Creativity through clothing
When I teach I can always tell the child whose parents let them dress themselves
I can always tell which child’s parents let them dress themselves! They are usually dressed in some sort of mixed-matched pattern, perhaps a tutu or skirt over pants, or some kind of crazy color combination.
As the mother to two girls, and someone who loves fashion as a form of self-expression herself, I loved choosing outfits for my girls to wear when they were little. However, it wasn’t too long before my daughters decided that they wanted to be in charge of what they wear. In the beginning, it took self-control to keep my mouth shut in order to not try and persuade them to choose what I thought looked best (e.g., “Jules, are you sure you want to wear those hot pink checkered leggings with your orange and red floral print sweater?”)
I know that the child who dresses themselves is seizing an opportunity to express their individuality and creativity through their choice in clothing. Most of the time children are told where to go, what to do, what to eat, etc., so it makes sense that giving them agency to choose what to wear is a form of empowerment and allows them to express themselves in their own unique ways.
Now, I love seeing what my daughters are going to pick out to wear. Their creativity and boldness to express themselves is admirable, and oftentimes their looks are more stylish than anything I could have imagined. If you’re looking for a way to infuse some creativity into your child’s life, ask them to start choosing the outfits they want to wear and you’ll be amazed (and perhaps inspired) by what they come up with!
Take a look at my favorite looks worn by my youngest daughter, Juliette. She often reminds me of a 6 year old Carrie Bradshaw with her mixing and matching of patterns!
Are you over-scheduling kids?
Are you overscheduling? There's a lot that goes into managing a child’s schedule
As a mom to two young girls I know what goes into putting together and managing your child’s schedule. (It’s a lot!) A question I often ask myself is how do I make sure I balance my children’s schedules so amongst school and extra-curricular activities they also have enough time to just “be” - oftentimes it’s the unscheduled moments where a child’s creativity can thrive and they learn what their interests are.
With school ending at 3PM and activities starting anywhere as early as 4PM the afternoons where we have an activity can feel like rush hour. Get home - wash hands - have snack - complete homework- off to activity - come home - eat dinner -bath- relax-off to bed and then start the cycle over again. It is not a pace of life I wish to instill for my girls or myself for that matter!
My girls are 8 and 5 and their interests vary. What’s worked for us is to limit their activities to 2 weekday activities and then piano lessons on the weekends. (The teacher comes to our home which makes it easy!) Once the two activities are chosen that is it for season, Even if the other kids are playing soccer or trying a cooking class and we have a little FOMO we stick with what we chose and don’t add more to the schedule. We also all agreed that when we start something we finish it out for the semester and if we don’t want to continue we take what we learned and move on from it.
I believe the open space we leave in our child’s schedule allows them time to decompress, daydream, and relax, which is so important. Even if I get the occasional “I’m bored” I always remind my girls that boredom breeds creativity. (Ha, that sounds like such a mom thing to say!) By finding balance between the doing and just being we teach our children that life isn’t about rushing or doing what everyone else is doing - rather some of the best moments come from the unscheduled and unstructured spaces in our day.
Protecting youth mental health
Every child’s path to adulthood—reaching developmental and emotional milestones
Every child’s path to adulthood—reaching developmental and emotional milestones, learning healthy social skills, and dealing with problems—is different and difficult. Many face added challenges along the way, often beyond their control. There’s no map, and the road is never straight.
Fun moves for focus
Balancing poses are a great way to foster focus and concentration
Yoga is a mind-body-heart practice so it makes sense that different Yoga Asana’s (Poses) have different effects on our body. Balancing poses are a great way to foster focus and concentration and also help us tune into any imbalances we may have in our bodies. For instance, when doing Tree Pose most people will notice that there is one side of their body that feels more steady.
A simple activity to help kids feel centered and balanced is below. I call it Moving Mountains
Start in Tadasana or Mountain Pose. To make it fun and easy to remember I tell children that Mountains have 4 S’s. They are stable, straight, silent and still. (The silent and still is usually the trickiest for them!) Ask them to place their feet like train tracks (parallel) and feel their feet rooted to the earth.
From here you can explore shifting the gaze upward or closing the eyes and seeing if you can feel balance in your body. You can begin to place with balancing postures by lifting one foot off the ground and then the other. (Everything we do in yoga on one side we do one the other!) Ask them to notice, without any judgement, how each side felt in their body and if any thoughts came up in their mind. Practicing balancing postures is a good lesson in Yoga is a practice not a perfect as well as help us tune into our own Mind-body connection.
Kids yoga benefits
The purpose of this review is to evaluate the effectiveness of yoga for eduction
The purpose of this review is to evaluate the implementation and effectiveness of yoga for the reduction of symptoms of anxiety and depression in youth.
Happy new year!
Wishing everyone sweet new beginnings and a healthy and happy 2022!
Wishing everyone sweet new beginnings and a healthy and happy 2022! Stay turned for exciting new announcements and offerings coming this year. We are most grateful for your involvement in our yoga and wellness programming for kids!
Yoga for kids anywhere
Join Lauren on Omstars! Get your kids to start practicing yoga
Join Lauren Chaitoff and Yogi Beans, available exclusively on Omstars! Get your kids to start practicing yoga with Lauren Chaitoff's Yogi Beans Course on Omstars! This course offers classes designed for children aged 3 to 13 to immerse themselves into the world of yoga.
Play with contrast
One of the most helpful tools for getting kids to cooperate during class is to play with CON/TRAST
Bean TIP: Play with Contrast
One of the most helpful tools I’ve discovered for getting kids to cooperate during class is to play with CON/TRAST. If you want kids to stand still in Mountain pose, for example, first let kids wiggle around and jump. If you want kids to be quiet while repeating a mantra in their head first let them say it out loud in a BIG VOICE.
Using contrast not only engage kids and fosters cooperation in learning, it’s use as a mindful anchor of attention can help reduce an overly heightened stress response in thoughts and feelings. This suggestion comes from Susan Kaiser Greenland in her book Mindful Games: Sharing Mindfulness and Meditation with Children, Teens, and Families.