YM: Welcome Darlene! How did you find yoga?

DD: I cannot recall.  I cannot remember when or where I first heard of yoga.  For as long as I can remember, I’ve been interested in yoga. 

YM: When did you know that you wanted to work with children?

DD: Once again, I cannot recall a specific moment in time.  I’ve been working with children my entire adult career – first as a media arts and literacy teacher, then as a yoga teacher.

YM: Yoga for children has become more popular over the past few years, what do you think has lead to this?

DD: Perhaps, in part, due to the mainstream popularity and widespread acceptance of yoga.   And perhaps, in part, to the many benefits of practice especially the medicinal benefits of improved physical and emotional wellbeing.  The tools of yoga offer noncompetitive alternatives to team sports as well as drug-free alternatives to stress management, distractibility, and hyperactivity.

YM: Please tell us about some of the programs for children that you lead.

DD: I offer kids’ classes and workshops as well as family classes and family retreats.  

I offer programs to schools, youth centers, and children’s hospitals.

Each spring, I host a family retreat in Joshua Tree National Park that includes camping and rock climbing.  Each summer, I lead a children’s yoga camp that includes art.

I also conduct teacher workshops and trainings.  This summer, children and family members are invited to join trainee participants in my teacher training at El Capitan Canyon, just outside Santa Barbara.

YM: What is the biggest difference between teaching yoga to adults and teaching yoga to children?

DD: Traditionally, adults meet privately with their teacher – one-on-one.  Yoga practice is individualized, to meet the needs and goals of the practioner – one’s practice is personal and prescriptive.

Children practice in group classes, where they develop social skills.  They learn about sensitivity to others, the need to respect others, how to share and take turns, and cooperative action.

The emphasis of the practice is different as well.  At the heart of an adult's practice is pranayama, for those later in life, meditation.  At the heart of a child’s practice is asana.  Asana practice develops the body.  Training the body, trains the mind and, so prepares one for the subtler practices of breath control and meditation.

Furthermore, we first learn through our bodies – by touch, by putting things in our mouths, by imitation.  We’re curious about the world around us.  Is it no coincidence that so many asanas are inspired by the natural world?  So, it follows that asana takes precedence. 

YM: Why do kids need yoga?

DD: Yoga develops the whole child: the physical self, the emotional self, the cognitive self, the social self, and the creative self.

YM: What kind of children benefit the most from yoga?

DD: All kinds.  Although, children should not be forced to attend class.  And, I typically don’t recommend that children under four attend class – it’s not till about age three or four that children begin to engage in cooperative, interactive play. 

YM: What does yoga help children with?

DD: The physical benefits of yoga practice include heightened body awareness and increased flexibility, strength, and coordination.

Pranayama, control of the breath, is preparation for concentration, meditation.  And while classic pranayama exercises are inappropriate for children, teaching little ones to appreciate the breath is the first step in improving focus, concentration and memory.

Meditation trains the mind.  Its practice also improves focus, concentration, and memory.

So how might a child of four or five sit still and pay attention? With imaginative story and guided visualization exercises. These exercises develop listening and concentration skills and, alter the physical structure of our brains. (Meditators have increased thickness in parts of the brain associated with attention and somatosensory, auditory, and visual processing.)

Furthermore, through breathing exercises and meditation techniques, children also cultivate self-awareness and self-reflection and thus, self-discipline.

Overall, the most profound benefits of yoga practice are improved self-esteem and a greater sense of wellbeing.

YM: Please talk about the effects of yoga in regards to children with special needs.

DD: Whereas traditional therapies address specific issues, yoga addresses the whole child.  It is a multimodal therapy in and of itself.

A yoga class for a child with special needs may include adaptation of yoga postures through the use of props or a yoga teacher may manually guide children through movements if they do not possess sufficient balance, coordination, or strength to imitate the postures themselves. 

The coordination of developmentally appropriate yoga postures with the breath not only improves focus and concentration but also improves respiratory function.  The use of sound, songs, and chants serve to regulate the breath and exercise the many muscles involved in speech and articulation. 

Group yoga classes promote positive peer interactions.  Many children with special needs have difficulty relating to others.  Therapy is often one-on-one so children miss out on the opportunity to engage and socialize with their peers and develop social skills.

YM: What are the most important things to remember when teaching yoga to kids?

DD:  Remember that you are teaching children yoga.  Ask yourself if you’re teaching yoga or asana.  Ask yourself if you’re teaching children yoga or yoga to children.

YM: What is the most rewarding part of your job?

DD:  Having a child as a teacher! 

YM: What training do you suggest to start working with children?

DD:  I recommend classes in child development, classroom management, and positive discipline for yoga teachers interested in working with children.  Or, a specialty kids’ yoga teacher training program that includes such.

There are also a number of books I’d recommend including Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ by Daniel Goleman, The Compassionate Classroom: Relationship Based Teaching and Learning by Sura Hart and Victoria Kindle Hodson, and Magical Child by Joseph Chilton Pearce.

YM: Where can we find out more about you?

DD:  Through my website www.kidsyogacircle.com or a call to
(310) 428-9148.