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Want to learn more about doing therapeutic yoga with kids with Autism and other special needs? Check out this fabulous book & DVD from Louise Goldberg…..

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Product Descriptions:  

Yoga Therapy for Children with Autism and Special Needs by Louise Goldberg

For use in school, at home, or in therapeutic settings, Yoga Therapy for Children with Autism and Special Needs is a how-to manual that meets children where they are, providing a yoga therapy “lesson plan” that will engage them; promote play, social interaction, speech, language, and motor development; and enhance their self-esteem. It teaches an array of Creative Relaxation techniques using posture, breathing, and mindfulness designed specifically for children with autism and special needs. Drawing on her 30 years of yoga therapy experience with children and those who work with them, the author walks readers through yoga strategies that both calm and energize, emphasizing sensory and bodily awareness and the “sacred space” that is so important for these children. Learn the best ways to use your voice and body effectively when working with children; how to minimize distractions and ease transitions; and how to create personalized yoga breaks to enhance independence and avert meltdowns. Featuring 60 illustrated poses, 89 photos, and 65 lessons, songs, and games, child-friendly instructions are provided for posture, breathing, and mindfulness exercises. All poses and routines include suggested adaptations and precautions for use, and are organized to address specific sensory skills. Current research on the benefits of yoga for health and learning is summarized, and readers learn how, through yoga practice, the brain’s response to stress can be effectively mitigated.

• Hardcover: 300 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company; 1st edition (August 26, 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393707857
• ISBN-13: 978-0393707854
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 10 inches

Amazon.com has a good preview of the book….. here are just a few screenshots from that:

It was cool to see OMazing Kids & my name mentioned in the book (pgs. 88, 121 & 288-289)  🙂

Creative Relaxation Yoga for Children DVD by Louise Goldberg

Yoga-based Exercise Featuring Children with Special Needs. Complete Yoga Class plus Mini Relaxation Class. Louise guides children through a 25 minute yoga class, including floating on a cloud (deep relaxation). Her gentle voice and encouragement put students at ease. The mini class is an 8-minute calming session to soothe and help students focus. Curriculum created and taught by Louise Goldberg to students within the autism spectrum, grades 4 – 5. Program is suitable for children ages 4 through 9, or older children with special needs, in school or at home. Released in 2004.

Preview video on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvYWrlj7lJM

A few screenshots from the DVD:

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Here’s what I love about these products: 

This book is full of wisdom & insight into working with kids with special needs. The weight & feel of it reminds me of a textbook from grad school. I took several weeks to read it slowly & soak in all its wealth of info. The depth of information & research behind “why” you would do activities is phenomenal.  I love that the first 140 pages of the book are devoted to developing a solid understanding about assessing needs, the brain, stress, creating a safe space for yoga, contraindications for particular poses or activities, engaging children, levels of prompting, simplifying instructions, handling challenging behaviors and more. These are all very important to understand before jumping into doing therapeutic yoga. Each of the 60 yoga poses includes a black and white photo and information about the starting position, benefits, simple child-friendly instructions, points to remember, variations, precautions, counterpose & sequencing tips. Additional information is provided for yoga flow sequences & yoga for particular needs (this section will come in handy for OT’s, PT’s, SLP’s and other therapists wanting to incorporate yoga into their therapeutic “toolbox”). The Yoga Therapy for Classrooms section contains great sequences and tips for incorporating yoga breaks. I get several requests per month from folks wanting information on how to do therapeutic yoga. This book will now be added to my short list of “must have” resources. The concepts in this book are solid beyond the scope of a therapeutic yoga class…. anyone who works with children with special needs should read this book!

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I love that the video shows a real yoga therapy class in action. All the children in the video have Autism and it was taped in a classroom. There is occasionally background noise from the hallway or other classrooms, they use nap pads vs. yoga mats & like any classroom there are visual distractions. Yet Louise creates an oasis of calm for these kids that is golden! Her calm soothing voice & slow pace keep the kids engaged. She provides the minimal amount of prompting needed and always asks the child’s permission first. Many of the poses and activities in the video are also included in her book as well as the S.T.O.P. and RELAX© curriculum. If you are looking to build your therapeutic yoga library, all three items are recommended.

For product updates, be sure to  “like” the author’s Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/Yogaforspecialneeds , “follow” her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Yoga4Autism and check out her website: http://www.yogaforspecialneeds.com/

FYI…. Louise is also one of the co-creators of the S.T.O.P. and RELAX© curriculum and offers trainings: http://www.yogaforspecialneeds.com/classesCR.html.

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Disclaimer: I received a free sample of this product to facilitate my review.  Opinions expressed are my own. Starting in 2013, a new component of reviews & giveaways hosted on OMazing Kids is that a review will be added on Amazon.com (for products sold on that site). See my Amazon profile at: https://www.amazon.com/gp/pdp/profile/A1JKVLELLSX7FD?ie=UTF8&ref_=cm_aya_bb_pdp.

Easy Entry Form:

USA only entries allowed for this giveaway.

• Only entries with all required information will be valid. The info comes to me directly via e-mail & is ONLY used for the purposes of selecting winners and distributing prizes.

• Helpful Info & Tips: Folks had requested a simpler entry option. I tried Rafflecopter but most folks did not enter an address so now I’m trying this online contact form instead. I will be hand selecting winners to insure products end up in the hands of folks who will put them to the best use. Briefly tell me how winning this would help you & the kids. I take the time to read each entry so details count. It doesn’t have to be lengthy…. just heart-felt.
• If you experience any problems with the entry form in this blog post, please e-mail me specific details so I can attempt to fix it. E-mail to: amoorad1@juno.com . The entry deadline may be extended at the sole discretion of OMazing Kids in the event of prolonged entry problems.

• Each “giveaway” is handled separately on OMazing Kids. So there are no rules prohibiting previous winners from entering this or future giveaways. I really do read every entry in every giveaway carefully to insure that the products end up in the best hands to impact kids lives.

Entry Deadline: 11:59pm CST on October 28, 2013.

Rules of Participation:

• Must be 18 years or older with a valid e-mail address.
• One entry per person.
• Only USA entries are allowed for this particular giveaway.
• Employees or family members of OMazing Kids, LLC or the product’s company are not eligible.
• No purchase required.
• Comments submitted via entries may be copied & pasted into the blog post.
• Odds of winning will depend on the number of eligible entries received.
• Only entries with all required information will be valid.
• The winner will be chosen from valid entries on October 29, 2013.

1 winner will receive the following prize package:

• 1 copy of Yoga Therapy for Children with Autism and Special Needs (book)
• 1 copy of Creative Relaxation Yoga for Children (DVD)

• The winner will be notified via e-mail, will be posted on the blog post & will be posted on the OMazing Kids Facebook page. The company offering the prize may also post the winner’s name on their website, blog, Facebook page and/or other social media sites at their discretion.
• The winner’s address will be forwarded to the company and they will be mailing the prizes directly to the winners.  After I e-mail the winner’s info to the company, it is their responsibility to mail out prizes. Please contact them first if you are concerned about not receiving a prize. If that does not resolve the problem, then feel free to e-mail me and I will glad to assist in whatever way I can.

• Prize Value: $24.95 book, $22.00 DVD = $46.95 total value

Other Legal Stuff: I know they’re just kids yoga products but just to be safe here is all the legal stuff…

This giveaway is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with Facebook. You are providing your information to OMazing Kids, LLC and not to Facebook. The information you provide will only be used for our internal purposes in relation to the administration of the giveaway. Your information will NOT be sold to any outside parties.

Indemnification/Hold Harmless: By participating, entrants agree: (a) to the decisions of OMazing Kids, LLC, which shall be final in all respects; (b) to release, discharge, and hold harmless OMazing Kids, LLC and its respective representatives and agents from all liability, injuries, losses or damages of any kind to persons or property resulting in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, from the acceptance, possession, misuse or use of a prize, or from participation in and/or entry into the Contest or any Contest-related activity and for acceptance, delivery, or use of any prize; (c) that the foregoing parties have neither made nor are in any manner responsible or liable for any warranty, representation or guaranty, expressed or implied, in fact or in law, relating to any prize.

Angela Moorad, MS, CCC-SLP, IAYT, RCYP-2

Speech-Language Pathologist

Founder of OMazing Kids, LLC – inclusive wellness activities for kids of all abilities

Radiant Child Yoga Certified – Levels 1 & 2

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OMazing Kids LLC is an organization that promotes inclusive wellness activities for kids of all abilities. The blog and social media pages share information about books, DVD’s, CD’s, games and other products specifically designed for kids wellness, mindfulness and relaxation, product reviews & giveaways, lesson plan & activity ideas, research, kids wellness in the news and a connection corner with listings of individuals doing adapted yoga and those offering trainings.

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