Yoga is a great extra-curricular activity for kids to participate in because it values individual progress as well as community. Practicing yoga regularly can develop important personal skills like self-confidence, determination, and personal expression, while also cultivating important interpersonal skills like empathy, sharing, and compassion.
During COVID it can be difficult for children to find activities where they are fostering these values—many extra-curricular activities are canceled and there is often less interaction when they do take place. Yoga classes (for both children and adults) are a great activity because they can be done individually, while also building a sense of community with others.
Here are 6 fun yoga games that can be conducted in the virtual classroom – in either a yoga class or for a fun stretch break in another class – to build community and interactivity in the classroom. These are also great activities to do at home with parents and siblings!
- Spin the Wheel
There are many apps available that allow you to “spin the wheel” to make a selection. These are fun programs to use in the virtual yoga classroom (or at home). Simply download a program, like Tiny Decisions, and type in the poses you want to choose from. Kids and teachers/parents alike will be entertained by the anticipation of seeing what the next pose is as the wheel goes around!
2. Create a Pose
Kids LOVE making up their own poses. You might put a random selection of words (nouns) in a hat and draw them out one at a time. Have the children create a pose they think embodies the nature of the word. This can be done individually or in a group.
3. Group Story
Making up a Group Story is another fun game to get the creative juices flowing. Each student adds their own sentence that includes a yoga pose to tell a story. This can continue for quite a while and become really silly! The Group Story activity emphasizes team building and collaboration.
4. Yoga Bingo
Bingo is a fun game that can be adapted to the virtual classroom easily enough. Teachers can email a yoga bingo template to parents to print at home for this activity. As the teacher randomly calls out each pose, all the students must find it on their bingo boards and then do the pose. If playing with older kids, the winner can be the leader the next round.
5. Pose Flow
We often focus so much on the poses we are doing in yoga that we forget about all the space in between. For the Pose Flow game, use a set of cards (or the wheel from the previous activity) to select two poses. Then, try to find create ways to go from one pose to the other and back again. This may be more difficult with certain poses than others – Warrior 1 to Airplane pose is a fun balancing challenge! Pose Flow is a great way to focus on transitions and encourage kids to think about the control required to smoothly go from one pose to the next.
6. Yoga Memory
Yoga Memory is a fun take on the common Memory Game. Each student must say one pose for everyone to follow. The next student must remember their pose and add one to the yoga “flow.” See how many poses the group can remember. You may end up with a pretty interesting yoga sequence in this game!
Do you have any other favorite yoga games that can be adapted to the virtual classroom? If so, share below!
Lydia Kilian 