Description
- Techniques to build body and self-awareness and instantly move kids from chaos to calm
- Partner poses and games to teach cooperation
- Activities to engage and empower children with behavior and emotional disorders
- Fun postures for stretching tight muscles and strengthening weak muscles
- Strategies to facilitate listening, focus and self-regulation
In this seminar you will discover the powerful and positive impact yoga can have on the kids you work with who face challenges with sensory processing, motor incoordination, neurological disorders, ASD, ADHD, emotional/behavioral problems and learning disorders.
You will walk away with interactive and hands on yoga practices to enhance:
- Motor skills
- Body and self-awareness
- Muscle length and strength
- Nervous system regulation
- Focus for learning
- Cooperation with others
Through exercises, case studies and videos -- you will leave equipped to improve physical, sensory and self-regulation skills with the kids you work with in therapy and the classroom!
CPD
CPD
- PESI Australia, in collaboration with PESI in the USA, offers quality online continuing professional development events from the leaders in the field at a standard recognized by professional associations including psychology, social work, occupational therapy, alcohol and drug professionals, counselling and psychotherapy. On completion of the training, a Professional Development Certificate is issued after the individual has answered and submitted a quiz and course evaluation. This online program is worth 6.0 hours CPD for points calculation by your association.
Faculty
Kathryne (Kathee) Cammisa, MHE, OTR/L, is an SI/NDT certified occupational therapist, American Council on Exercise certified personal trainer, Pranakriya certified yoga therapist, Radiant Child/Family 200 hour certified yoga teacher and Mindful Schools certified mindfulness teacher. Kathee has over 25 years of experience working with children with special needs in home, school, child care and clinic settings. She works with children and their families through her private practice and at Children’s Place, a therapeutic child care center. Kathee has extensive teaching experience throughout the country, with Georgia State’s Project SCEIS, and the Medical College of Georgia where she served as assistant professor of occupational therapy. She has been published by the American Journal of Occupational Therapy and Occupational Therapy in Mental and has taken yoga and occupational therapy to children in China, Vietnam, Costa Rica and Ghana.
Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Kathee Cammisa has employment relationships with Children’s Place Therapeutic Child Care Center, Ot4kidz, Fitness That Fits, and Radiant Child Yoga. She receives a speaking honorarium and recording royalties from PESI, Inc. She has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Kathee Cammisa has no relevant non-financial relationships.
Objectives
- Articulate the benefits of yoga for reduction of mental health symptoms in children.
- Implement yoga practices as an intervention to meet treatment goals in therapy.
- Utilize yoga poses and techniques to improve motor, sensory, attention, self-regulation and social skills in children.
- Develop yoga postures and techniques to relax and calm the nervous system of clients.
- Design yoga developmentally appropriate yoga practices to improve social skills among participants.
- Adapt yoga practices to address the developmental needs of various age groups, including infants, toddlers and school age children.
Outline
OVERVIEW
- Components of a well-rounded yoga practice
- Goals that can be met using yoga techniques
- Current research
- LAB: Alignment, warm up & basic poses
YOGA FOR SPECIAL NEEDS: CEREBRAL PALSY & INCREASED TONE
- Breathing exercises: Kapalabhatti
- Elongate flexors/adductors: Bow, butterfly
- Stretch hamstrings: Down dog, dolphin
- Facilitate rotation
- Relaxation: Complete breath, diaphragmatic
- Mediation: Around the clock
- LAB: Practice techniques
YOGA FOR DOWNS SYNDROME & LOW TONE
- Breathing to invigorate: Joyful breath & more
- Body awareness: Body painting, brushing
- Promote core strength & stability
- Relaxation: Sighing breath
- Meditation: Eye exercises
- LAB: Practice techniques
YOGA FOR ATTENTION DEFICIT DISORDER
- Breathing exercises
- Centering exercise: Shake, freeze, melt
- Facilitate focus, balance & core strength: Tree, crow, firefly
- Relaxation: 2:1 breathing, body scan & more
- Meditation: Alternate nostril breathing, color meditation & more
- LAB: Practice techniques
YOGA FOR DEVELOPMENTAL COORDINATION DISORDER
- Breathing exercises: Sitali/sitkari
- Promote motor planning: Sun salutations & other sequences, down dog variations
- Relaxation: Tense & relax
- LAB: Practice techniques for body awareness and motor planning
YOGA FOR CHILDREN WITH AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER
- Breathing exercises: Breath sounds, Abdominal breath with weight
- Calm & relax the nervous system: Child’s pose & other inversions
- Work with others: Partner poses
- Meditation: Chime
- LAB: Experience to practice techniques
YOGA FOR BEHAVIOR AND EMOTIONAL PROBLEMS
- Addressing resistance
- Precautions for dealing with childhood trauma, abuse and neglect
YOGA GAMES
- Body awareness
- Creativity
- Gratitude
- Trust and cooperation
- Quiet games
- Listening and focus
- Partner poses
- LAB: practice techniques
ADAPT YOGA FOR DIFFERENT AGE GROUPS
- Infants
- Toddlers & preschoolers
- School age
Target Audience
Counselors, Teachers/Educators, Marriage & Family Therapists, Nurses, Occupational Therapists & Occupational Therapy Assistants, Physical Therapists/Physical Therapist Assistants, Psychologists, Social Workers, Speech-Language Pathologists and other Mental Health Professionals
