Yoga Storytime:Integrating Technology, Literacy,

and Movement

YogaFamily Storytime

FLEXIBLE

FREDDY• Yoga is peace. Raise your

hand to speak. A word about restlessness.

• Yoga is reflection. Please watch teacher before you perform yoga move.

• Yoga is happy. Please don’t make Freddy unhappy. Be positive!

Sitting Happy: Lotus Flower

Breathing Like Waves

Breathe in as wave comes in

Breathe out as wave goes out

TumbleBooks

www.libraryvisit.org/

Meditation Exercise

Namaste“I bow to the goodness in you.”

Namaste is what you say

to the good in you and the good in me.

Say Namaste, everyday

and the world will live in harmony.

Song from Sydney Solis’ Storytime Yoga, available at our library.

Sun SalutationsSun, sun

I salute the sunI open my heart

To everyone.The sun rises

And the sun setsThe whole world

In my heart rests.Again I rise

Ready to liveHappy to be

And ready to give.Sun, sun

I salute the sunI open my heart

To everyone.

Sun Salutations

• Mountain pose• Hands in heart position• Breathing in

Sun, Sun

• Reach arms overhead• Still breathing in

I salute the sun

• Exhale (breathe out)• Head to knees• Hands to the ground

(if possible)

I open my heart

• Inhale (breathe in)• Halfway up• Straight back

To everyone

• Exhale• Head to knees again• Can you reach more this

time?

The sun rises• Inhale• Left foot back• Runner’s pose• Right foot

between hands

And the sun sets

• Exhale• Right leg back to plank• Like you’re about to do

a push-up

The whole world

• Inhale• Lower knees down• Advanced move: instead

of lowering knees down, do the down part of a push-up

In my heart rests

• Exhale• Lie on floor• Hands outside of

shoulders

Again I rise

• Inhale up• Cobra pose

Ready to live

• Exhale• Bottom in the air• Downward dog

Happy to be

• Inhale• Left foot between

hands• Runner’s pose

And ready to give

• Exhale • Head to knees

Sun, sun

• Inhale• Halfway up again• Straight back

I salute the sun

• Exhale• Forward bend• Head to knees

I open my heart

• Big inhale• Arms up over head• Clap if you want

To everyone

• Exhale• Hands back into heart

space

Sun Salutations

• Mountain pose• Hands in heart position• Breathing in

Sun, Sun

• Reach arms overhead• Still breathing in

I salute the sun

• Exhale (breathe out)• Head to knees• Hands to the ground

(if possible)

I open my heart

• Inhale (breathe in)• Halfway up• Straight back

To everyone

• Exhale• Head to knees again• Can you reach more this

time?

The sun rises• Inhale• Left foot back• Runner’s pose• Right foot

between hands

And the sun sets

• Exhale• Right leg back to plank• Like you’re about to do

a push-up

The whole world

• Inhale• Lower knees down• Advanced move: instead

of lowering knees down, do the down part of a push-up

In my heart rests

• Exhale• Lie on floor• Hands outside of

shoulders

Again I rise

• Inhale up• Cobra pose

Ready to live

• Exhale• Bottom in the air• Downward dog

Happy to be

• Inhale• Left foot between

hands• Runner’s pose

And ready to give

• Exhale • Head to knees

Sun, sun

• Inhale• Halfway up again• Straight back

I salute the sun

• Exhale• Forward bend• Head to knees

I open my heart

• Big inhale• Arms up over head• Clap if you want

To everyone

• Exhale• Hands back into heart

space

Time for a Story

The Rabbit in the Moon

Retell Story with Yoga Poses

Once there was a beautiful, lush FOREST

In the forest lived an ELEPHANT

a MONKEY

an OTTER

and a RABBIT

The rabbit called the animals together, and they spoke of how fortunate they were to live in such

abundance.

To demonstrate their gratitude, they decided to bring gifts to the next person to enter the forest.

The MAN IN THE MOON heard their plan for gift-giving and decided to test them

The MAN IN THE MOON changed into a HUMAN

And entered the beautiful FOREST

As promised, the elephant brought him water

The monkey gathered fruits

The otter caught fresh fish

And the rabbit built a fire and prepared to jump in…

The man in the moon who changed into a human plucked the

rabbit from the air

He then lifted the rabbit to the moon

And to this day, rabbit has lived on the moon.

Can you see the rabbit in the moon?

Think of an Animal…

Make up your OWN yoga pose!

Final Story With Yoga:Moon Child

Ocean of OmsOm is the sound of the universe

Possum Pose

Namaste

Resources

• Demaria, Michael Brant. Ocean. CD. Ontos Music, 2008.• Krilanovich, Nadia. Moon Child. Berkeley: Tricycle Press,

2010.• Reynolds, Peter. The Dot. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press,

2003.• Solis, Sydney. Storytime Yoga: Teaching Yoga to Children

Through Story. Boulder, CO: Mythic Yoga Studio, 2006.

Does your library offer Christmas programs?

Decorate eggs in the spring?

Have a “holiday” section? If so, what holidays are represented?

What Libraries Can Use from Yoga

Emotional and Physical Benefits

• Breathing Peace/Calmness/Relaxation– Counting to ten when angry…

“Deep-Breathing Stroll” (p22)101 Relaxation Games for Children : Finding a Little Peace and

Quiet in Between by Allison Bartl

Breathe deeply for four counts

Hold one or two counts

Make a (hissing) sound as you breathe

out four counts

After a rhythm is established, stroll

around the room (with a partner?)

What Libraries Can Use from Yoga

Emotional and Physical Benefits

• Breathing Peace/Calmness/Relaxation

• Positive Attitude– Letting go of the negative– Cultivating the positive

Positive Attitude ActivitiesItsy Bitsy Yoga for Toddlers and Preschoolers: 8-Minute Routines to Help Your Child Grow Smarter, be Happier, and Behave Better by Helen Garabedian (p198)

• I (both fists to your heart)• Like (open arms to the

sides)• Ask a question, child

responds (e.g. What color do you like?)

• Orange! (bring arms in, hug self, and wiggle side to side)

• (repeat three times with same answer)

101 Relaxation Games for Children : Finding a Little Peace and Quiet in Between by Allison Bartl (p50)

• One by one, participants get the bottle of bubbles, think about something bothering her/him, and blow the troubles away.

What Libraries Can Use from Yoga

Emotional and Physical Benefits• Breathing

Peace/Calmness/Relaxation• Positive Attitude• Self-reflection/self-esteem

– Repeat affirmations which are “I Can” or “I Am” positive statements = chants, cheers, or action rhymes

What Libraries Can Use from Yoga

Emotional and Physical Benefits

• Breathing Peace/Calmness/Relaxation

• Positive Attitude• Self-reflection/self-esteem• Building Community /

Parent and Child Bonding

Laughter Yoga or Laughter Exercises

Instead of different kinds of claps?Resources

• http://www.laughteryoga.org/• http://lyinstitute.org/• http://www.youtube.com/ • The Great Big Anthology of

Laughter Exercises: 500 Laughter Exercises for Health, Fun and Friendship by Jeffrey Briar

• We already use joke books, silly stories, and tickle rhymes

Some Examples

• Lion: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFynQHRV6hc

• One Meter: http://youtu.be/gHy5NAuahA8?t=17s

• Ho, Ho … Ha, Ha, Ha! Chant: Clap on each syllable. Maybe walk in a circle.

• Ho Ho Ha Ha Laughter Song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4KyTb8-N6A

What Libraries Can Use from Yoga

Emotional and Physical Benefits

• Breathing Peace/Calmness/Relaxation

• Positive Attitude• Self-reflection/self-esteem• Building Community /

Parent and Child Bonding• Exercise

– stretching and strength training

Learning Through MovementHealthy bodies lead to healthy brains that are able to learn.

The Need to Move More

• Move It Movement: http://www.fitness.gov/

• NFL Movement for an Active Generation: http://www.nfl.com/play60

• National Guidelines for Physical Activity: http://www.aahperd.org/naspe/about/results.cfm

Kinesthetic/Early Literacy Learning

• Acknowledge various modes of learning (e.g. Gardner’s multiple intelligences)

• ECRR: Putting movements to words helps vocabulary/language acquisition fingerplays & action rhymes entire movement/music or sensory programs

Full Body Rhymes“I Can Breathe” (p.148)Itsy Bitsy Yoga for Toddlers and Preschoolers: 8-Minute Routines to Help Your Child Grow Smarter, be Happier, and Behave Better by Helen Garabedian

I can breathe & wiggle

I can breathe & giggle

I can breathe & run

I can breathe & have fun

I can breathe & do anything!

Think, breathe, go! (clap, clap, clap)

Think, breathe, go! (clap, clap, clap)

Think, breathe, go! (clap, clap, clap)

Twinkle, Twinkle Variation (p76-7 and 79-81)Itsy Bitsy Yoga for Toddlers and Preschoolers: 8-Minute Routines to Help Your Child Grow Smarter, be Happier, and Behave Better by Helen Garabedian

• Legs apart, breathe, and stretch arms

• Teeter back and forth to syllables in rhyme

• Between verses do “Falling Star” = fall arm to one foot then stretch

Questions? Ideas? Contact Us!• Worldcat.org bibliography:

http://www.worldcat.org/profiles/Fordeeto/lists/2154003

• This PowerPoint: • Allie Graf

agraf@libraryvisit.org• Hayley McEwing

hmcewing@libraryvisit.org

http://librarieslearnlead.blogspot.com/