Relaxation for Kids During the Holidays

Are the holidays feeling hectic? Here are a few things to bring a little relaxation into your home or classroom during these busy December days.

Snow angels


Plop down in the snow (or the sand if you live in SoCal!), and make snow angels. Inhale: Move your arms up over your head and move your legs out. Exhale: Move your arms down and legs in. Look up at the sky, take deep breaths, and feel the joy!
 

Star drawing with breaths


Hold an imaginary pencil (or a real one), and draw a star in the air (or on paper). Inhale: Draw a line of the star. Exhale: Draw another line of the star. Continue drawing and feel your mind sync with your breath. Ahhh…

Gratitude


With each present you wrap, each card you stamp, take a moment to feel gratitude for the person it is for. Share a funny story, think of a nice thing they’ve done, or just send them some love.  Share this practice with your kids and students.

Cinnamon Stick Breaths


Hold a cinnamon stick to your nose and take deep slow breaths in and out. Smell the holidays!
 

Yoga Bedtime Story


Try winding down with some yoga at bedtime (or anytime you need to bring the energy down). I love Giselle Shardlow’s Good Night, Animal World.
 

Relax in Savasana


Try a relaxation story to help kids calm their minds while they settle their bodies in savasana.  As a gift, you can download the Wintertime relaxation story from Imaginations 2 here. (You will need to enter your information into the shopping cart, but there is no charge for the story during December.)

 

Happy Holidays! Remember to breathe and take in all the moments of this holiday season!

With love,

Carolyn

5 Ways to Calm Your Elf On A Shelf

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1. Read it a relaxation story! Elves love hearing relaxation stories, especially ones from the book, Imaginations: Fun Relaxation Stories and Meditations for Kids!

2. Take deep breaths! When elves get tense sometimes they forget to take deep breaths. When elves are tense they misbehave and make MESSES!!!

3. Go outside! Seeing the sunshine and feeling the ground under their feet helps elves relax.

4. Take a bath with some lavender essential oil! What elf can resist the scent of lavender? ZZZZZzzzzzzz....

5. Do some yoga! Elves love doing balancing poses because they help clear their minds and focus on their task at hand- helping Santa!

Wishing you Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year!

Carolyn Clarke
www.imaginationsforkids.com

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The Grinch's Heart Chakra!

GrinchHeart (Image from SpoolandSpoonBlog.com)

I lucked out yesterday with a last minute ticket for Dr. Seuss' How The Grinch Stole Christmas at the San Diego’s Old Globe Theater!  It’s been a long time since I read the book or saw the movie, so it was as if I was hearing the story for the first time.  What struck me about the play was how “yoga” it is.

This is actually a story about the heart chakra! Initially, the Grinch’s heart is cold and closed- he hates Christmas, carols, holiday feasts, toys, and children.  But, he connects with one little girl, Cindy Lou Who.  She shows him compassion and forgiveness for being the Grinch that he is, and her open heart helps him open HIS heart! On stage, the Grinch’s heart lights up and we hear it beat loudly. His heart chakra is opening! The chakra of love, compassion, and kindness. And guess what color is the color of the heart chakra- GREEN! The color of the Grinch!

I was planning on putting together a Grinch yoga lesson plan, and stumbled across this post on my friend Angela’s Moorad’s blog, OmAzing Kids, here.  This makes my lesson planning easy! We must be connected at the heart chakra this week! Thank you Angela!

I also thought of the Loving Kindness relaxation story in my book, Imaginations: Fun Relaxation Stories and Meditations for Kids. It says:

"Now think of someone who is mean or unfriendly. Send this person some love, too. Sometimes people are mean because they don't feel loved. So send this person some extra love."

So our challenge as yogis is to send some extra love to all the Grinches out there from our heart chakras to their heart chakras!!!

With love and gratitude,

Carolyn Clarke

www.imaginationsforkids.com www.sdyogakids.com https://www.facebook.com/imaginationsforkids