Yoga for Kids: The Benefits and 5 Techniques to Try

Yoga for kids has begun to appear in more schools and classrooms across the nation, and parents and teachers alike have noticed the results. This ancient practice benefits people of all ages, and it can help the youngest members of society on their path to physical, mental and emotional development. 

There’s no age limit — there’s even a yoga pose called “happy baby,” inspired by the lighthearted way cheerful infants play with their toes while still in the crib. However, teaching yoga to little ones requires a unique and fun-focused approach. Here’s what you should know about the benefits of yoga for your kids and five techniques that you can most definitely try at home. 

The Many Benefits of Yoga for Kids

Your little ones can reap the following benefits from a regular yoga practice. Guess what? You can, too. Consider getting on the mat together for these impressive perks. 

1. Improves Strength and Flexibility 

Little bodies need training like adult ones to develop strength and flexibility. However, some forms of exercise, such as hitting the weight room, can harm this age group more than help. Conversely, yoga builds strength through isometric contractions, using your body weight, reducing the risk of injury and keeping the intensity age-appropriate. Furthermore, the stretching involved in a yoga routine elongates muscles while toning, building flexibility, too. 

2. Develops Balance and Coordination 

Little kids are a lot like baby deer — still growing into their bodies and getting their limbs to coordinate. Many injuries in this age group occur because of this awkwardness and the accidents that can follow. Yoga develops balance and coordination, giving your little one more mastery over their developing muscles, ligaments and tendons. Improving this functionality reduces injury risk while making kids more secure in their abilities. 

3. Promotes Motor Skills and Enhances Proprioception

Much of early childhood education focuses on improving motor skills, and yoga is one tool to help kids develop them. It’s especially useful in building proprioception, which is your sense of where your body is in space without visual input. For example, guides teaching kiddie yoga might help their class members get into a pose and then close their eyes, exploring how it feels to touch their toes without looking toward them. Refining proprioceptive skills results in fewer spilled juice boxes. 

4. Helps Them Sleep at Night

Any form of physical activity encourages sounder sleep in folks of all ages, but yoga may be particularly beneficial. One study found that women who regularly participated in Yin or Vinyasa yoga experienced a 60% or greater improvement in overall sleep quality. You can even use some forms, such as Yin and restorative yoga, to help an anxious child calm their nervous system before bedtime, helping them relax before tucking them in with a soothing bedtime story. 

5. Eases Stress and Improves Emotional Well-Being 

Stress affects people of all ages, including children. When too much tension builds up inside, it becomes more difficult to think clearly and even encourage negative thought patterns. Yoga can help counteract these negative thoughts, especially when practiced with a mental component, such as reciting positive affirmations throughout the practice.  

6. Encourages Self-Reflection and Emotional Regulation 

You can’t blame children for acting impulsively at times — after all, adults do so all the time, too, although the consequences can sometimes be more severe. However, you can teach children self-reflection and emotional regulation skills that teach that all-important pause between thinking and acting that can lead to better decision-making and fewer crises. 

Yoga teaches self-reflection and emotional regulation in a fun, approachable and nonjudgmental way. There’s no adult saying, “you should do this, or else.” Instead, guides encourage children to notice their frustration on the mat and choose how to respond to it. They learn how to breathe through temporary discomfort and keep their reactions in check, not out of fear of punishment but because of growing self-awareness of how their actions influence others and their world. 

7. Improves Concentration and Focus

Yoga builds mental strength, particularly in those parts of the brain associated with memory, attention and thought. MRI scans show that those who regularly practice yoga thicken their cerebral cortex and hippocampus, areas of the brain related to learning, memory and logical thought. Perhaps that’s why children who regularly practice yoga perform better academically while also exhibiting fewer behavioral problems. 

8. Develops a Sense of Confidence and Agency 

Children who lack confidence can become targets for bullies, which can affect their sense of agency, which is the belief that their actions make a difference. Those with a low sense of agency are more prone to depression, as they see no way to address the problems they face. Yoga helps build confidence and agency in kids, teaching them that they can do what they set their minds to when they try and fostering a stronger sense of self. 

4 Techniques to Try to Get Your Kids Into Yoga 

You can start using yoga for kids at nearly any age, even with toddlers. The following five techniques can help you introduce a love of this practice to your little one in an age-appropriate way. 

1. Animal Planet 

Many yoga poses take their names from various animals — which is the perfect way to get kids to play along and try an asana or two. For example, you can teach cat pose by having them round their spines like a scared Halloween kitty. 

2. Name that Feeling

A fun way to teach your kids emotional regulation through yoga is by helping them identify the emotions they experience on the mat. For example, if you see your little one struggling with a pose, stop and ask how they feel. Identify “frustration” and then positive ways to deal with that emotion — they might modify the pose slightly or do the best they can, resolving to keep trying. 

3. Say Good Morning 

The sun salutation is a classic vinyasa flow that’s a staple in many yoga styles. Get your kids in the habit of yoga each morning by facing the big yellow orb in the sky and saying “hello” by flowing through the series of poses two or three times. You’ll start the day mindfully and loosen your limbs up for the day. 

4. Simon Says 

You know how to play Simon Says — call out the names of various yoga poses instead of “take two steps forward.” Another twist is to use positive affirmations. For example, “Simon says, repeat after me, ‘I control my actions and responses’.” Your child then echoes the affirmation, helping them build confidence and belief in themselves. 

Yoga for Kids: Benefits and Techniques 

Yoga benefits people of all ages, including children. Youth who regularly participate in yoga do better in school and may have improved physical, mental and emotional health. Using simple, age-appropriate techniques to teach yoga for kids can bring your child to the mat with you, where you can guide their love of this ancient practice as a useful form of exercise and psychological intervention they can turn to throughout their lives.