Before you begin this session please read and listen to our Introduction to Yoga with We Be Kids.
This yoga session is inspired by one of the UK’s most loved birds, the red-breasted British Robin. It’s been named Britains national bird twice and is one of our more recognisable feathered friends and is frequently associated with the winter season, known for bringing a splash of colour to the grey and white backdrops winter brings.
In this session we warm the body to prepare us for some robin hops and steps and then take an imaginary journey through their life, we even get to attempt a basic Bird in the Basket pose! Please be reminded to only do what feels comfortable and free to press pause whenever you need whilst you learn about this plucky little bird.
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Whilst using this yoga resource to inspire learning, know you are helping you and your family's wellbeing:
1) Get Active - yoga may not be running a marathon but regular practice will reap many benefits to the physical and mental bodies. Move your bodies through different postures as we aim to engage the whole body.
2) Keep Learning - Robins are such a beautiful and recognisable bird that once you’ve seen one you’ll not usually forget it! However do you think you would recognise its call? Or a juvenile robin before it’s orangey-red feathers appear? Have a look at the RSPB website or search ‘British Robin’ with your search engine or look in some books on birds to see what else you can learn about these super territorial birds.
3) Be Mindful - The Robin is actually a small bird and around for us to admire all year in the UK. During Winter however, with much of their natural habitat having been changed due to human activities over time, they can find it hard to get to the worms that they so love under the frozen ground or find suitable food elsewhere. Their favourite food is meal worms, but if you have any crumbs, nuts, seeds or berries that you can put out for ground feeders such as the Robin, I am sure they will be very happy about it. Note that it may take a couple of weeks of putting bird food out for them, before they find it, so don’t be too discouraged if it doesn’t happen overnight! To help this stay in your hearts try this with your family: Imagine being a tiny bird throughout the cold winters. Robins are of course a perfect species to deal with our seasons but many do not make it through the harsher times due to their food sources becoming so limited and they will often fiercely defend their patches in their efforts to survive. Now find your own strong warm red hearts, something akin to the Robins redbreast, and remember to save and put out your breadcrumbs/seeds/nuts/berries/mealworms to help ease their plight. Imagine how happy you feel as a Robin to find these spoils!
4) Practice Kindness- Yoga is a practice that is to be built up over time and practiced with a keen inner ear listening to our bodies every single time however yoga can also be riddled with wanting to make the 'pose'. Be sure that in every practice you listen keenly to how your body is feeling and practice with kindness. In yoga only ever practice with kindness to yourself - EVERY practice is different and our bodies will feel the postures differently every time. Yoga should never hurt. Look after yourself - there is only one of you.
5) Think Community - Practice this session with your community at home and spread the word online.