The
discipline of yoga provides school children an opportunity to connect mind and
body, increase self-awareness and encourage healthy living. In a study of 48
fifth graders with abnormal test anxiety, students were divided into a control
and experimental group that received yoga instructions for 60 minutes in 15
different sessions. Stuck and Gloeckner, of Leipzig University in Germany,
evaluated students before the study, after the study and three months following
the study (Early Child Development and Care, 2005). They found that students in
the experimental group had long-term results of emotional balance with
decreased feelings of helplessness, fear and aggression. They transferred what
they learned to situations outside of school to control their feelings of
negativity and improve their sense of well-being.
Another
study compared the before and after spatial and visual tests of three groups of
children either attending a fine arts camp, yoga camp or in a control group.
The yoga camp focused on breathing, posture exercises and meditation. Only the
yoga group improved their spatial memory and right brain activity by 43%. In a
similar study, children ages 9-13 years were divided into a control group and a
yoga training group that had exercises in breathing, visual focusing, silence,
posturing and games to increase memory and attention span. The yoga group had a
17% increase in ability to control their bodies and mind.
In a study
by Kiselia, Baker, Thomas and Reedy (Journal of Counseling Psychology, 1994), stress
management programs showed an improvement in self-esteem, concentration,
academic performance, classroom behavior and emotional balance. It also
decreased feelings of aggression, helplessness and behavioral problems. Yoga
adds an internal locus of control, helps motivate students and gives them
restful sleep. Students start listening to their own emotions leading to
increased self-awareness that provides a buffer against the negative aspects of
our culture that encourage unhealthy eating habits and poor body image.
Yoga is an
effective discipline for students to learn from kindergarten to high school. It
also assists children with learning behavior issues, cerebral palsy, autism and
Down syndrome. Yoga practices can be adapted to physical education and after
school programs in a safe and accepting environment. The emphasis is on the
individual rather than competition among students. Calm, centered and focused
students have better social skills, learning behaviors and are happier. There
are many resources, including DVDs, articles, books and podcasts, available to
parents and educators.
© Copyright 2013 – Aura Wellness Center – Publications Division
To find our how to become a certified yoga instructor or to see our selection of affordable yoga instructor training intensives, please use the yoga resources on the right side of this page.
To find our how to become a certified yoga instructor or to see our selection of affordable yoga instructor training intensives, please use the yoga resources on the right side of this page.
If you are a teacher, yoga studio manager, blogger, e-zine, or website publisher, and are in need of quality content, please feel free to use my blog entries (articles). Please be sure to reprint each article, as is. Namaste!
