements for another adult or a preschool-age child in your center to show the pose as you describe it and lead the activity. Adapt the pose if you anticipate it will be too challenging for toddlers in your room. See suggestions in the What To Look For section of this plan.
[Invite several toddlers to join you in making a pretend tree with our bodies.]
We are going to make a pretend tree with our bodies. We know that a tree can be tall and has branches.
[Point to a tree within easy view through a window in your room or show a picture of a tree, if appropriate.]
We will move a part of our body and try hard to hold it still. The pretend tree we make with our bodies is called a pose. A pose is a way of holding our body. Holding a pose with our body can help us be calm. Please watch me (or another person) make a pretend tree with my body.
[Slowly move your body into a tree yoga pose. Quietly describe each action as you demonstrate the position of each body part, as suggested below. See What to Look For section for adaptations of the pose.]
First I am going to stand up straight and tall, like a tree. Then I am going to bend my leg and put my foot on my other leg, like this. My leg on the ground holds my pretend tree strong and steady.
[You may wish to demonstrate with your foot on your inner thigh or calf, depending on your balancing skills.]
Now I am going to reach out like branches on a tree and bring my hands together in front of my heart. I will reach them up over my head. I am a strong growing tree!
I am stretching my body to look like a tree. How does my body look like a tree?
[Pause for toddlers to respond. Repeat and expand their comments.
Move into the tree pose again if toddlers are interested.]
We learned a pose to help calm our minds and bodies. I showed you how to make a tree pose. Breathing in and out while holding the tree pose helped me to feel calm and relaxed.
Self-control
Toddlers practice moving into a tree pose (yoga).
Space for each toddler to pose
Be Prepared: Become familiar with the tree yoga pose that toddlers are invited to assume in this activity. Consult online resources or the Optional Reading book. If you do not wish to personally demonstrate the pose, make arrangements for another adult or a preschool-age child in your center to show the pose as you describe it and lead the activity. Adapt the pose if you anticipate it will be too challenging for toddlers in your room. See suggestions in the What To Look For section of this plan.
Invite several toddlers to join you in making a pretend tree with our bodies. Explain (or remind) toddlers that a pose is a way of holding our body. Example: “Holding a pose with our body can help us get calm. Today we will practice a tree pose.”
Demonstrate a tree pose as described in Option 1, with appropriate adaptations. Then invite toddlers to make a pretend tree with their bodies. With a calm voice, describe each action with legs and arms. Emphasize that it is okay for each of our poses to look different. Encourage toddlers to move into a pose that feels like a tree. It is not necessary or appropriate for poses to be uniform. Encourage toddlers to hold the pose as long as they can without losing their balance. Invite several attempts. Talk with toddlers about how their body felt while doing the pose.
Self-control
Toddlers practice holding a tree pose (yoga) while breathing slowly and deeply.
Space for each toddler to pose
Be Prepared: Become familiar with the tree yoga pose that toddlers are invited to assume in this activity. Consult online resources or the Optional Reading book. Also review prior Self-Regulation activity plans that emphasized breathing deeply and slowly (Blocks 2 and 5). If you do not wish to personally demonstrate the pose, make arrangements for another adult or a preschool-age child in your center to show the pose as you describe it and lead the activity. Adapt the pose if you anticipate it will be too challenging for toddlers in your room. See suggestions in the What To Look For section of this plan.
Use the Option 2 plan to support toddlers in moving into a tree pose. This time, emphasize holding our bodies as still as we can and add deep and slow breathing. Open the session by demonstrating and then encouraging toddlers to breathe in and out slowly two times. Repeat the breathing exercise. Then invite toddlers to pretend their body is a tree, hold the pose as long as they can without losing their balance, and to breathe slowly and deeply while they hold the pose. Offer quiet verbal support for breathing slowly and deeply. Toddlers’ poses and breathing are not expected to be uniform. Emphasize that it is okay for each of our poses to look different. Invite several attempts. Talk with toddlers about how their body felt while doing the pose.
You will likely need to modify the tree pose based on the abilities of the toddlers in your group. Examples: (1) Instead of lifting their hands over their head, it may be easier for toddlers to keep their hands in front of their heart. (2) Instead of placing their foot on their other leg’s thigh or calf, encourage toddlers to slightly bring their foot up against the other ankle, creating a skinny triangle. (3) If balancing is challenging, invite toddlers to reach arms out like branches far and wide, rather than holding them together. Some toddlers may need to reach out a “branch” to hold onto a chair or your hand as they balance.
Some toddlers may find it challenging to hold their body in a pose while intentionally taking slow and deep breaths (Option 3). Slowing down the pace of the activity and talking in a quiet, soothing voice will help to foster a positive, calming experience for the toddlers. Provide additional time for toddlers to observe, imitate, and practice the new pose. (See Extra Support tip below.) Look for opportunities to talk with toddlers about how holding the pose and breathing makes them feel.
Extra support
Enrichment
Materials Needed: several books with pictures of trees
Display the books on a low table. Look at the tree pictures with toddlers and talk about how the tree yoga pose is similar to real trees. Discuss how the foot on the ground is like a strong and steady tree root that grows deep, and how our arms reach out like tree branches. Invite toddlers to practice moving into a tree pose or parts of a tree pose.
Materials Needed: The ABCs of Yoga for Kids by Teresa Power
Yoga poses may be a new experience for children in your setting. Practicing how to hold a pose and breathe consciously can benefit children of all ages. Invite children to practice a tree pose. Some children may like to practice the pose with deep and slow breathing. Support adaptations that accommodate children’s ages and abilities. Consult resources for doing yoga with babies if this is of interest.
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