Peaceful Movement

Peaceful Movement

29 August 2021

Whāia te kotahitanga o te wairua. Mā te rangimarie me te aroha e paihere.

Pursue unity of spirit. Be bound together by peace and love

A Nurtured at Home, we support children’s emotional competence using a range of strategies and guided by the Ministry of Education publication He Māpuna te Tamaiti. One of the strategies tamariki can explore is how relaxed breathing and movement can help them to self-regulate.

This month’s resource for our Educators is a set of yoga cards showing several different yoga positions for children that can be used to improve both physical and mental health in our tamariki. These cards can be used by Educators alongside children so that they are participating together.

Yoga improves balance, strength, flexibility and coordination, and when used in mindfulness, can help children to feel calmer and less frustrated.  Yoga can be used at any time of the day; at the start of the day to warm up and stretch muscles; at the end of the day to wind down and relax; or as children learn the poses for themselves, they can retreat to a quiet space for some calming mindfulness.