Yoga for Kids Teacher Certification

Yoga for Kids Beneficial and Popular

Classes for children are growing in popularity, and the market isn’t limited to health clubs, gyms and yoga studios. According to Yoga Journal magazine, children’s yoga classes are becoming common in schools. Many parents that might not be able to afford $20 or more for private lessons welcome their children’s participation in school or community-based yoga classes.

Yoga engages children in physical activity that feels like play. Unlike adult yoga classes, many kid’s yoga classes integrate hatha yoga poses with music, creative expression, storytelling and more. Children learn differently than adults. Kids yoga classes gear the programs and activities towards children’s attention spans and interests in unique and creative ways. Yoga also strengthens young bodies while increasing focus and concentration.

Earning your yoga for kids teacher certification is a smart way to learn the best methods of teaching youngsters to enjoy yoga.

Teaching Yoga in Schools

School-based yoga programs provide a low-cost way to integrate physical education into the day for most students. Because they require no special equipment, props or recreation areas, yoga programs are particularly attractive to low-income schools.

If you are already a teacher, adding yoga for kids teacher certification is relatively easy and inexpensive, and can provide children with an excellent physical education that helps them relieves stress and develop body, mind and spirit.

To teach yoga in schools, most schools require you to be a certified teacher, teacher’s aid, or hold other state-based credentials. Schools may require you to undergo a criminal background check to ensure the students' safety.

If you are not working in the local school district but would like to introduce a children’s yoga program, it helps to create a course outline and plan to present to the school principal or director of physical education for the district. He or she needs to review the objective of the program, an outline of what you will teach, and your credentials.

Local yoga studios, children’s gyms, or summer camps may also be receptive to hosting a children’s yoga class.

Obtaining Yoga for Kids Teacher Certification

If you want to share your passion for yoga with children, there are many organizations that provide teacher certification. To get started, you must regularly practice yoga, and enjoy children!

Some programs will provide the basic 200-hour certification in yoga, while others may require you to have that prior to learning methods for kid's yoga.

The following organizations offer programs in many locations, with one or more days of training available. Some include books, DVDs, and lesson plans.

Three Certification Programs

United States

YogaKids (Long Beach, California): YogaKids, founded by Marsha Wenig, certifies people to teach in the YogaKids method. Integrating yoga, creativity, music and fun, YogaKids emphasizes healthy minds and bodies through active participation in YogaKids classes.

Certification costs approximately $800, with a full four-day course around $2,000 excluding travel to the course location. YogaKids prepares you to teach in a studio, gym or community setting, as well as school settings.

To date, over one million families participate in YogaKids classes or use tools such as their DVD series. YogaKids boasts over 1,000 instructors worldwide.

Yoga Ed (Los Angeles, California): Yoga Ed focuses on healthy mind, body and spirit, with certification available for teaching pre-K through grade 8 for physical education teachers and anyone interested in teaching yoga to children.

Yoga Ed focuses on preparing instructors to teach yoga within a school-based program, and provides teachers in training with lesson plans, curriculum and other resources. Teachers find supportive instructors and help learning how to start a yoga program in their school or district. Contact the organization for instruction fees.

United Kingdom

Yoga’d Up (London, England): Yoga’d Up programs focus on teaching yoga instructors techniques to work with 8-to-12-year-old students. Physical postures and mental visualization techniques employed in Yoga’d Up classes help children improve concentration, stamina, and fitness. Children feel stronger, happier and more confident.

Yoga’d Up provides two days of training and take home materials. Take-home materials include a comprehensive teacher’s manual and an operations manual to help new teachers set up programs in studios or schools. The two-day course costs 495 pounds, or approximately $1,000.

Getting Started

Research many schools and programs to find one that best fits your philosophy and interests. If you are already a teacher, consider taking a certification program to add an after school yoga class or a physical education class incorporating yoga.

If teaching yoga in schools, special care and consideration must be made to adapt it to the school environment. For example, most yoga for kids teachers recommending changing the Sanskrit words and terms into more neutral terms, and focusing on physical and mental development.

Conclusion

The benefits of yoga for kids opens up a world of possibilities to them. Earn your yoga teaching certification and share the joys of yoga with them!