Their hearts, minds and hands are open. Children lie on their backs awaiting a freeze diamond - a gem that will be placed on their bellies, frozen still. To the adults in Yoga Storytime, this gem seems pretty, yet average. To the children, they're pretty, and yet magical.
Books have the same quality. The words and illustrations provide a sense of awe and wonder, a sense of magic and meaningfulness for those that resonate with it. If you're looking for a place to drift off to, or a message that makes your heart full and happy, here are my top five reccomendations, just for you:
1). Imaginations: Fun Relaxation Stories and Meditations for Kids by Carolyn Clarke
The ability to relax is an essential skill in our hectic world today. This book provides stories to help children learn to calm their bodies and relax their minds. Wildly imaginative and whimsically joyful, Carolyn Clarke’s guide is a wonderful tool full of stories, vivid details and beautiful illustrations for children to learn that the most important spaces in life are often the quiet moments in between.
2). Yoga Frog by Nora Carpenter
Frog loves to practice yoga. And he will inspire kids to enjoy doing yoga, too. Follow Frog's yoga flow, from warming up to cooling down.
3). Everyone by Christopher Silas Neal
In this title our author invites young readers to explore how we feel what we feel, and how everyone else feels it, too. From the animals in the woods to the neighbors in their homes nearby, everyone has feelings and shares them in this whimsical story. Vivid, childlike art in a limited palette conveys a full spectrum of emotion. Young children easily frustrated by a popped balloon or overjoyed by a sky full of stars will relish this simple exploration of empathy.
4). Meditation is an Open Sky by Whitney Stewart
In this daily companion, kids of any age will learn simple exercises to help manage stress and emotions, find focus, and face challenges. They’ll discover how to feel safe when scared, relax when anxious, spread kindness, and calm anger when frustrated. Simple, secular, and mainstream, this mindfulness book is an excellent tool for helping kids deal with the stresses of everyday life.
5). This Moment is Your Life (and so is this one): A Fun and Easy Guide to Mindfulness, Meditation, and Yoga by Miriam Gates.
This engaging guide, packed with simple exercises and endearing full-color artwork by Libby VanderPloeg, provides a handy starting point for bringing mindfulness into your daily life. Chapters on meditation, yoga, and mindful breathing explain the benefits of these practices, and you are free to pick and choose what to try. There are quick exercises throughout, and a more extensive tool kit at the end of each chapter. The final chapter offers satisfying five-day challenges that map out ways to pull all of the book's mindfulness techniques together in your day-to-day life.
And there you have it! I hope you enjoy these books just as much as I do.
-Ashten
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