Kid-Friendly Yoga: Rise and Shine with Mindful Moves

Storey Digital Editors

Kids (and parents too!), start your day off right with these mindful moves.

Mindfulness is about noticing what’s happening right here, right now. We can discover so much, just by paying attention! These kid-friendly yoga moves—and many more peaceful activities—can be found in Mindful Moves by Nicole Cardoza.

Rise and Shine.

It feels good to stretch right after getting out of bed. See how big you can shine through your chest, your arms, and your smile!

Stand tall! Feet apart!
Stretch your arms up and out.
Shine your fingers by spreading them wide.
Take a big breath through your nose and into your chest.

Hello, Sunshine.

The sun is up, and there’s lots to do and see! Let’s get our bodies moving as we get ready to start the day. Do this next exercise as many times as you want. Just remember to rest a little before you start again.

Step 1: Reach up high and touch the sky.

Step 3: Jump like a frog into Downward Dog.

Step 4: Bring your belly low, nice and slow.

Step 5: Lift your chest, but not the rest.

Step 6: Then press back to Downward Dog, and relax . . .

Excerpted and adapted from Mindful Moves © Nicole Cardoza. Illustrations © Marta Antelo.

Mindful Moves

by Nicole Cardoza

Mindfulness is proven to boost children’s physical, mental, and socio-emotional development, but establishing the practice requires making it a part of daily life. With delightful illustrations and kid-friendly language, Mindful Moves introduces kids to simple mindfulness activities that are fun, easy to remember, and available for kids to turn to any time the need arises, no matter where they are. Check Your Inner Weather encourages children to tune into how they feel in the moment and accept their feelings without judgement. Pose like a Superhero helps fill kids with inner strength and confidence, while Breathe like a Walrus helps them channel frustration or anger through breath and facial relaxation. Each of the meditation, mindfulness, yoga, and movement activities is designed to help kids stay calm, be present, and feel focused and happy. Whether it’s before a busy day at school, in the backseat of the car, during a test, or heading off to bed, this is a guide kids can refer to again and again!

$14.95

$19.95 CAD

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Nicole Cardoza

About the Author

Nicole Cardoza is the founder and executive director of Wellemental, a national nonprofit that empowers educators to integrate yoga and mindfulness into the school day. A former yoga instructor in schools, she saw the benefits of the practice firsthand and, in 2014, left a career in tech to pursue her nonprofit work full time. Since then, the organization has reached over 1,500 educators in 500 schools across the US, powered by community engagement and key partnerships with Let’s Move and lululemon. In the fall of 2020, Wellemental launched a mindfulness and yoga app for kids. The founder of Anti-Racism Daily, Cardoza has been recognized as one of the most influential changemakers in wellness by Forbes, Well + Good, and Wanderlust, and routinely speaks on social impact, equity, and health at foundations such as the Aspen Institute, universities such as Harvard, and Fortune 500 companies including Nike and lululemon. She has been featured in Yoga Journal, SELF, and Paper magazines. Find her online at nicoleacardoza.com.

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