Whether you are a certified children's yoga teacher or have children of your own to play with, these yoga games are sure to get children of all ages in the holiday spirit! The following games focus on a winter theme instead of any specific holiday, making them perfect for all families and classes, regardless of what holidays you choose to celebrate.

Reindeer Dancing
This fun and festive game is set to holiday tunes!

What you need:
Upbeat holiday music
Space for dancing

How to play:
Have the kids spread out around the room so there is plenty of space for everyone. Explain the rules of the game before you begin: when you press play and the tunes are flowing, the kids are free to do their reindeer dancing around the room. (Be sure to tell them where the boundaries are so they don't wander off someplace they shouldn't be!) Let them use their imagination to dance however they think a reindeer would. When you press pause and the music stops the kids freeze in a reindeer yoga pose: sleeping reindeer (child's pose), flying reindeer (warrior III), reindeer tree (tree pose)! Get silly with it! You can pick the pose in advance and announce at the start of each round, or let them make up their own poses as they go.

The Giving Game
This arts & crafts game is a fun way to introduce children to each other, make new friends and discover the importance of giving rather than receiving.

What you need:
Construction paper
Child friendly scissors
Glue sticks
Markers or crayons
Any other arts & crafts supplies you may have

How to play:
Write the names of each child in your class on a piece of paper and place the names in a bag. Go around the room and let everyone pick a name from the bag without telling who they have. They then get to create a holiday gift for their new friend out of the arts & crafts supplies you provide. If you are doing this at home with your children you can make a family game out of it, involving parents, grandparents, cousins, etc. Put on some holiday music in the background and allow them as much time as you can to use their imaginations and create whatever they like! Let the kids know when they only have a few minutes left so they can finish up. Once time is up, let the kids find their friends and give their holiday gifts. While they are receiving something as well as giving, the focus is on creating something for someone else, not waiting to see what they will get in return.

Trip to a Winter Wonderland

What you need:
An imagination!

How to play:
Set up the kids yoga mats in a circle so everyone can face each other.  Announce that  today they are taking a trip to a winter wonderland and there is only one way to get there - sledding! Have everyone put on their imaginary snow gear, have a seat in the middle of their sled (their yoga mat) and hold the top of the mat in their hands so they can steer. Up and over the snowy hills you go, stopping along the way to see all the winter animals and do yoga poses that match: penguins, snow owls, maybe even a reindeer! You can roll in the snow and make some snow angels and even have the kids make up their own snowflake pose. Remind them that no two snowflakes are alike, and to look around at all of the unique snowflakes in the room. ​Once you return it's time for imaginary hot chocolate and a nice nap (savasana) by the fire!

​With Thanksgiving just a few days away and Christmas and Hanukkah right around the corner, now is the perfect time to teach children what it means to be grateful. There are countless ways to approach the topic of gratitude with children, from simple discussions to games and activities. One of my favorite ways is with an art project called Blessings in a Bag. Here's how to do this fun project at home with your kids or in your next children's yoga class.


​1) Give each child a brown paper lunch bag to decorate and some small pieces of construction paper called "blessing cards".
​2) Have the children write down something or someone they are thankful to have in their lives on one side of a blessing card, and drew a picture of that blessing on the other side. They can fill out as many blessing cards as they wish.
​3) The cards are then put inside the blessing bag. Let the children find a special place to display their bag and pick special times to remove the blessing cards so they can literally count their blessings and remember all that they have to be thankful for. You can have them add more blessing cards daily, or whenever the mood strikes!

​It is never too early to start teaching gratitude. If you are doing this with smaller children who are too young to write you can ask them to tell you about the things that are special to them and you write on the cards for them, or have them draw pictures.

​Here are some great gratitude books to read with your little ones: 

• ​The Thankful Book, by Todd Parr.
• Bear Says Thanks, by Karma Wilson.
• The Giving Tree, by Shel Silverstein. 

Remember that ANY time of the year is a perfect time for gratitude.