Tuffkid Nursery’s yoga sessions have countless benefits, said Head Janice Marriott.

“Yoga enhances self esteem, builds resilience and by training children how to control breathing, teaches them to calm themselves. Parents are pleased we’re giving the children these skills,” she said.

“It can help children listen to and understand their bodies, supporting them to manage their behaviour according to the situations they find themselves in. It also helps develop flexibility and coordination, strengthening core stability and balance.”

Yoga poses that mimic nature such as trees, flowers and animals help the children connect to the natural world and to represent ideas in their own way.

Nursery rhymes and stories linked to Rosh Hashanah, Succot, Pesach and other festivals have been incorporated into yoga sessions, supporting Jewish learning.

The children use yoga to express themselves with movement games. One game involves taking an imaginary tour around Hashem’s world.

“Yoga is a fun way for children to learn and to express themselves on the world around them,” Janice says.

Janice and members of the nursery team keen on yoga introduced it to the nursery a year ago.

Yoga is acknowledged as an excellent technique for handling stress and she hopes the lessons learned will stay with the children throughout their lives.