Games are a great way to get kids moving, build strength, practice following directions, working together, and the opportunity to practice yoga poses in fun and engaging ways.
Once you have your Kids Yoga Games Guide: Open Your Guide Up and find the Princess Tiptoe Game! You are ready to begin!
As we teach the game, record your notes, questions, and how you would use this game with kids.
Shhhhh…..don’t wake up the Princess in this new favorite game
Are you needing a game that young kids love to play AND it keeps them quiet?
Princess Tiptoe is a game that I regularly rotate in for my younger kids yoga classes (ages 3-6).
We play this game right before our Stillness and Savasana and it s the perfect game for winding down and bringing a calming sense and energy to the group.
Materials: Magic Wand or something similar deemed magic
Recommended Ages: 3-6
Directions:
Select one player as “Prince Tiptoe” (or Princess Tiptoe).
The other players spread over the room and go into Child’s Pose (see image below). If you are able, turn the lights turned low as tat creates a calming feeling.
Princess Tiptoe begins by putting a finger to their lips and whispering: “shh! Here comes Prince Tiptoe” as they tiptoe around the room.
When the players are tapped by Prince Tiptoe they join in a line behind the Prince, tiptoeing at the same speed.
When all of the players are in line, Prince Tiptoe slows the movement and turns to the player directly behind them and says, “shh.”
The Player behind should quickly tiptoe back to their original spot and go back into Child’s Pose.
This continues until all of the players have returned to their spots.
This is great for transitioning from a noisy, loud active group game to a quieter time for younger children. I love to use this game as a simple and effective transition into Stillness and Savasana at the end of our yoga class.
It will be so much fun learning a variety of yoga games perfect for all ages!
These Yoga Games Will:
Create strength physically and mentally for kids
Promote teamwork and team building skills
Build confidence
Increase flexibility
Improve Balance and focus
Enhance creative thinking
Bring joy, laughter, and reminders not to take ourselves too seriously!
Each game include videos, directions on how to enhance and differentiate for kids with varying abilities within the games, as well as game images and lesson plans.
Age Group Characteristics & Groupings for Yoga Games
The following guidelines will help you decide which yoga games and activities are most appropriate for the children you will be working with.
Early Childhood: Ages 2-5
Children at this stage thrive on repetition and routine. This knowledge is helpful not just in their play, but in all areas of their lives. Children at this age have difficulty waiting for their turn, but they learn as it is shown and modeled.
Preschool children are just discovering all of the different ways their bodies can move around—skip, hop, gallop, shuffle, run, walk backward—making active movement games especially beneficial. Incorporating pretend and fantasy into yoga games feeds imaginations and allows for unique personalities and ideas to emerge and grow.
Keeping games short, five to seven minutes at most, and giving simple directions will keep them present and focused. They are easily distracted but they are eager to learn and will engage well with repetitive directions, movements, and play.
School Age: Ages 5-11
As kids mature, they develop longer attention spans, stronger bodies, and more control over their movements. But they also need variation, as they grow bored with anything too repetitive.
Physically, kids this age can handle additional large motor movement and poses, so incorporating more complicated games and activities will challenge them and keep them engaged. Introducing themes helps them retain information and recall it.
This age group enjoys cooperation and teamwork. Friendships are important. Children quickly learning interpersonal skills as they move through elementary, primary, and intermediate schools. They understand the concept of taking turns and often have a developing or well-formed understanding of teamwork.
Kids love playing yoga games and they are a great way to get kids moving in good and healthy ways while practicing yoga poses and building strength.
Games are also perfect for allowing opportunities to work together as a team and practice yoga poses in fun and engaging ways.
Below are a few of our Featured Favorite Kids Yoga Games.
CLICK ON IMAGE BELOW TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY
Kids Need Yoga More Than Ever
Kids need yoga. Our world is changing, and our kids face different challenges and commitments then they have in the past.
There are many demands on kids’ time and pressure to do well and be successful at what they are involved in. This includes school, family, friends, sports, quickly changing technology and other interests.
Conclusion:
Kids need to learn how to be able to work through these demands in healthy and responsible ways.
Yoga is a skill that can benefit all kids no matter what activities they are involved in or what their interests and abilities are. Yoga meets everyone at any stage and provides incredible extrinsic and intrinsic benefits.
By introducing yoga to children through playing games, this helps create high interest and engagement. The children will better retain the poses and skills they have learned, will practice teamwork and leadership skills while having a lot of fun!
Yoga Mirror is a wonderful game to practice slowing down, mindfulness and working together. I know that kids learn best by doing as opposed to us telling them about how to do it.
With Yoga Mirror, one child gets to be the leader and their partner needs to follow them exactly. This is empowering and fun for kids!
How to Play Yoga Mirror:
With Yoga Mirror, one child gets to be the leader and their partner needs to follow them exactly.
The leader needs to move very very slowly so their partner can keep up. It is almost as if you are looking into a mirror and seeing the movements happen at the same time.
I like to have the partners begin facing one another.
Model how slow they will move such as raising one hand and then the other, rolling their neck or looking up at the ceiling.
Once they have that mastered they can begin moving slowing into Cat/Cow stretches, Warrior 1 or other poses that allow them to still face one another so they can keep track of what is happening.
By letting kids take a turn being in charge and making decisions on what poses they are going to do, allows a deeper level of understanding. It is the simple act of doing, rather than telling.
Be sure to jump in and play along too. That makes it even extra special. How often do children get to lead and have adults follow? They love it!
Allow children to change who is the leader and follower each time.
Allow each turn to last 45 seconds to a minute. They do not need long!
How to Play Quiet Ball: A Mindfulness Game for Children:
Number of Players: 4+
Materials: Small ball (or other seasonal type balls; beach ball, soccer ball, etc)
Recommended Ages: 5 and up
How to play
Have the children sit in a circle. Depending on the ages of the kids, determines how far away everyone sits. The younger the ages, the closer they sit together.
One child gets to toss the ball to anyone they wish as long as that person is quiet and paying attention.
The ball is continually passed around the circle with each person making eye contact to the person they will pass it to.
The ball cannot be passed to someone who is not paying attention because they will may not to catch it.
See how long you can keep the ball going without it being dropped.
Leader Notes:
If I am playing this game at school, I would allow the children to sit on top of their desks or tables. How often do they get to do that? That alone ups the fun factor for sure!
To sometimes change the game up, I also have the class count aloud to see how many times we can catch it in a row without dropping the ball.
This doesn’t necessarily keep the game quiet, but it does provide a change in pace and definitely keeps everyone paying attention.
More Favorite Kids Yoga Games
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Kids love playing yoga games and it is a wonderful way to build strength, teamwork, flexibility and have fun moving their bodies in good and healthy ways.
Find your FREE Games Guide with directions, game downloads, resources and more.
Do you remember as a kid playing a game where you cannot touch the ground at the park or playground?
The Hot Lava Yoga Game is similar to that, but played with yoga mats. It one of the most popular yoga game for the kids! They love to play Hot Lava and cannot get enough.
Thisis a wonderful game to get bodies moving, hearts pumping and smiles on faces while they practice the yoga poses that they just learned.
Place yoga mats in a circle so they are stepping distance apart. Here is where I find my Kid-Sized Yoga Mats.
Place a Kids Yoga Challenge Pose Cardat the top of each mat. Play music. Players go in a circle being careful not to touch the floor (hot lava). When the music stops, they must stay on the mat they are on and make the yoga pose.
Leader Notes: This is a fun game for all ages. The younger children tend to stay at the top of the mats so the distance is not as far. The older children enjoy leaping from one mat to another from the back of the mats.
I do not generally have the children get out “out” if they are the last one to make their yoga pose. The goal is after all to get the children moving in positive ways, practice yoga poses, and have fun.
The Kids Yoga Challenge Pose Cards include 40 Yoga Poses, Starred Difficulty Level, and corresponding Mantra
The Kids Yoga Challenge Pose Cards
