Rachel's Day in the Garden

I used Rachel's Garden with a group of 3 to 6 y/o's. I read it through 1st then read it with the yoga poses. They loved it!

The kids love Rachel's Day in the Garden. I love how they know the name if each pose! Great books!

My son is recently learning how to do yoga as part of his behavioural aid therapy as well as in his preschool. To say this lovely book was helpful is an understatement. My son has autism combined with Sensory Processing Disorder and with that can come problems with emotional regulation. Being able to copy the poses and read all about the character Rachel in the garden was a wonderful learning tool. His body and central nervous can go into fight or flight in the sympathetic part of his brain. As soon as he gets into a mindset to do the yoga poses then his para sympathetic part of his brain can take over and rest. The lovely illustrations allow his imagination to take over and be in the garden scenery with Rachel. As well as being comfortable in the yoga postures my son is learning to self regulate and bring all his senses into integration. It allows him to be active, engaged, and doing positive things for his mind, body, and spirit. What I loved the most about this book was that all the poses were incorporated into the story with using the name and also the demonstration. This book is a valuable tool for children and parents to teach them the value of having a calm body and mind. There is also information on how to use the book as well as the yoga postures broken down individually. This was a joy for me to read and participate in the relaxation and wonderment of enjoying this special time with my son. Jsack's Mom Blog

I really enjoyed using Rachel's Day in the Garden book with a group of toddlers! I run a family resource program for families. We are a charitable organization that provides services free to families with children newborn to 6 years. They really enjoyed the story that I projected up onto the wall and then use their yoga mats, towels, to do the poses along with Rachel. I think the parents and myself included were surprised at how well they did.

I’ve been looking for ways for Jack to practice yoga at home and for him to show me some of the poses that he’s learned in school. Rachel’s Day in the Garden gave me a chance to introduce yoga at home and for us to learn some yoga poses together. At the start of the book there is a guide for parents on how to use kids yoga stories and how to get the most out of the book. The guide suggests that you familiarize yourself with the poses used in the books prior to reading the book. The book also comes with a parents guide at the end of the book for further information on incorporating the poses introduced in the book. These guides and suggestions are very helpful especially for parents like me who’s yoga experience is limited to that one class I took in college. One thing that I really liked about the book, was that the story could be read without doing the poses. The story does not need the poses in order for kids to comprehend it, the poses enhance the story. Each page features a pose that is associated with a keyword on the page. The word bird is paired with warrior 3 because this pose resembles a bird. The book incorporates each pose into the story so that the children can act out the poses while Mom or Dad read the story. The pose guide at the end of the book, contains a list of keywords along with the poses so that you and your child can work through the poses together. The parents guide at the back of the book contains lots of tips and ideas for introducing yoga and making it a fun, interactive experience for parents and kids. Jackson and I had fun reading Rachel’s Day in the Garden and he enjoyed showing off the poses that he was familiar with along with learning some new ones from the book. He really got a kick out of watching me attempt warrior 3, and I quickly learned that he is much better at yoga than I am. We plan to keep practicing together and trying out more of the Kids Yoga Stories. Stories like Rachel’s Day in the Garden are a great way to introduc...