Dancing Trees a Fun Yoga Game for Busy Bears

We love kids yoga here at Calm Ahoy Kids, especially yoga games! However my son is 4 and struggles to pay attention to longer sessions and screens, so we love to play random yoga games through out the day. This is one of his favourites, Dancing Trees. Dancing Trees is a fun yoga game that can help kids improve their balance, concentration and strength by practicing tree pose.

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How does Yoga Benefit Kids?

Yoga poses help kids develop better body awareness and coordination, which can improve their balance and posture. Additionally, yoga can also improve their concentration and focus.

Yoga is also a great tool for children to learn how to manage stress and anxiety. Through deep breathing exercises and mindfulness techniques, yoga can help kids learn how to calm themselves down and regulate their emotions.

How to Make Yoga Fun for Kids

Yoga is a great way to help kids develop balance, flexibility, and mindfulness. However, it can be challenging to get children excited about yoga, especially if they are used to more active forms of play. Here are some tips to make yoga fun for kids:

Incorporate games: Kids love to play games, so try to incorporate games and activities into your yoga routine. You can play “yoga freeze tag” where the child freezes in a yoga pose when tagged, or make a game out of holding a pose for a certain length of time.
Make it interactive: Try to make yoga interactive by asking kids to help you create a story or theme for the class. You can also encourage them to come up with their own poses and incorporate them into the routine.

Keep it short and sweet: Kids have short attention spans, so it’s important to keep yoga sessions short and focused. Aim for 15-20 minutes of yoga per session, and try to vary the poses and activities to keep it interesting.
Be silly: Lastly, don’t be afraid to be silly and have fun with yoga. Kids love to laugh, so incorporate funny noises, animal sounds, and movements into your routine to keep them engaged and entertained.
Use props: Props like blocks, straps, and blankets can help make yoga more fun and accessible for kids. They can use the blocks to balance in poses, the straps to help them stretch, and the blankets to make a cozy nest for relaxation.

We also love our Teddy, he is such a great prop for teaching children yoga poses as his little legs and arms all move. He’s also so super soft and great for a cuddle and chill out time too. My husband particularly likes him because he stays still for pictures!

10 Fun Yoga Props for Kids:

Here is a list of 1o of my favourite yoga props to use with kids and make mindfulness and yoga even more fun!

Posable Soft Toy – So much fun, we love our bear. Check out this awesome cow, so cute!

Yoga Books – I love the Meddy Teddy Book, Goodnight Yoga for bedtime and llamaste and friends (you can get free printable yoga cards to go with it!)
I also love these Yogi dice and cards as they turn Yoga into a game, which is always engaging!

How to Play Dancing Trees a Fun Yoga Game

To begin you can put on some music or not and dance around the place like trees in a storm.

When you shout storm passed, everyone stands tall with their feet hip width apart, stretching their arms out to either side, like branches and slowly growing into a tree.
Then place the sole of one foot on the inside of the other leg, either below or above the knee. Find your balance, focus on on spot or object as this makes it easier to balance
Now its time to take turn trying to blow the trees down and see how strong they can be. Repeat as many times as you wish and have fun.