Kids’ Yoga Lesson Plan:
Let’s Go on a Yoga Adventure to Denmark and Egypt
A 20-minute, free yoga lesson plan for ages 3-8
Suitable for home, preschool, daycare, elementary schools, yoga studios and more!
- This classroom or at-home kids’ yoga lesson plan focuses on global awareness for kids through the practice of yoga. Children will learn kid-friendly facts about different countries as well as easy-to-learn yoga poses. This is a great way to introduce young kids to yoga, the alphabet, and geography. There are 195 countries in the world plus about 60 dependent areas. This lesson plan is a companion guide to the award-winning book, The ABCs of Yoga for Kids Around the World, which is a fun-filled yoga tour of 32 countries.
- If your classroom has a carpet, kids can practice the yoga poses on the carpet. In addition, kids can use yoga mats or a beach towel to do the poses. Hold the poses anywhere from 8 to 10 seconds. As it takes time to get into the poses, counting should begin once the children are in the posture.
Yoga Postures in this Lesson Plan
- Candle Pose
- Easy Pose
- Airplane Pose
- Windmill Pose
- Swan Pose
- Sphynx Pose
- Cobra Pose
- Do Nothing Pose
Lesson Plan
Have kids start in CANDLE POSE to help them begin to focus on their breath. Instruct them to kneel on the floor and bring their hands in prayer position in front of their heart, taking several deep breaths in and out through their nose to calm their minds and bodies and to prepare for the rest of the class. Ask children what letter of the alphabet Candle starts with. (the letter C)
Next, ask kids to sit cross legged in EASY POSE, again taking deep breaths in and out through their noses. Ask them to imagine they are going on a trip to Canada to learn about this country and practice some yoga poses inspired by the animals who live there. Ask them what letter Easy Pose starts with. (the letter E)
Instruct kids to do AIRPLANE POSE next as they imagine flying to Denmark. Lying on their tummies, ask them to lift their chests, arms and legs like a majestic airplane taking off for flight. Airplane starts with the letter A, the first letter of the alphabet, while Denmark starts with the letter D.
Show kids on a map where Denmark is located. Teach them how to say “hello” in the language of this Scandinavian country. Have them practice saying “hej” to one another.
Explain to children that Denmark is a small Nordic country known for its whirling windmills. Have them practice Windmill pose, which starts with the letter W. Instruct them to stand with their legs slightly bent and their feet wide apart. Then have children bring one hand down to the ground in between their legs and bring the other hand up towards the sky. Have them count slowly to five, and then switch sides as they imagine that they are twirling and carefree Danish windmills.
Next have children practice the Swan pose, which starts with the letter S. The mute swan is Denmark’s national (and largest) bird, probably because of Hans Christian Andersen’s famous fairy tale about the ugly duckling that turns into a beautiful swan.
Have children get back into AIRPLANE POSE as they fly to their next destination, Egypt, which starts with the letter E.
Ask children to identify where Egypt is on a map or globe. Teach them to say “hello” in the language of this Mediterranean country where Egyptian Arabic is spoken. Have them greet one another by saying “Marhaba”.
Teach children how to do Sphynx pose, which starts with the letter S. The Great Sphinx of Giza is a statue of a reclining sphinx, a mythical creature with the head of a human, and the body of a lion. Instruct children to lie on their bellies with their legs straight and their forearms pressed firmly into the ground. Have them look forward, frozen in time, without making a sound.
Next teach children the Cobra pose, which starts with the letter C. The Egyptian cobra is a snake, also known as the asp. It is one of the largest cobra species found in the African continent. Have children lie on their bellies as they bend their elbows close to the side of their body. Instruct them to next lift their chest as they make a hissing sound like an Egyptian cobra!
After a such busy “trip”, tell children that the last destination on their global travels is to rest, imagining that they are on top of a cloud in the DO NOTHING POSE. This yoga pose starts with the letter D and is one of the most important as it teaches kids how to just sit still and do nothing, except to breathe quietly in and out of their noses. You can play a soothing lullaby while the kids lie on their yoga mats or towels, with their arms alongside their bodies, and their eyes closed. Tell them to rest quietly until the song is over. If you have a bell, ring it to let them know that it is time to get up.
Have kids end the yoga session in EASY POSE. You can ask them which country was their favorite as well as which yoga pose. This is a fun way to encourage them to talk about and articulate what they learned during the session.
