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These activities and games are SOME of the ones that I personally use in my classes (I can t give away all my secrets haha)! They are a lot of fun and your students will really enjoy them! A lot of the tools for these activities I got at the Dollar Store. Seriously, they have the greatest things there! Sometimes I go there just to see what they have (they are always getting new stock) and see what games I can come up with just by looking at what they have. There is so much inspiration there! Remember to look in both the games and crafts aisles! Try these games and see for yourself how much your students will learn from these fun activities!

Breathing Exercises Feathers I mostly use feathers for breathing exercises. Ask students to use only their breath to keep the feather in the air! It's really hard! But it's a lot of fun! I always have my students try it using only their mouths, then their nostrils. They love the challenge and it is a good way for students to learn how to concentrate, as well as steady and slow their breathing (that is the trick to getting the feather to stay afloat- a slow steady breath. Don't tell them I told you!), although sometimes, in all their excitement, it can take a while for them to figure out that they need to slow down. I also use feathers for Starfish. Spread your fingers wide like a starfish and use the feather to trace your fingers as you inhale (trace up) and exhale (trace down). Do this to both hands. I love this activity because there is a visual aspect to breathing/diaphragm movements with this one, which also helps students to understand how their breathing works within their bodies. Breathing Balls have the same effect and are another great tool for breathing exercises. Feathers are also a great tool to teach students about sensations and feelings in the body. Have students sit quietly, close their eyes, and run the feather over their face, cheeks, arms, etc. and ask them how it feels, what sensations they feel, and if they felt calm or energized by the feelings.

Straws and Cotton Craft Balls This is a fun game as well! Simply have students use their breath to blow on the cotton craft ball through the straw. I have my students trace their mats, keeping the cotton craft ball on the edge of the mat. If their ball falls off, they have to start over! This also works with placing tape lines, or other fancy designs (such as a maze), on the floor.

Balloon Breath Have students place their hands on their bellies. Take a slow, deep breath in to fill their bellies with air, like a balloon. Then slowly release the breath. I also like to do this with one hand on the belly and one hand on the heart. This way, students can feel their heart rate slowing because of their deep breathing- a great lesson in teaching students about how the body works! Another great way to do this exercise is to incorporate guided visualization. Have students think about [for example] their upcoming math test. As they inhale, have students inhale /imagine their anxiety about the test. As they exhale, have students visualize their anxiety leaving their body forever. Bee Breathing This one is my personal favourite. No particular reason why, I just think it s a lot of fun. Have students place their fingers in their ears, close their mouths, and hum like a bee buzzing for as long as they can. Bee breathing is great because it teaches patience and moderation- if you hum too quickly, you run out of breath faster. But if you take your time and slow your breath, you can hum for a longer time. Bee breathing also creates vibrations throughout the body. This is great for teaching students about sensations in the body, as well as for teaching them that everything they do has an effect on their body- even breathing.

Yoga & Mindfulness Games Jenga This is one of my favourite games because it is two games in one! One side of the Jenga piece has a yoga pose on it and the other has a statement relating to mindfulness. You can have your students: 1. Choose a piece out of a bag and teach the class the yoga pose on the piece. Once the yoga pose is done, stack the blocks as you would in Jenga, and build until all of the pieces are used.

OR 2. Choose a piece out of the bag and take turns reading the statement written on the piece. These statements are framed as What would you do? and meant to elicit thoughts and feelings, as well as enhance critical thinking skills. After each Q&A/ discussion, place the pieces in a stack and build until all of the pieces are used. OR 3. Play both! I like to have my students play the yoga side and stack the blocks. Then, as you would Jenga, take turns pulling pieces out and play the mindfulness activity! Double the fun! I love this game because it can be active or mindful. It also teaches students teamwork, patience, critical thinking, gratitude, and kindness, to name a few.

ABCs This is another game that can be played multiple ways. 1. Have students choose a letter out of the bag and choose, or create, their own yoga pose. OR 2. Have students choose a letter out of the bag and ask if they know a "feeling" word, or nice word that starts with that letter. There are literally hundreds of words that can describe an emotion, There are so many ways to use these simple wooden alphabet pieces in your classroom! You can even use them for academic learning!

Boat Ball This is my students' FAVOURITE game! Every time they see me, the first thing they say is "Are we going to play the ball game?" So we play this game a lot. Sitting in boat pose, place the ball between your ankles and pass the ball to the next person in line/in the circle. BUT you have to stay in boat pose! This is such a giggly game! It also helps to improve balance and core strength while teaching students persistence and concentration. Yoga Die My students also LOVE playing with dice! Simply write yoga poses on one and lengths of time on the other (up to 50 seconds) and have the students take turns rolling them! I also have my students count the time aloud- this helps with their counting, as well as attention, persistence, and satisfaction- all of which are important for setting and achieving goals!

Nature Walks This is exactly as it sounds. Go for a walk and be mindful of what is around you. Our lives are so busy that we often do not take the time to acknowledge what is around usthe smells and sounds or the sights and textures. You can even turn this into a scavenger hunt for added fun and perspective-taking! After a nature walk, I always ask my students to tell me one thing they saw, heard, or felt that they had never before. I also ask them questions such as what their favourite part of the nature walk was, or what they liked and didn't like. Student opinion is often left out of learning so I take every opportunity I can to include them. Asking students what they liked and didn t like in a nature walk is a simple way to include students in their own learning and a nature walk is something you can change/tweak so student opinions can be incorporated. Spending some time outside is also a great way for students and educators to clear their minds so that they can better focus and be more engaged when they get back to the classroom. Glitter Jars This is another very simple activity that is fun (and messy!) for the whole class! Simply gather jars or water bottles, fill them with water, and add glitter! You can even add other accessories if you want, such as beads. Glitter jars are useful in helping students to calm down when they are anxious or upset. Simply have students shake up the jar and breathe deeply until all of the glitter has settled. Glitter jars can also be used as a concentration activity, where students focus on one particular piece of glitter (or another object if you add other things to your jar), tip the jar from side to side, and hold eye contact with the piece you chose. Gratitude Jars I loooove gratitude jars! It s so simple to include in your classroom and is super effective for teaching gratitude, kindness, and empathy, while also promoting personal reflection. Simply have a jar (or basket or box) in your classroom and, when the students are grateful for something or feeling happy or excited, have them write what made them feel that way on a piece of paper and place it in the jar. At the end of the year, sit down with your students and go over every piece of paper in the jar. Ask students to reflect on how they felt the day they wrote their piece, why they felt that way, and what they can do to feel that way again. This can also be done more than yearly- perhaps during a time when your students are feeling down and need to be reminded of happier occasions.

Rain Game Another fun game. And a super easy one- no tools or accessories required and you can do it from wherever you are standing. Divide your students into 3 groups- rain, thunder, and lightening. Those who are rain make a shooooosh noise with their mouths, those who are thunder" stomp on the floor, and those who are lightning clap their hands. Ask the rain group to start, then include the thunder group, then the lightning group. Your classroom is going to get very loud very quickly doing this. Do this for as long as you can handle (haha!), then yell The storm is over! and everyone is completely silent, breathing deeply. This is a great activity to explain silence to students- to know silence, we must first know noise. This is also a great analogy for the brain for when you are busy and your mind is racing, silence helps us to calm our minds and focus better. Remember to ask your students how they felt when the noise suddenly stopped. Like I was floating is a typical response (that s also how I feel after playing this game). Mindful Listening Another way to incorporate mindfulness and silence into your classroom is through mindful listening. This comes in many forms including: Having a chime, singing bowl, or bell (either real or an app on your phone). Simply ring the bell/chime/bowl and have students close their eyes and focus on the sound for as long as they can hear it Have students close their eyes and listen to the sounds around them. Listen for a few minutes then ask students questions such as What did you hear?, How do the sounds make you feel?, Did the sounds make you think of something in particular? There is a fantastic book for mindful listening called The Sound of Silence by Katrina Goldsaito, which encourages children to hear things that do not make sound (i.e. the sound of snow, the sound of flowers, etc.). Yogi Says This is exactly like Simon Says but you use yoga postures and say Yogi Says instead!

Mandala Colouring As with any class, there will be students who will not want to participate. Or maybe they hurt themselves on the playground and want to opt-out. And this is totally acceptable, as long as they are not disrupting the other students. The love of yoga and mindfulness comes from trying and practicing, not from being forced to participate. I never tell my students that they have to participate. Of course, I always encourage them to but I always say that if they need to opt-out for a minute they can sit or lay in savasana quietly until they are ready to come back to the class. I always have mandala colouring pages and crayons/coloured pencils on hand for situations like this, where students do not want to participate in the yoga itself. Mandala is a Sanskrit word that means circle and represents how we are all connected and part of a wider universe. Colouring the mandala teaches students patience and harmony, as well as provides a relaxing experience in which students can use colour to express themselves. The psychology student in me LOVES this! Seriously, the colour of psychology is a fascinating topic and it is incredible how colours affect us. Mandala colouring is a fantastic way to encourage self-reflection and for students to express themselves. It is also a good way for educators, if they know a bit about the psychology of colour, to look at how a student is feeling and perhaps talk with them about things if there are concerns.

Make Your Own Mala Bead Bracelet/Necklace Mala beads are typically used for prayer or meditation but can also be used to serve as a reminder of an intention. For example, if you set an intention to be calm, looking at your wrist and seeing the mala beads will remind you of this intention and keep you on the right track. Mala beads are usually made with 108 beads, or a derivative of 108 such as 216 (double) or 54 (half). The reason why is open to interpretation, which is amazing. But there are three main thoughts on the number 108: There are 108 beads because there are thought to be 108 energy lines within the body connecting to the heart There are 108 beads because there are 54 letters in the Sanskrit language (from which yoga derives), each letter having a masculine and feminine version- totalling 108 There are 108 beads because, traditionally, you recite a mantra 100 times. The other 8 beads are to account for errors in recitation Mala beads are used to help you keep track of mantra recitation. You simply hold one bead as you recite your mantra and, when you are finished reciting, you move on to the next bead and recite your mantra again, until you have held all of the beads. Creating and using these in the classroom doesn t have to be this complicated. You can use as may beads as you want- it doesn t have to be 108. Also, for a mantra, it is important to use something generic. The word mantra means motto, so you can also have your students create their own mantras. A mantra I use with my students is: I am kind, I am strong, I am brave, I am fun, I am happy, I am ME! Mala beads can also be used as a breathing exercise- take a long, deep breath, counting your breaths using the beads. These are a great way to help students calm down when they are upset or experiencing anxiety. I hope this list of yoga and mindfulness games and activities to include in your classroom was helpful! Enjoy! Megan