By Sue Heron – Training Co-ordinator Tatty Bumpkin and Paediatric Physiotherapist
In this blog I outline how to do a Tatty Bumpkin Yoga activity with your child, so you can do the activity with them at home. At the end of the blog I outline some of the activity’s benefits for your child or toddler.
Please remember though, for you and your child to gain the full benefit of all the Tatty Bumpkin Yoga and multi-sensory activities, find out about your local Tatty Bumpkin class at http://www.tattybumpkin.com/classes/find-class.html.
Or why not ask your child’s nursery if they are using the ‘Tatty Bumpkin Kid’s Activity Programme’. Our qualified Tatty Bumpkin Teachers are fully trained in aspects of child development and Yoga and are kept fully up-to-date by our professional team of paediatric physiotherapists, Yoga teachers and musicians.
Or, maybe, you are thinking of a new career, which gives you:
The Tatty Bumpkin Mountain Yoga activity is all about learning how to stand still – even for a few seconds! Keeping their balance whilst standing still is a hard for toddlers and young children as it requires:
The organisation of several senses by the brain
Learning the ‘patterns of movement’ needed for balance
Indeed, some children often find it harder to stand still than to move around.
In addition, Mountain Yoga activity gives your child the chance to experience being still, even if it is just for a few seconds! By giving them these chances to feel quieter and calmer fro short momentsduring their day you will be showing your child a way to soothe themselves which they migth be able to use when they are feeling upset.
Tatty Bumpkin Mountain Yoga Activtiy for Children and Toddlers - and You!
Standing as still as a mountain!
Mountains with snow on the top!
Description of Pose
There are a number of very good reasons to do Mountain pose with your child:
Firstly, children under 3 years, largely learn new movements by copying others – especially their parents and ‘key people’.
Secondly, current research shows that young children bond with their parents and ‘key people’ not only through touch and by communicating with them, but also by moving with them.
Thirdly, as you do Mountain pose, you will give your own body a chance to stretch and realign! See ‘Why it is Good for Me’ section.
So begin by doing Mountain pose yourself - stand still with your feet about hip width apart and your arms by your side. As you stand think about:
Your breathing – think about taking deeper, slower breaths – this will help both you and your baby to relax.
Your posture - stand with your feet hip width apart, further apart if you feel unstable. Rock forwards and backwards on the soles of your feet to find the point where your weight is spread evenly over your feet. Then work your way up your body, trying to get into the best possible ‘alignment’, see ‘Why it is Good for Me’ section at the end of this document.
Are you holding any tension in your lower back? If so, try to ‘tuck your bottom in’ slightly and gently tighten your stomach muscles. Keep breathing normally as you do this.
Try not to ‘lock out’ your knees.
As you take the deeper breaths think about your shoulders moving downwards and slightly back and the distance between your ears and your shoulders increasing. Try to ‘let go’ of any tension in your shoulders.
Your head position. Are you ‘jutting’ your chin forwards and arching your neck backwards? Imagine a cord coming up from the top of your head which is gently pulling the crown of your head upwards. Make sure your chin is slightly tucked in (don’t overdo it) -feel the muscles at the back of your neck lengthening.
Now encourage your toddler or child to copy you!
If your child is younger, turn the activity into a game by using a (white) handkerchiefs or pieces of fabric as these can be the snow on your mountains!
Show your toddler or young child what to do by placing the hankie on your own head. Whilst they are watching you say something like “1, 2, 3 fall off!” as you let your hankie fall. Then put a hankie on their head and guide them to do the same!
Games To Play Around Mountain Pose
‘Snow on the Mountains’ - Toddlers and Younger Children
You can play peek-a-boo games in sitting or standing with your hankies. These games will not only help your young child’s balance skills, they will also progress their fine motor skills and eye hand co-ordination.
Just look at all the different sitting positions and hand movements Zac does whilst being a 'snowy mountain' !
Snow on a 'Windy Mountain' - Older Children
If you child is older, they can challenge their balance skills further by trying to stand still, with a hankie as ‘snow’ on their head, whilst balancing on a cushion on the floor. As they are standing on an unstable surface you child will have to rely on their just their visual and vestibular senses rather than their proprioceptive sense (see ‘Why it is Good for Me’ section).
Getting your Mountain Tickets! - Older Children
Recent research on how children develop their gross motor skills (movement skills) shows that a child’s ability to do these skills is dependent on the situation and the task they have to do i.e. a child may be able to stand still in a quiet room on an even floor with no distractions, however, if they are asked to stand outside, on a uneven pavement with noisy traffic speeding by whilst counting out some money (for the bus) this is much harder! You can help your child prepare for such situations by encouraging them to firstly stand in Mountain pose and then see if they can keep still whilst counting out some money to pay for their ‘Mountain ticket!’ To make it even harder they can try standing on a cushion whilst they count their money!
Why the Tatty Bumpkin Mountain Yoga Activity is Good for Both You and Your Child
As you do Mountain activity with your young child or toddler:
1. You will have the opportunity to -
Improve your body’s ‘alignment’ Alignment in this sense refers to the position of your feet, knees, hips and shoulders. To bring your body into perfect alignment whilst doing mountain pose - imagine a line running down your side from the top of your head down to your feet. This ‘line’ should pass through the following parts of your body:
Your ear lobe
Your cervical (neck) vertebrae
The tip of your shoulder
Should divide your ribcage in half
Your lumbar vertebrae
Slightly behind your hip joint
Slightly in front of the centre of your knee joint
Slightly in front of your outside ankle bone
A balanced posture!!
If your body is in 'alignment', the wear and tear on your major joints and the muscles surrounding them will be minimal. Pregnancy will have taken your body ‘out of alignment’ for a while so it is useful to spend time thinking about your body position. As you do Mountain activity you will probably find you have to gently tighten your tummy and bottom muscles, your lower shoulder muscles midway down your back, and the front of your thighs (your quadriceps).
2. You and your child will have the opportunity to -
Relax and calm! As you take deeper breaths and bring your body into alignment your whole body should start to relax. Your heart and blood pressure will automatically decrease as you take slower breaths. Young children tend to be very sensitive to how their parents and carers are feeling, therefore as you relax there is a good possibility that they will relax as well. Helping your child to appreciate these quieter times can give them a ‘way of coping’ when they are feeling upset.
3. Your child will have the opportunity to -
Improve their organisation of the sensations needed for balance Doing the Tatty Bumpkin Mountain Yoga activity helps your child to refine their balance skills, as it gives their brain a chance organise three sensations needed to balance. Although we are not aware of this organisational process, as this happens automatically in our brains, it is crucial for good balance skills. The three sensations are:
The gravity and movement (vestibular) sensations which our brain receives from specialist cells in our inner ear whenever we move our heads.
The ‘proprioceptive’ sensations which our brain receives from specialist cells in our muscles and joints whenever we squeeze or straighten a joint, or contract and stretch a muscle.
The visual sensations which our brain receives from our eyes as we look around.
Improve their ‘patterns of movement’ needed for balance Research on standing ability in children and adults has found that muscle strength is not the main factor in learning how to balance well. More important, is the ability to develop the best patterns of movement or ‘postural reactions’ needed.
But ... Not Just a Movement Class!
Because every Tatty Bumpkin adventure is carefully linked to the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) and uses bespoke music and rhythms the sessions not only enhance your child’s physical skills they also develop their communication, social and thinking skills. Find your local class at http://www.tattybumpkin.com/classes/find-class.html.
