ACTIVITY SHEET

Carla Padilla
LEI 4724
Activity File 2
Activity Title: Jungle Animal Yoga for Kids
Source: Shardlow, G. (2015, March 24). Jungle Animal Yoga for Kids [Web log post].
Retrieved from http://theinspiredtreehouse.com/jungle-animal-yoga-for-kids/
Equipment: yoga mats or blanket, Over in the Jungle, by Marianne Berkes and Jeanette
Canyon
Description of Activity: The objective of this activity is to improve gross motor skills,
body awareness, balance, and to have fun! The book that will be used for this activity is
Over in the Jungle, by Marianne Berkes and Jeanette Canyon. As you look through the
book, make a long list of jungle animals, like crocodile, iguana, turtle, frog, macaw,
quetzal, toucan, coatimundi, monkey, kinkajou, sloth, puma, tapir, anteater, armadillo,
jaguar, and bat. Read the book to the group and talk about how they move, what they eat,
where they live, and what they look like. After reading the book and discussing it is time
for yoga! The therapist can follow the jungle animal yoga sequence below or make up
your own jungle yoga journey:
Macaw Warrior 3 Pose
Stand on one leg. Extend the other leg behind you, flexing your foot. Bend your torso
forward and take your arms out to the side. Flap your arms like the wings of the macaw.
Monkey Squat Pose
Come down to a squat and tap your chest like a monkey.
Alligator Plank Pose
Step back to balance on your palms and on your bent toes, keeping your arms straight and
your back long and flat. Pretend to be an alligator floating in the water.
Boa Constrictor Cobra Pose
Come to lie on your tummy, place your palms flat on the floor next to your shoulders, lift
your head and shoulders off ground, and hiss like a snake.
Jaguar Cat Pose
Press up to an all-fours position, round your back, and tuck your chin into your chest.
Pretend to be a jaguar about to pounce.
Turtle Extended Childs Pose
Come to sitting back on your heels, slowly bring your forehead down to rest on the floor
in front of your knees, place the palms of your hands flat out in front of you, and take a
few deep breaths. Pretend to be a turtle looking out of his shell.

Sloth Happy Baby Pose

Come to lie on your back with your chin tucked in, hug your knees into your chest, then
grab the outer parts of your feet with both of your hands, with one foot in each hand.
Pretend to be a sloth hanging out in a tree.
Rest Resting Pose
Lie on your back with your arms and legs stretched out. Imagine listening to the sounds
in the jungle. Breathe and rest.
Leadership considerations: This activity works best for groups of 7 to 15 participants.
The activity requires a setting with enough room where the mats can be placed at a safe
distance from each other. The therapist acts as a moderator by reading the book and
explaining and demonstrating all the yoga poses. The yoga sessions should not last longer
than 40 minutes. Repeat the pose at least three times for the children. The therapist
should go around the class to ensure to monitor of anyone needs help with the pose. The
activity could be more fun if after 15-20 minutes of instructing the activity the therapist
would turn the activity into a freeze type of game. The therapist should shout any animal
pose and the children have to get into the pose and see who is the last one to hold it,
while the therapist goes around checking for movements and trying to make them laugh.
Adaptations:
Children with autism: Participants with Autism have unusual responses to sensory input.
They have difficulty processing and integrating sensory information, or stimuli, such as
sights, sounds smells, tastes and/or movement (Autism Symptoms, n.d.). Sensory
processing difficulties may also include poor body awareness, stiff uncoordinated
movements, difficulty sitting still, low muscle tone or sensitivities to being touched or
loud noises (Delgado, 2012). The therapist should pay attention to when the participant
may need assistance with a posture because he or she is not physically capable of doing
it. Sticky mats could also be purchased to avoid the slipping of hands or feet due to low
muscle tone (Tips for Doing Yoga with Children with Disabilities, n.d.). Find a special
place that is as neat as possible. Make sure the setting you choose is quiet and free from
distractions and a limited level of noise (Tips for Doing Yoga with Children with
Disabilities, n.d.). Allow breaks if the individual is going under over sensory stimuli.
Individuals with autism also have problems with common focus with another person
about the same object or event-known as joint attention; play with others and share toys;
understand feelings; make and keep friend (Autism- Autism Spectrum Disorders, n.d.)
Adapt the activity by trying partner yoga. The participant and his or her partner sit or
stand in front of each other and mimic different poses. One of the individuals must be
leader and choose the pose while the other one mirrors it (Tips for Doing Yoga with
Children with Disabilities, n.d.). This will promote socialization and even lead to a
friendship. Autism and anxiety are highly comorbid (Delgado, 2012). Teaching
breathing and posture exercises to the participants throughout the yoga session will help
lower stress and anxiety during the activity and can transfer to real life situations that
may cause anxiety.

Participants with Spinal Cord Injury (cervical-paraplegia): The setting should be

wheelchair accessible. The room should be big enough to provide a space for the
wheelchair. Individuals with cervical injuries are most likely to have no problems with
upper extremities but are paralyzed from the waist down (A Guide for School Personnel
Working with Students with Spinal Cord Injuries, n.d.). Individuals with a cervical level
spinal cord injury suffer from Autonomic dysreflexia, or AD, which is an over activity of
the autonomic nervous system (A Guide for School Personnel Working with Students
with Spinal Cord Injuries, n.d.). This can be a life threatening condition and mainly
affects people with injuries at T-5 or higher. If it is not treated promptly and correctly, it
may lead to seizures, stroke and even death (A Guide for School Personnel Working
with Students with Spinal Cord Injuries, n.d.). The therapist should look out for
important signs, such as, sudden onset of headache, sweating above injury, nausea, slow
pulse, cold clammy skin, and elevated blood pressure (greater than 200/100) (A Guide
for School Personnel Working with Students with Spinal Cord Injuries, n.d.). The
therapist should ask throughout the activity if the participant is feeling all right and
should also check his or her blood pressure periodically. If the participant is undergoing
AD, place him or her in upright position, put the student in an upright position and do a
pressure relief immediately, loosen any tight clothing or any clothing that might be
wrinkled, and look for the cause of the AD and relieve it immediately (A Guide for
School Personnel Working with Students with Spinal Cord Injuries, n.d.). The
individual also deals with bladder problems. The therapist should check his or her
bathroom schedule in order to avoid any issues. The therapist should incorporate
wheelchair yoga by researching online and adding those postures to the program. The
activity should be adapted for an emphasis on arm movements for each animal, for
example: the monkey uses his arms to hit its chest that should be emphasized during the
activity.
References
Autism Symptoms. (n.d.). Retrieved November 4, 2015, from
https://www.autismspeaks.org/what-autism/symptoms
Autism - Autism Spectrum Disorders. (n.d.). Retrieved November 4, 2015, from
http://www.asha.org/public/speech/disorders/Autism/
Tips for Doing Yoga with Children with Disabilities. (n.d.). Retrieved November 4, 2015,
from http://www.pbs.org/parents/education/learning-disabilities/strategies-for-learningdisabilities/tips-for-doing-yoga-with-children-with-disabilities/
Delgado, T. (2012). Retrieved November 4, 2015, from http://csusdspace.calstate.edu/bitstream/handle/10211.9/1948/Tara Delgado-Bridges Yoga Project Final.pdf?sequence=2

A Guide for School Personnel Working with Students with Spinal Cord Injuries. (n.d.).
Retrieved November 4, 2015, from

https://www.kennedykrieger.org/sites/kki2.com/files/guide_for_school_personnel_worki
ng_with_students_with_spinal_cord_injuries_1.pdf