Good Morning Yoga written by Mariam Gates

Good Morning Yoga written by Mariam Gates and illustrated by Sarah Jane Hinder

Good Morning Yoga is written by Mariam Gates and illustrated by Sarah Jane Hinder. This story uses yoga poses, beautiful illustrations, and catching words to show young children the art of yoga. The poses in this story are meant for morning exercise in order to get ready for the day. Even though it's for the morning, you can implement any of these yoga poses throughout the day. This is a fairly new book that I have, so I haven't been able to use it in my classroom yet.

Each pose is described on each page. There is also an illustration of a child doing the pose. Inside the picture it includes a fun sentence that reads like a story. The author calls it a morning flow. So, readers are meant to practice the yoga poses in order and it will make your mind and body ready for the day.

The Good Morning Yoga Flow

It's up to you how you would like to start this yoga practice. Maybe you would like your students to first listen to the whole book and look at the pictures of the poses. You can then practice each pose while you read the book. If you decide, have your students practice a page a day, and then when they are ready, have them do the whole morning yoga flow.

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Children, whether it's in the classroom or at home, will benefit from practicing yoga. The poses in this particular book gets children ready for the day. It starts by practicing a deep and long breath. It then goes into twists, reaching to the sky, bending, and stretching. It then ends with sitting with the legs crossed, back straight, and breathing in deeply. I noticed that each yoga pose describes breathing. Breathing is a huge part of yoga, and you have to remember to breathe while practicing yoga.

How do you feel?

  At the end of the book, there's a great description about how you are feeling in that moment. It has you close your eyes and just breathe. The author wants you to feel the surroundings around you. Then, choose a word that comes to your mind about how you are feeling at that exact moment. This is great for children to be aware of their surroundings and feelings. You can have students share afterwards as a whole class about how they are feeling.

Usually I post a few activities for each book. This book is different. Yoga is all about practicing. In order to get the most out of this book, I believe that it's important for children to try out the poses. Read the book more than once. Have your students feel comfortable with the poses. Maybe it can become a natural way to start the school day.

                                                                 HAPPY READINGS! 

                                                                              Jenna