OMazing Kids AAC Consulting

NOTE: Please ignore any ads that appear below the wavy divider bar. This is a free blog site & I have no control over ads appearing here.

Help compile a list of great books to use in kids yoga

Posted on March 18, 2012 by OMazing Kids

My favorite book to use in kids yoga is _______________ (by ______________). I love this book because it ______________________.

Help compile a list of great books to use in kids yoga (any age range from 2 – 10 years)….. will be shared at the Oklahoma Child Care Association Spring Conference, posted on this blog & shared on the OMazing Kids Yoga Facebook page.

Get in on the fun discussion thread by adding your comments on the photo on the FB page – https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=344588795592132&set=a.191017694282577.62242.174264525957894&type=1&theater and/or by leaving a comment below.

Love the creative & fun ideas being shared 🙂

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

Speech-Language Pathologist

Founder of OMazing Kids Yoga, LLC – inclusive yoga for kids & teens of all abilities in Norman, Oklahoma

Radiant Child Yoga Certified – Levels 1 & 2

E-Mail: amoorad1@juno.com

https://soundcloud.com/kira-willey-music/underneath-the-rainbow

NOTE: Please ignore any ads that appear below the wavy divider bar. This is a free blog site & I have no control over ads appearing here.

Review & Giveaway: Love is the Color of a Rainbow…. plus some “rainbow” yoga ideas

Posted on February 13, 2012 by OMazing Kids

Love is the Color of a Rainbow – a wonderful heartfelt story!

Product description: This softcover book is a heartfelt story about Willow, a little girl who has been blind since birth, who hears pit-pats of the first summer rain and quickly encourages her Mama to go outside. Mama shares all the colors of a rainbow with Willow through nature and Willow experiences that “Love is the Color of a Rainbow”. The gentle pastel chalk illustrations invite kids to experience nature through their senses to discover the colors of the rainbow.

Here’s what I LOVE about this book:

positive portrayal of a child with special needs
beautiful illustrations
the nurturing relationship portrayed between the mother & daughter in the story
the book has several opportunities to incorporate yoga poses (raindrop tapping – either individually on own chest or as partner pose on each others backs – note: great opportunity for kids to work on social skills to ask each other to be partners, ask permission before touching, ask their partner if they want “rain” pats (more of a slow deep pressure) or light “tickle taps” on their back – be mindful of kids individual sensory needs, frog, snail – child’s pose, tree, bird, tomatoes – stretch & reach overhead to “pick”, flower, butterfly, sun – sun stretch & breath – for details & a sun printable see my previous post at: http://wp.me/p1t7TU-1T, blue sky – lay in star pose, hug – hug knees into chest)
the book is printed on eco-friendly 100% Post Consumer recycled paper
the author donates a portion of the sales to support nature & environmental organizations

The only improvement I would suggest for the book would for the text to be in a larger font to make it easier to read.

A sneek peek at a few pages inside the book:

Price at the time of this post: $12.00 – available for purchase on the author’s website: http://www.kathyparra.com/

Author’s Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/ByKathyParra

Disclaimer: I received a free sample of this product to facilitate my review. Opinions expressed are my own.

Other things to go with a Rainbow theme:

Fun rainbow kids yoga ideas in this blog post from Mary Keiger at AUsomely Social: A Mindful Journey Over the Rainbow

A Rainbow of Colors kids yoga ideas in this blog post from Be Yoga Be Love: A Rainbow of Colors

Great Kira Willey songs:

https://soundcloud.com/kira-willey-music/colors

Relaxing Rainbow – guided relaxation script card – (inspired by a post on www.childmeditations.com)

Click on picture above to open the PDF, print, cut out, fold in half & laminate. Show picture side to the kids so they can get an image in their mind of what a rainbow looks like before laying down. The adult then reads the relaxation script in a slow calming manner with frequent pauses.

A great rainbow – namebow affirmation craft (from A Cupcake for the Teacher) – click on the picture to go to the blog:

Cute rainbow shakers to make(from Activity Village – click on picture to go to website):

Craft – Make a Rainbow Shaker (from Making Learning Fun) – click on the picture to go to their website

Another simple rainbow craft idea! This would be a great way to work on colors, short-longer-longest & sequencing by size:

Rainbow Coloring Pages (4 page PDF) – click on picture to open

Encourage healthy habits by “eating the colors of the rainbow”: http://www.celebratehealthyeating.org/pdf/spr/dan_eatrainbow.pdf

My Favorite Color Guided Relaxation from Yoga in My School: http://yogainmyschool.com/2010/06/15/my-favourite-colour-a-guided-visualization-for-relaxation/

Rainbow Guided relaxations for kids mp3’s: http://www.amazon.com/Rainbow-Friend-Meditation/dp/B003MRGGT2, http://www.amazon.com/Rainbow-Blanket/dp/B001NW77UU/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1329153092&sr=1-9

R. Carlos Nakai – World Of Rainbows (Canyon Trilogy Track 11) –http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LaM__sGVJuY, on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000QMW4RY/ref=dm_dp_trk11?ie=UTF8&qid=1329153030&sr=1-25

Piano instrumental version of Over the Rainbow: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0012JT3DS/ref=dm_dp_trk7?ie=UTF8&qid=1329153092&sr=1-11

One of my favorite songs is “Underneath the Rainbow” by Kira Willey: https://soundcloud.com/kira-willey-music/underneath-the-rainbow

How to enter the giveaway:

Enter via the “Giveaways” tab on the OMazing Kids Yoga FB page (http://www.facebook.com/OMazingKidsYoga?v=app_197602066931325) & mention your favorite color & how you would be using this book with your child or the children you work with. (comments must be in English; must include full first & last name; 1 entry per Facebook account).
For one additional entry, leave a comment on this blog post. Must mention your favorite color & how you would be using this book with your child or the children you work with. (comments must be in English; 1 entry per person; must have a valid e-mail address)
Tips: You increase your odds of winning by entering via both methods. Entering via the “Giveaways” tab will save me the step of having to obtain your mailing address – the info you complete on the tab comes directly to me via an e-mail.

Entry Deadline: Enter by any of the methods listed above by 11:59pm CST on February 14, 2012.

Rules of Participation:

Must be 18 years or older with a valid e-mail address.
International entries are being allowed for this particular giveaway.
Employees or family members of OMazing Kids Yoga, LLC or the product’s company are not eligible.
No purchase required.
Comments submitted via the Enter Giveaways Here…. tab on Facebook may be copied & pasted into the blog post.
Odds of winning will depend on the number of eligible entries received.
Two (2) winners will be chosen via a random drawing of valid entries on February 15, 2012.
The winners will each get one (1) copy of the “Love is the Color of a Rainbow” book.
The winners will be notified via e-mail and will be posted on the blog post.
If a winner only entered via blog post, their mailing address will be obtained via e-mail.
In the event that a winner does not respond within 24 hours, a new winner will be selected via a random drawing.
The winner’s address will be forwarded to the company and they will be mailing the product directly to the winner.
Prize Value: retail price $12.00

Other Legal Stuff: I know it’s just a kids book 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 Yoga, 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 Yoga, LLC, which shall be final in all respects; (b) to release, discharge, and hold harmless OMazing Kids Yoga, 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 Yoga, LLC – inclusive yoga for kids & teens of all abilities in Norman, Oklahoma

Radiant Child Yoga Certified – Levels 1 & 2

E-Mail: amoorad1@juno.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpVUih5nY9g

NOTE: Please ignore any ads that appear below the wavy divider bar. This is a free blog site & I have no control over ads appearing here.

Give Love: A Valentine’s Day Lesson Plan from OMazing Kids Yoga

Posted on February 8, 2012 by OMazing Kids

“Happy Valentine’s Day, Mouse!” by Laura Numeroff is one of my favorite Valentine’s Day books. There are several animals (mouse, dog, cat, bunny, moose, fox, pig) so it is great for a kids yoga class. Each animal in the story has a unique strength & I love how Mouse takes the time to make a special card for each of his friends…. and the friends have a special surprise for Mouse 🙂

How we did the poses for this book: mouse – child’s pose, upward facing dog, cat, bunny breaths (3 quick sniffs in), moose -a variation on “deer” pose from Yoga In My School (http://yogainmyschool.com/2010/07/19/kids-yoga-poses-deer-pose-marichiyasana-ii/) – we added holding our hands up on our heads as antlers, fox – the sign for “fox” http://www.babysignlanguagedictionary-mysmarthands.com/fox_-_ASL_sign_for_fox.html – looks like the Gyan mudra around the nose, & pig – the yoga freeze dance since pig & mouse are dancing on that page in the book 🙂

Symbols that I made to use with the book are available as “exclusive content” to supporters over on my page on Ko-fi (1-page PDF without watermark):

I think Pig & Mouse are dancing to the MC Yogi song “Give Love”… so we did Yoga Freeze Dance to this song. When the music stops you freeze in your favorite yoga pose.

(http://www.yogafriends.com/mc_yogi_give_love.mp3 – “right click” on this link & “save target as” to save the mp3)

The Valentine’s Day playlist on my Soundcloud:

http://soundcloud.com/omazing-kids-yoga/sets/valentines-day-playlist/

Bari Koral’s Hearts song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejwrUXNoDds

Imaginations: Fun Relaxation Stories and Meditations for Kids has two guided imagery stories that will be great to use with a Valentine’s Day or love theme kids yoga class! Here is a partial screenshot. See more details about this fabulous book in this post on the OMazing Kids blog: https://omazingkidsllc.com/2012/08/26/review-giveaway-imaginations-fun-relaxation-stories-and-meditations-for-kids/. Available on Amazon at: http://www.amazon.com/Imaginations-Relaxation-Stories-Meditations-Kids/dp/1463512023.

Hugs & Kisses Pose from Yoga Rocks!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvLeXxbA2Wc (another version at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5HKR8krGpg)

This is a great feel good pose, hugging yourself and throwing kisses out to the world. This pose helps kids to feel love and give love.

Sitting tall on your yoga mat, bend your legs so your knees are up and your feet are close to you. Wrap your arms around your legs and give yourself a big squeeze for “Hug”. Then open your arms and legs up and out into a big “X” for “Kiss” making a kiss sound.

Fun partner pose ideas & a free printable in this post from Playful Learning: Yoga for Kids: V-Day Edition

Heart Pose from Sprout

Mini video on Sprout website: http://50.57.13.175/sprout/Activities/detail.aspx?id=5a853f61-20b4-4f4c-ae7a-997a0181a942

Partner Heart Pose from Yoga in Mar Vista

click on the photo to go to their Facebook page 🙂

Strike a Valentine’s Day Yoga Pose! 5 Festive Stretches For Kids

Heart Mudra – Sit with your legs crossed. Then hide your arms behind your back before you show your valentine the heart you made for them with your hands.

See all 5 poses from Lara Benusis, the youth program director at Pure Yoga at: http://www.lilsugar.com/Valentines-Day-Yoga-Poses-Kids-13881568

We worked on friendship social skills during our Valentine’s Day yoga class by asking each other about our two favorite colors & two favorite animal valentines. Then we colored two animal valentines to give to each of our friends in the class.

animal valentines to color

animal valentines (colored version)

Depending on how much time you have, you could also do yoga poses for the animals on the valentines.

We made this super easy heart-shaped valentine holder from Making Learning Fun: http://www.makinglearningfun.com/themepages/ValentineHeartHolder.htm

I saved it as a PDF to make it easier to print: heart valentine holder printable

Heart Mandalas: I saved 24 heart mandalas in a PDF document to make it easier to print them – heart mandalas. A valentine’s gift of 2 dozen mandalas 🙂 Coloring mandalas is a calming activity for most kids. Some of these mandalas are simple & some are more complex so please keep each child’s level of fine motor skills & ability to handle detail in mind when picking ones for them to color.

Links to the source for each mandala can be found on each picture in the album on my OMazing Kids Yoga Facebook page: www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.317072695010409.90378.174264525957894&type=3

Note: These mandalas are for non-commercial use only.

Look at the cool handout that Laura Fuller from Yoga in Mar Vista made with one of the Heart Mandalas! Click on each pic to open up that PDF (2 separate 1-page PDF’s):

Love coloring sheet

Make your own Candy Heart messages:

http://www.cryptogram.com/hearts/

Link to the HeartMath website (mentioned on page 2 of the mandala handout): www.heartmath.org,

Shift and Shine Technique^® for Ages 3-6: http://www.heartmath.org/free-services/tools-for-well-being/shift-and-shine-age-3-to-6.html?submenuheader=2,

HeartShift™ Tool for Ages 7 – 11: http://www.heartmath.org/free-services/tools-for-well-being/heartshift-age-7-to-11.html?submenuheader=2

The Quick Coherence Technique® for Ages 12-18: http://www.heartmath.org/free-services/tools-for-well-being/quick-coherence-age-12-to-18.html?submenuheader=2

Loving Kindness Meditation – click pic to open PDF (Source: SoulShine Life – Yoga for Kids and Families – Facebook post)

Valentine’s Day Finger Puppets:

Valentine finger puppets (color version)

& Valentine finger puppets (black & white version – for kids to color)

A fun idea for Valentine’s Day Affirmations from Stress Free Kids:

More Valentine’s Day coloring pages: http://twistynoodle.com/coloring-pages/holiday/valentines-day/

Lots of great free Valentine’s Day stuff on the Super Simple Songs website: http://www.supersimplesongs.com/valentines/

A craft for later: These would take more time than we would have in a kids yoga class but would be fun to make at home and a great way to reuse broken crayons: http://thelongthread.com/?p=5646 & more tips: http://www.makeandtakes.com/recycled-chunky-crayons

Want even more ideas for Valentine’s Day themed yoga? Check out these posts: http://yogainmyschool.com/2010/02/11/kids-valentines-day-yoga-class/, http://yogainmyschool.com/2012/02/13/valentines-week-tlc-challenge/ & http://www.lilsugar.com/Valentines-Day-Yoga-Poses-Kids-13881568.

Looking for even more great books?

Love and Kisses by Sarah Wilson

Here are the symbols I made to go with it. I put a small piece of velcro on the back of each heart & on the front of each character so kids can add a “kiss” to each one as we read the book…. great for working on vocabulary, following directions, great book for kids yoga with the added message of the love you give coming back to you…. https://omazingkidsyoga.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/love-kisses.pdf

All Kinds of Kisses by Nancy Trafuri

Totally LOVING the new book “All Kinds of Kisses” by Nancy Tafuri! Each spread has an animal and how they kiss their little ones (ex: “Little Piglet loves Oink kisses.”). Again lots of animals so it would be great for kids yoga, great for teaching vocabulary (including names for the babies of each animal), teaching animal sounds, great repeated line (good for emergent literacy, use of a BigMack voice output communication aide, intraverbal fill-ins in an ABA Verbal Behavior program, etc…) and the bluebird is included somewhere on each page so it encourages looking for that detail. I made symbols for this book too: https://omazingkidsyoga.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/all-kinds-of-kisses.pdf

Big Hugs, Little Hugs by Felicia Bond

I love this new book by Felicia Bond too! Although it would fit with a Valentine’s Day theme, it could be used anytime of the year & has tons of opportunities for kids yoga poses/activities. And for SLP’s out there, lots of great vocabulary & opposites word pairs. I got a great deal on this book at Sam’s Club 🙂 Here are the symbols I made to go with the book: https://omazingkidsyoga.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/big-hugs-little-hugs.pdf

How Do I Love You? by Marion Dane Bauer

The Day It Rained Hearts by Felicia Bond

Never Too Little to Love by Jeanne Willis

My Heart is Like a Zoo by Michael Hall (see ideas on the Storyoga Facebook post: http://tinyurl.com/7p3p6xq; a printable resource guide from the publisher: http://www.harpercollinschildrens.com/harperchildrensImages/Printable/my%20heart%20is%20like%20a%20zoo%20activities.pdf )

Cute Carson Dellosa heart crafts to go with this book – click pic to open PDF:

Love is the Color of a Rainbow by Kathy Parra (see my blog post for a review & giveaway: http://omazingkidsyoga.com/2012/02/13/review-giveaway-love-is-the-color-of-a-rainbow-plus-some-rainbow-yoga-ideas/)

Can you tell that I love Valentine’s Day? 🙂

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

Speech-Language Pathologist

Founder of OMazing Kids Yoga, LLC – inclusive yoga for kids & teens of all abilities in Norman, Oklahoma

Radiant Child Yoga Certified – Levels 1 & 2

E-Mail: amoorad1@juno.com

bunny puppet for It’s Not a Box

NOTE: Please ignore any ads that appear below the wavy divider bar. This is a free blog site & I have no control over ads appearing here.

Not A Box: An OMazing Kids Yoga Lesson Plan & Book Review

Posted on January 21, 2012 by OMazing Kids

Not A Box: An OMazing Kids Yoga Lesson Plan & Book Review

We had SO much fun in OMazing Kids Yoga this week doing yoga to the story “Not a Box” by Antoinette Portis!

I brought a medium sized cardboard box for each child since we had a small group of 5 kids & I wanted them to be able to experience being “in” and “out” of the box. I also selected this size of boxes since I wanted large surfaces for them to be able to put pictures on since the kids I see in that group have difficulty with fine motor control. The paper template in the Not A Box Activity Guide listed below would be great if you had a very large group and the kids had the ability to handle that level of fine motor task. Or you could also have each child bring their own box to the group (of course have a few extra boxes on hand in case someone forgets to bring one).

As a motivator/reinforcer for the kids to participate, they earned a coloring sheet for each pose they participated in and then got to glue it on their own box. To keep the flow of the group going, we saved the coloring of the pictures for the end. Worked like a charm…. the child who had so much difficulty staying engaged last week was a great yogi this week and was SO proud of his “not a box” creation. Wish I could have taken pictures to share but that’s not possible in the hospital setting due to HIPAA rules.

Opportunities for yoga poses/activities in this book:

bunny breath
racecar (Could do as group pose or individually sitting in your box or on the yoga mat. Sit with legs & arms straight out. Point/flex feet to hit the gas pedal or brakes. “Steer” your car with arm motions or could also add a hula hoop to be the steering wheel.)
mountain (We stood in the box to do mountain pose. It was a great opportunity for the kids to use motor planning skills to figure out how to get in/out of the box and to practice asking for help when they needed it.)
firefighter (a variation on elephant pose & crescent moon pose – hold hand together at midline to be the firefighter’s hose and then bend in different directions as you squirt water on the burning building)
robot (move & freeze like robots. Could also incorporate mindfulness to see how closely the kids can imitate specific robot movements)
pirate
balloon breathing
elephant
boat
humming breath (as we are thinking “Hmm”)
rocket (variation of volcano pose – squat down with hands together at heart, countdown (we did 3, 2, 1 given our kids short attention spans), then “blast off” as you jump up, lift your arms and exhale loudly)
star
planets (group activity – one child in the middle as the “sun” and the rest of the group move in a circle “orbiting” around the sun)
Affirmation: I am creative – I use my imagination!
Relaxation: Listening to relaxing music as we colored all the pictures we had glued on the “not a box” creations. Each child was given only 2 crayons so they would have the opportunity to practice social skills in asking to trade colors with the other kids.
Each child took their “not a box” creation with them to play with later

music_scale

“Not a Box” Playlist

Magic Box by Laurie Berkner (video: http://vimeo.com/39783917)
Think Outside the Box by Marc Rossio (http://www.reverbnation.com/themarveloustoy/song/16062474-think-outside-the-box)

This book will also be great to use in my work as a Speech-Language Pathologist. So here are several other reasons I LOVE this book:

Simple text.
Clear illustrations (combination of black, white, red & yellow) are great for young kids and will especially be helpful for kids who may have difficulty attending to pictures in other books due to visual impairments or conditions like ADD/ADHD or Autism. Many kids with cortical visual impairments tend to respond well to these specific colors so I can’t wait to try this book out the next time I have a patient with CVI. (Here’s a great CVI tip sheet: http://www.unr.edu/educ/ndsip/tipsheets/cvi.pdf)
Great repeated line “It’s NOT a box”. Repeated lines provide great predictability for emergent readers, are great for intraverbal fill-ins in a ABA Verbal Behavior program and are great opportunities for kids to participate in reading the story either verbally or through the use of a single message voice output communication aide (ex: BigMACK).
Opportunities for practicing inferencing & predicting skills (looking at the details in a picture for “clues”).
Lots of practice of “positional” words (in, on top, beside, behind, etc…)
Great use of two “Wh” questions (why, what)
Great way to teach “negation” (the concept of “not”)
Encourages “flexibile” thinking & creativity (often very difficult for many kids with special needs…. Especially those with an Autism Spectrum Disorder).

I purchased my copy of the book on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Not-Box-Antoinette-Portis/dp/0061123226

Free Activity Guide (9 page PDF): http://files.harpercollins.com/PDF/ActivitiesGuides/0061123226.pdf (also saved on my blog at: Not A Box Activity Guide)

Printable Coloring Pics to Color & Paste on a “Not a Box” Box – I use them as a reinforcer for kids to try each pose in the Therapeutic Yoga Group for our inpatients at the JD McCarty Center. They get a pic to add to their box for each pose. The large pics work well on a large box – like copy paper comes in or larger. The small pics work well on smaller boxes or with kids that get too focused on coloring.

not a box (full page pics) – 11 page PDF

not a box (small pics) – 4 page PDF

bunny puppet for It's Not a Box

See the entire book in this cute YouTube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KXuBcdmktY

Great review & ideas from Picture Books & Pirouettes http://kerryaradhya.blogspot.com/2011/04/its-not-box-so-what-could-it-be.html & Maria’s Movers http://mariasmovers.com/2011/04/26/its-a-box-not/

Great blog post from another SLP with more ideas for this book: http://all4mychild.com/not-a-box/

More out-of-the-box fun in this blog post: http://www.teachpreschool.org/2012/09/all-you-need-is-a-box/ & bought Sitting in My Box by Dee Lillegard to extend the box theme: http://www.teachpreschool.org/2012/09/a-story-in-a-box/

Encourage some out-of-the-box “food fun” with these creative snack ideas:

Food Fun

There are lots of fun Pinterest pages & blog with fun kids snacks & bento box ideas! http://www.creativekidsnacks.com/category/snacks/

Here’s a great “think outside the box” mini poster from FableVision Learning to go with this theme: http://fablevisionlearning.com/blog/2011/06/think-outside-the-box/

(1 page PDF – http://www.fablevisionlearning.com/posters/fablevision_thinker.pdf / also saved on my blog at: Think Outside The Box mini poster)

Also love this:

See how we used this book in a free storytime event for Better Hearing & Speech Month at the JD McCarty Center in May 2013.

Feel free to comment & share your “not a box” ideas 🙂

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

Speech-Language Pathologist

Founder of OMazing Kids Yoga, LLC – inclusive yoga for kids & teens of all abilities in Norman, Oklahoma

Radiant Child Yoga Certified – Levels 1 & 2

E-Mail: amoorad1@juno.com

http://www.classroomyogaproject.org/cyp_currently_online/resources_files/Santa%20Sequence_Classroom%20Yoga%20Project.pdf

NOTE: Please ignore any ads that appear below the wavy divider bar. This is a free blog site & I have no control over ads appearing here.

Christmas & Winter Themed Kids Yoga Ideas (updated for 2012)

Posted on December 3, 2011 by OMazing Kids

Looking for some fun Christmas & Winter Themed Kids Yoga Ideas?

I typically develop my OMazing Kids Yoga lesson plans around a children’s picture book. Books provide a clear beginning & end and provide visual information to attend to. Many of the children I work with have special needs, so providing this extra structure is helpful for them.

Here are some books that I have found that work well for kids yoga this time of year & the yoga pose/activity opportunities in each book:

Winter:

Bedtime For Little Bears! by David Bedford (polar bear (YogaKids), owl, rabbit, star, fox (do the sign for “fox” http://www.babysignlanguagedictionary-mysmarthands.com/fox_-_ASL_sign_for_fox.html – looks like the Gyan mudra around the nose), whale)

Gingerbread Baby by Jan Brett (cookbook, mixer (washing machine & dryer), rolling pin (log rolling + use pool noodle to “roll out” the body parts the child chooses), flex/point feet timer, sitting forward fold to close oven door, sniffing breath, cat, dog, goat (deer pose + “maa”), chicken, pig (happy baby pose as pig rolls in mud), bridge, ice (tense/relax – freeze/melt), fox (do the sign for “fox” http://www.babysignlanguagedictionary-mysmarthands.com/fox_-_ASL_sign_for_fox.html – looks like the Gyan mudra around the nose), cow, woods (group tree pose), gingerbread house (partner rooftops pose). Lots of free printables for this book: http://www.janbrett.com. Free coloring sheet: http://janbrett.com/pdf/gingerbread_baby_coloring_page.pdf. See a YouTube video of the book being read: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rssEvip-G0k.

Gingerbread Friends by Jan Brett (gingerbread house (partner rooftops pose), ski (Warrior II), skate (dancer), sled (seated forward fold), cake-top-cookie people (mountain), cartwheels (windmill), swan, flower, mouse (childs pose), cat, fox (Gyan mudra around the nose), climb stairs (cross crawl hike), making gingerbread cookies sequence (easy pose legs as bowl, reach to get ingredients: flour, salt, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, butter, brown sugar, egg, molasses & vanilla, mix (stir the pot & do “washing machine” for mixer), forward seated with legs being oven rack & stretch arms to close the oven door, tick-tock-toes timer, “mmm” breath as we smell them cooking), group sled (seated angle in a line, lean to each side). (Recipe: http://janbrett.com/gingerbread_baby_recipe.htm)

Hibernation Station by Michelle Meadows (bear, chipmunk, squirrel, mouse, groundhog, turtle, snake, frog, raccoon, snail, tree, train, raindrops partner pose, skunk, hug)

One Bear Lost by Karen Hayles (bear, rabbit, snowy tree, waterfall, bird, squirrel, buzzing bee breath, snowball (child’s pose), sledding (group pose – like group rollercoaster from YogaKids), boat, fish, looking with Gyan mudra (“OK” hand position) at eyes)

One Snowy Day by Jeffrey Scherer (bear, deer, mouse, bird, cat, squirrel, rabbit, skunk (cat + lift leg to “spray” phew!), fox (do the sign for “fox” http://www.babysignlanguagedictionary-mysmarthands.com/fox_-_ASL_sign_for_fox.html – looks like the Gyan mudra around the nose)

Over and Under the Snow by Kate Messner (snowing (standing star w/ wiggling fingers), snowy tree, ski (Warrior II), squirrels gathering acorns (toe-ga with brown pom-poms), owl (seated twist), shrew (mouse/childs pose), deer, deer mice (cuddle up in group childs pose), feather breathing, voles in a tunnel (group downward facing dog tunnel & each child gets a turn to be a vole going through the tunnel), snowshoe hare (bunny breaths), frog, fish, beaver, fox, chipmunk, bear, crescent moon, fire (palming), buzzing bee breath, star, starry night guided relaxation). See several pages inside the book on this post on the publisher’s blog: http://www.chroniclebooks.com/blog/2012/02/17/over-and-under-the-snow/. See a post with great art project ideas for this book: http://www.brimfulcuriosities.com/2012/01/over-and-under-snow-by-kate-messner.html

A few ideas for “a starry night guided relaxation”

The Night Sky from “Imaginations: Fun Relaxation Stories and Meditations for Kids” (order at http://www.imaginationsforkids.com/)

Big White Star from “Yoga 4 Classrooms Activity Card Deck” (order at http://www.yoga4classrooms.com/activity-card-deck)

Red Sled by Lita Judge (snowing (standing star w/ wiggling fingers), hiking through the snow (cross crawl hike), cabin (rooftop partners), tree, bear (bear walk), bunny breaths, moose (seated twist with hands on head as large antlers), moon, possum (legs up), raccoon (gyan mudra mask), porcupine (lotus mudra as quills), mouse (childs pose), group sled (group sled (seated angle in a line, lean to each side), “Hmmm?” breath.). This is a minimally worded book that lends itself well to storytelling and creativity. The only words are the sound effects. See a great YouTube preview at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-OKBRK3-Po.

Say Hello to the Snowy Animals by Ian Whybrow (husky (up dog, downward facing dog), sled (seated forward fold), polar bear (YogaKids), owl (seated twist), caribou (deer), whale, seal (on belly, stretch arms & legs out straight), puffin (bird), artic hare (bunny breaths), snowy tree, snowing (standing star w/ wiggling fingers).

Snowmen All Year by Caralyn Buehner (snow (freeze/melt), kite, boat, flower, tree, tiger, candle, blow out the candle breath, rollercoaster group pose (YogaKids), swimming, gate, firefly (Namaste), star, ocean breath, jack-o-lantern pose (https://omazingkidsyoga.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/pumpkin-pose.jpg)

Snowmen At Night by Caralyn Buehner – see fun lesson plan ideas for this book in a guest post by Margaret Ricciardone on the BodyLogique blog (http://bodylogique.blogspot.com/2011/01/snowmen-at-night.html / printable 1-page PDF- http://tinyurl.com/7f7csmt)

Ten on the Sled by Kim Norman (snowing (standing star w/ wiggling fingers), hiking up the mountain (cross crawl hike), mountain, snowy tree, group sled (seated angle in a line, lean to each side), caribou (deer), seal (on belly, stretch arms & legs out straight like flippers), hare (bunny breaths), sheep (easy pose and then make snipping motion up each arm – sign for sheep), walrus (on belly, with hands at cheeks with index fingers pointing down as tusks), fox (gyan mudra around nose), squirrel (toe-ga with brown pom-poms gathering acorns), wolf (up dog + howl), moose (seated twist with hands on head as large antlers), bear (bear walk or do “polar bear” pose from YogaKids – childs pose with hand out covering nose), crescent moon). See a video of the book being read: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rY5nD5zeq_A. Teacher’s Guide from the author: http://kimnormanbooks.com/www.kimnormanbooks.com/Media_&_teacher_materials_files/Ten%20on%20the%20Sled%20Teacher%20Guide.doc. More ideas: http://katenarita.blogspot.com/2011/01/by-kim-norman-publisher-sterling-books.html & http://snippetsbysarah.blogspot.com/2012/01/verbs-great-book-and-silly-craftivity.html (includes a free printable)

The Mitten by Jan Brett (snowing (standing star w/ wiggling fingers), snowy tree, legs as basket full of knitting yarn, mole (child pose w/ fingers spread out by nose), rabbit (bunny breaths), hedgehog (lotus mudra – like spines), owl (seated twist), badger (gyan mudra at eyes “looking”), fox (gyan mudra around nose & cat with leg out as bushy tail), bear (bear walk), mouse (child pose), sneezing breath)

Jan Brett has several free printables to go with “The Mitten”: http://janbrett.com/pdf/tell_your_own_mitten_story.pdf, http://janbrett.com/pdf/tell_your_own_mitten_story_animals.pdf, http://janbrett.com/pdf/design_your_own_mitten.pdf, http://janbrett.com/pdf/mitten_coloring_page_animals.pdf, http://janbrett.com/pdf/mitten_glove_coloring_page.pdf, http://janbrett.com/pdf/mitten_glove_coloring_page_reversed.pdf, http://janbrett.com/pdf/mitten_glove_animals_coloring_page.pdf ❤

The Very Bouncy Bear (pop-up book) by Jack Tickle (polar bear (YogaKids), fish, moose (deer + hands as big antlers by ears), whale, penguin, rabbit, seal, wolf (updog + howling), owl, mouse, moon (crescent moon), star)

Winter Wonderland by Dick Smith (bell mindfulness activity, snow (freeze/melt), mouse, snowy tree, bird, snowman, fire (hand rubbing/palming activity), chipmunk, sleigh)

Christmas:

12 Days of Christmas by Don Daily. See this blog post for lots of ideas for the 12 Days of Christmas: https://omazingkidsllc.com/2012/12/01/12-days-of-christmas-kids-yoga/

Bear Stays Up For Christmas by Karma Wilson (snoring breath, bear, mouse, rabbit, stretch & sigh breath, bird, Brain Gym Cross Crawl hike, snowy tree, snow (freeze/melt), stir-the-pot, fire (hand rubbing/palming activity), Christmas tree, friendship quilt craft activity – http://karmawilson.com/teachers.htm#staysup )

Can You See What I See? Night Before Christmas by Walter Wick (too many to list – each page has a seek-and-find for at least 12 items – would be best suited for kids that are a little older and have the ability to find hidden items in a picture scene)

How the Grinch Stole Christmas! by Dr. Seuss (Mt. Crumpit mountain pose, Max the downward facing dog pose, Who choo-choo breath, Christmas tree pose, Who feast (group table pose), Grinch Santy Claus Ho-Ho-Ho breath, crumbs too small for a mouse pose, group sled pose, heart grew three sizes mudra (pic: http://tinyurl.com/c7s7dtt). This story would be best for kids who are a little older. Can lead to great discussions about the over-commercialization of Christmas, what was truly important to the Whos, etc.). I added 3 yoga cards to my Seuss Yoga post:

More Seuss Yoga – Grinch – 1-page PDF.

Get the whole collection of Seuss Yoga printable cards in this post: https://omazingkidsllc.com/2012/02/28/the-yoga-of-dr-seuss-printable-from-omazing-kids-yoga/

Room For A Little One by Martin Waddell (stable (partner rooftops), ox, dog, cat, mouse, donkey, rock-the-baby, star. To expand the Nativity theme: shepherd (crescent moon – looks like the curve in their staff), sheep (sit in easy pose and do sign for sheep on both arms – http://www.babysignlanguage.com/dictionary/s/sheep/) , camel, 3 Kings gift activity – Fill a box full of affirmation cards/affirmation statements & wrap the lid separate from the bottom of the box. As you pass the box, take one affirmation out and say it about yourself & think of one nice thing to say about the person you are passing the box to. At the end, the kids can color a nativity picture to give as a gift to their parents.)

The Spirit of Christmas by Nancy Tillman (eyes around the clock from YogaKids, bird, house (partner rooftops), snowy tree, sleigh, horse, sleigh bells mindfulness activity – follow the beat, toy soldier marching (mountain pose + hike in place or Brain Gym Cross Crawl Hike), snowball (child’s pose), snow (freeze/melt), wolf, snowman, lion, snow angels, mouse, sledding, swan, Santa (balloon belly breathing & laugh), moon (crescent moon), star)

The Night Before Christmas by Jan Brett (house (partner rooftops), mouse, snow (freeze/melt), dog, cat, candy cane (crescent moon), sleigh, reindeer, Santa (balloon belly breathing & laugh), Christmas tree, plus other options among the ornaments & gifts). Find free printables on the author’s website: http://www.janbrett.com. More fun yoga ideas for the story in this post from Asana Alphabet: http://asanaalphabetblog.wordpress.com/2012/12/20/merry-yoga-christmas-activity/

The Very Smiley Snowman (pop-up book) by Jack Tickle (reindeer, rabbit, sledding, bird, snowy tree, snowman, penguin, polar bear, fish, Christmas tree)

Who Would Like a Christmas Tree? A Tree for All Seasons by Ellen Bryan Obed (snowy tree, bird, mouse (childs pose), deer (seated twist with small antlers), woodcock (soaring bird), easy pose legs as robin’s nest, balsam twig aphids (happy baby pose bugs), flower, butterfly, chrysalis (roll up in mat), spider (roll ball of yarn back and forth in group to weave a web), fox (gyan mudra by nose & cat with leg out as bushy tail), wild turkey (lotus mudra as feathers), christmas tree pose, star)

Santa Yoga Sequence from Classroom Yoga:

Fun “Snowboarder” 5-minute yoga break from GreenTREE Yoga!

Love all the pose ideas: snowflake (standing star w/ wiggling fingers), mountain, chairlift (chair), snowboarder (Warrior II), Winter warm-up breathing & a seated guided relaxation.

Free mp3: http://greentreeyoga.org/Programs/Elementary_LittleTREE_Yoga/13.%20%20F_Snowboarder%20VHB%2012.mp3 (right click & “save target as” to save the mp3 to your computer.). If you have any difficulty, go to their website and download it from there: http://greentreeyoga.org/Programs/Elementary_LittleTREE_Yoga/elementaryyoga.htm.

Cool ideas in this new video from Cosmic Kids : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jSZvMHlw9vs

And even more fun pose ideas in this post on Lilsugar:

http://www.lilsugar.com/Holiday-Yoga-Poses-Kids-12643523

Super cute & fun ideas on the Small Potatoes blog!

http://mysmallpotatoes.com/2012/12/13/weekly-kids-co-op-a-yuletide-yoga-practice-for-young-children/

Free Song:

Free Gingerbread Man song download from Bari Koral: http://soundcloud.com/barikoralfamilyband/gingerbread-man

http://i46.tinypic.com/2hzo6ya.jpg

Snowy Tree – make snowflakes from paper, white felt or foam & hang from your arms (“branches”) in tree pose.

Christmas Tree – make ornaments from paper, felt or foam & hang from your arms (“branches”) in tree pose.

Window Breaths – Sit in front of a cold window. Take in a deep breath through your nose, open your mouth and blow warm air on the cold window. Watch as the window fogs up. If the window has frost, watch as your warm breath melts the frost.

Freeze & Melt: Play Christmas or winter-themed music. When the music stops “freeze” into your favorite yoga pose. When the music starts “melt” and dance to the music. (Please be mindful of kids individual sensory needs when selecting music to use in a group setting- http://omazingkidsyoga.com/music/)

Snowball Games:

Blowing Snowballs: Each child has a straw, a small box & a variety of sizes of cotton balls (aka. “snowballs”). Work on breathwork & mindfulness while blowing the cotton balls into the snow fort box.

Snowball Toe-Ga: Each child has a variety of sizes of cotton balls (aka. “snowballs”) & a clear cup. Use your toes to pick up the snowballs and fill up the cup.

Pass the Snowball: Sit in a circle and pass a small white ball (aka. snowball). First time around pass with hands while doing a seated twist. Next time around pass it with your feet. For added fun, start passing a second ball around after the first one is about 1/4 way around. Need a snowball? Try making one by stuffing a white sock full of cotton batting or socks. 🙂

I couldn’t resist this adorable Icebox The Snowman Beanie Ballz on sale at Barnes & Noble!

Printable snowflake patterns: http://www.firstpalette.com/tool_box/printables/snowflake.html & even more at: http://www.marcels-kid-crafts.com/snowflake-pattern.html

Snowflake ornaments printable: http://www.guildcraftinc.com/guildcraft/GuildcraftSnowflakeornament.pdf

No two snowflakes are alike idea from Alluem Kids Yoga: http://alluemkids.blogspot.com/2009/12/no-two-snowflakes-are-alike.html

Make a snowman printable: http://www.guildcraftinc.com/guildcraft/GuildcraftSnowmancutout.pdf

Coloring pages (can customize them): http://twistynoodle.com/coloring-pages/holiday/christmas/ & http://twistynoodle.com/coloring-pages/months/december/

Sa, Ta, Ma, Na Rudolph idea from Alluem Kids Yoga: http://alluemkids.blogspot.com/2010/12/happy-holidays-from-rudolph-and-alluem.html

Gingerbread Play Dough Recipe: http://www.theimaginationtree.com/2011/12/gingerbread-play-dough-recipe.html

Fun Christmas scented playdoh ideas from 1+1+1=1: http://www.1plus1plus1equals1.net/2011/12/12-days-of-christmas-busy-hands-play/

Cute Printable Paper Ornaments to use in Christmas Tree Pose: http://familyfun.go.com/assets/cms/pdf/printables/Christmas-Tree-Paper-Ornaments-printables-1010.pdf

Make a “Melted Snowman” glitter bottle: http://www.craftelf.com/Craft_elf_Holiday_Christmas_melted_snowman_craft_project.htm

Cute idea from Inner Child Fun! Get the instructions & free printable template to make this cardboard toy gingerbread house from an empty cereal box: http://innerchildfun.com/2012/11/diy-cardboard-toy-gingerbread-house.html

Puffy snowflake paintings: http://innerchildfun.com/2012/01/puffy-snowflake-paintings.html

Make a snow globe: http://thegreendragonfly.wordpress.com/2011/12/03/make-a-snow-globe/

Songs:

Once There Was A Snowman – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mv4cC3rM63s

“Once there was a snowman, snowman, snowman. Once there was a snowman tall, tall, tall. In the sun he melted, melted, melted. In the sun he melted small, small, small.”

Thanks to Donna Freeman from Yogainmyschool for suggesting this song….. It’s new to me and I LOVE it. It will be perfect to stretch tall, tall, tall and then melt down into a small snowball – child’s pose! As I was looking for this song I found several more snow songs on this website: http://www.everythingpreschool.com/themes/snow/songs.htm

Guided Relaxation: The Relax Kids “Silent Nights” album is available for FREE right now – It has 12 Christmas & Winter themed guided relaxation visualization mp3’s – http://www.relaxkids.com/advent/gifts/silentnights/

The Snowman guided relaxation script (a shortened version based on this post on the Relax Kids blog: http://blog.relaxkids.com/?p=2219)

Feel free to add any other fun seasonal kids yoga ideas in a comment below!

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

E-Mail: amoorad1@juno.com

Contests & Giveaways on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/OMazingKidsContestsandGiveaways

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/amoorad

http://familyfun.go.com/autumn/fall-printables/holiday-basket-with-leaves-704304/

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.

NOTE: Please ignore any ads that appear below the gingerbread men divider bar. This is a free blog site & I have no control over ads appearing here.

Happy Fall – fun fall books & activities (updated for Fall 2012)

Posted on September 24, 2011 by OMazing Kids

A few fun fall books & activities to celebrate my favorite season…..

Several of my favorite fall books also have tons of great opportunities for kids yoga poses & breathing:

Apple Farmer Annie by Monica Wellington (see this post for a full lesson plan & free printable kids yoga sequence: https://omazingkidsllc.com/2012/09/15/apple-farmer-annie-seed-to-farmers-market-kids-yoga-lesson-plan/

The Busy Little Squirrel by Nancy Tafuri (tree, spider, mouse – child’s pose, bird, grasshopper, frog, fish, cat, dog, pumpkin, owl, squirrel + do toe-ga to pick up pom-pom “acorns”, picking apple stretch, sun stretch & breath, buzzing bee breath, pick up leaves)

When the Leaf Blew In by Steve Metzger (blow on leaves, cow, spider, owl, pig-happy baby pose, goat-donkey kicks, chicken-bird, horse-neigh & stretch up, sheep-jump, duck, frog, dragonfly-buzzing breath, dog, squirrel, bird, tree) – Click here for story props I made for this book: When the Leaf Blew In story props(PDF)

Count Down to Fall by Fran Hawk (raccoon, possum, moon stretch, cat, butterfly, squirrel, bear, turtle, tree, owl, deer, paddle canoe partner pose, quaking aspen tree, bird, bunny breaths)

Red Are the Apples by Marc Harshman & Cheryl Ryan (flower, fish, cat, blowing wind breath, chicken-bird, raking-forward bend, bean pods-child’s pose, corn stalks-mountain pose, pumpkin, tractor drive group pose, bug-happy baby pose, scarecrow, crows-bird, apple picking stretch, ladder climbing-brain gym cross crawl)

We’re Going on a Leaf Hunt by Steve Metzger (sun stretch & breath, hike-brain gym cross crawl, mountain, tree, forest-trees group pose, waterfall, boat, skunk-cat pose lifting tail to spray, house- rooftops partner pose, leaf blowing, leaf picking). Click here for printable “Thankful Leaves”: Thankful leaves(PDF) & Be Thankful leaves bookmarks (PDF)

There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves by Lucille Colandro. Click here for free printable story props: There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves – free printable story props

Kids Yoga Poses for There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves:

Music: To Be a Tree by The Flannery Brothers (http://flannerybrothers.com/track/to-be-a-tree)

Fun Five Golden Autumn Leaves song & printable props:

See more details on this post: http://picklebums.com/2012/05/17/printable-autumn-leaf-puppets-and-a-song/

Fun Free Printable Fall Barrier Game from 3 Dinosaurs: http://www.3dinosaurs.com/printables/packs/fall.php

Check out the cute video by Alluem Yoga Kids: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jxN8r-BzM0

(Alluem Yoga Kids Blog – http://alluemkids.blogspot.com/)

Join in on a discussion about fun fall kids yoga ideas on the OMazing Kids Facebook page:

Click on a book cover to find that book on Amazon.com….

Other fun fall finds:

Leaves Falling song from Bill & Tammy’s Children’s World Music Express: http://www.amazon.com/Leaves-Falling/dp/B0017KQ2S6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1349304582&s=dmusic&sr=1-1

Autumn Tree pose & song by Musical Yoga Adventures: http://www.musicalyogaadventures.com/?p=routines_for_cd – song & http://www.musicalyogaadventures.com/uploads/pdf/AutumnTree.pdf– PDF

Falling Leaves: A Relax Activity from Little Flower Yoga (original post at http://www.littlefloweryoga.com/little-flower-yoga-blog/falling-leaves-a-relax-activity ).

Coloring Sheets:

Craft: Make a Basket & Leaves:

Make Pumpkins

http://www.homeschoolcreations.net/2009/11/paper-strip-pumpkins-craft/

Fall Memory Match Game (print 2 copies on cardstock & cut apart into game cards. I added fall scrapbooking paper to the back of mine before laminating them)

Fall Memory Match Game (print 2 copies on cardstock)

A fun Pumpkin Pie Playdoh Recipe (to play with…. not to eat 🙂 )

http://www.childhoodbeckons.com/2011/09/pumpkin-pie-play-dough.html

More free printables, including fall-themed apple, leaves & pumpkin songs: http://www.1plus1plus1equals1.com/fallfun.html

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

E-Mail: amoorad1@juno.com

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/amoorad

http://www.doverpublications.com/samplerkids/intro/children53.htm

NOTE: Please ignore any ads that appear below the wavy divider bar. This is a free blog site & I have no control over ads appearing here.

Going on an Urban Animals Hunt – an OMazing Kids Yoga activity

Posted on August 6, 2011 by OMazing Kids

Looking for a fun indoor activity for kids? We did an indoor animal hunt in OMazing Kids Yoga to go with the book “Urban Animals” by Isabel Hill

(take a peek inside the book on her website: http://www.isabelhill.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/UrbanAnimalsExcerpt.pdf & more at http://www.isabelhill.com/books/urban-animals). Available from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Urban-Animals-Isabel-T-Hill/dp/1595722106

I made picture cards for all the animals in the book and taped them on the architectural elements (walls, columns, railings, windows, doors, etc.) inside the JD McCarty Center.

PDF printable (2 pages – letter size paper): Urban Animals – animal pics for indoor animal hunt (tip: laminate the pics or cover in clear contact paper for durability)

We made binoculars out of toilet paper tubes (just need two cardboard tubes of same length, tape, construction paper strip (to tape around the tubes to help hold them together), yarn, a single hole punch & crayons) & then animal hunt began 🙂

The kids took turns doing “I Spy” or “I See” (for kids that were nonverbal, we used a BIGmack® single message voice output communication aide that they pushed the button to say “Look!”).

More info about ways to use the BIGmack® http://talksense.weebly.com/feature-101-ideas-for-a-bigmack.html

Since we were “on the move”, we kept shoes on & didn’t use yoga mats since the area is carpeted (it was a great opportunity for folks to see that yoga can be done “off the mat”)

We stopped and did the yoga pose or breath for each animal that we found (here are a few ideas…. for Seahorse we made up a pose – lay on your tummy, cross your legs & then curl them – like the curled tail of a seahorse, put your hands on the floor by your shoulders and wiggle fingers – like the tiny fins, make sure to switch and cross with the other leg on top; Hare = hopping; Bunny = Bunny Breaths)

Tons of fun for kids of all abilities!

Stop by the OMazing Kids Yoga Facebook page for more fun ideas: http://www.facebook.com/OMazingKidsYoga

Pete’s A Pizza Party – An OMazing Kids Yoga lesson plan based on the story “Pete’s A Pizza” by William Steig

Posted on July 28, 2011 by OMazing Kids

Time for a Pete’s A Pizza Party!

To celebrate having 400 kids yoga fans in one place sharing OMazing ideas, I’m sharing “Pete’s A Pizza Party – a free OMazing Kids Yoga lesson plan based on the story “Pete’s A Pizza” by William Steig” (including supplies, pose ideas, playlist with links to songs, symbols for the book, a printable pizza craft, affirmations and other fun ideas!).

Click on either of the screenshots to download the PDF. Within the PDF you will be able to click on links to the fun stuff!

Feel free to share any other pizza-themed ideas that you have to add to the fun 🙂

(Special thanks to Barbara Gini at BodyLogique for inspiring me to “use my noodle” to try out pizza-themed yoga!)

Update 9/26/13: Did you know that October is National Pizza Month in the USA?

Pete's a Pizza - updated post 2013

Glad to see I’m not the only SLP who LOVES this book! Fun idea to use shredded yellow paper as “cheese”. Check out this post on Preschool Wonders:

More fun ideas for pizza topping props on Playdough to Plato:

Pizza Costume Craft idea:

Wow! Tons of pizza-themed learning printables from 123 Homeschool 4 Me:

Update 8/8/12: Here is a larger version of a pizza and toppings printable I made to use in larger groups of kids as an alternative to each child assembling the pizza printable I included in my original post….. that would still be fun to do but I realized in a group of 14 kids that could take too much time. I bought a pizza pan at Dollar Tree, cut a circle out of a paper bag to fit the pan to be the “dough” & cut it into halves so I could laminate it, cut a smaller circle out of red construction paper to be the “sauce”, laminated the sauce & all the toppings, used a fine-tip permanent marker to write pose options for that ingredient on the back & used clear velcro to attach the sauce and toppings to the dough. I attached the pic of the pizza oven & the timer to the back of the pan (as a place to store them). The kids LOVED being pizzas this week in OMazing Kids Inclusive Yoga at JDMC! They did a great job keeping their table pose steady as I placed the assembled pizza on each child. BTW…. this was a fun way to practice waiting turns & maintaining a pose for a few seconds 🙂

Here is the printable I made: Pizza and Toppings Printable (PDF). I also made a coloring sheet to send home with the kids: Make a Pizza coloring sheet.

Update 9/26/12: Look at the cool Melissa & Doug Felt Pizza Set I got to go with my Pete’s a Pizza theme! Couldn’t pass it up at 40% off at Michael’s last week 🙂

Info about the set: http://www.melissaanddoug.com/felt-pizza-play-food-set.

Free pizza song download: http://soundcloud.com/the-sing-sings/09-lets-make-some-pizza

More fun ideas for this book: http://shannonsbooknook.com/?p=5732

Update 8/10/13:

More pizza-themed ideas on the Running with Paintbrushes blog: http://angeliqueskids.wordpress.com/category/thematic-unit/pizza/ (wow! pizza palooza over there)

Update 10/29/13:

Another fun pizza printable: http://www.makingfriends.com/preschool/paper_pizza.htm

Update 10/30/13:

scan0014

Pizza at Sally’s by Monica Wellington is another fun option for doing pizza-themed kids yoga! In addition to the yoga pose options included in the lesson plan above, this book also has the following opportunities for kids yoga: planting seeds in the community vegetable garden (see Seeds & Gardens post for ideas), Sally’s cat, sun, harvesting wheat, milling flour, cow, making cheese. I love the vivid colors in this book, the combination of real photos with illustrations, how it shows where food really comes from (the process of growing & harvesting), Sally as the pizzeria owner (the depiction of a woman as a successful small business owner), etc.

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

Speech-Language Pathologist at the JD McCarty Center (http://www.jdmc.org/)

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

Radiant Child Yoga Certified – Levels 1 & 2

E-Mail: amoorad1@juno.com

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/amoorad