We are now on day 10,736 (ok I have no idea how many days but you get my point) of the global pandemic, Covid-19.  Many of us having been working in front of screens… okay so maybe some of us always did work in front of screens but it seems like now all we do is look at screens, no?  Our children are heading into the new school year which will continue to be fully virtual or some form of virtual/in person hybrid.  Maybe you’re feeling a little bit of parent guilt about all the screen time? I get it, it has been A LOT of screen time.  But here’s the thing…. STOP that guilt immediately!! 

#1. We are in a pandemic.

#2. We are using this fantastic technology (which we are super lucky to have available to us, by the way) that allows us to engage and teach in a way that would have never been possible even just a few years ago… so instead of feeling guilty, let’s all take a minute to be a little bit in awe!

#3. There IS a huge difference between screen entertainment (video games, cartoons, youtube videos, etc.) and screen ENGAGEMENT! If your child is watching something educational, engaging, and interactive it is a learning experience.  It is necessary AND purposeful! So don’t be so quick to lump all screen time into the same category. Of course, there is even a place for screen entertainment (like when you really really really need a minute or 50).  Let’s be clear screen time like Coyote Peterson Brave Wilderness , Circle Time with Ms. Monica Circle Time with Ms. Monica , or Bendy Bookworm Yoga Bendy Bookworm Yoga (shameless plug), etc. are intentionally developed to educate and entertain; let your child learn and go give yourself a minute to answer some of those work emails that just keep coming in (it’s never ending, am I right?!?)

Okay okay so say you are okay with educational screen time but you’re looking at a foreseeable future with virtual school again and you’re thinking back to last spring and already reaching for the wine….

I get that too. I have had screen fatigue.  I have turned off my phone for full days…. FULL DAYS… and I’m a millennial.  So I’m not going to pretend like screen fatigue isn’t a thing. And I’m not going to tell you it isn’t going to happen.  What I am going to suggest is: Yoga/ Movement CAN help your little ones handle their screen time.  What I’m suggesting is a few Yoga tricks that you can have in your Back 2 School- BUT Still At Home -And Trying Not To Hit The Bottle At 10AM- Toolbox.  So without further ado:

#1. If they still have some Zoom learning ahead but they are 100% unable to focus, you need a fast movement intervention!  Click off the screen, take a “bathroom break” (or maybe introduce the movement break idea to your teacher), step away from the screen and give your kid 5 minutes of Yoga Games, try:

Yogi Says- Just like “Simon Says”: call out a pose and have your child mirror the pose BUT only if Yogi Says.

Try these Yoga Games for 1st-3rd Graders or these Yoga Games for 5 year olds

OR

Sun Races (this is ideal for slightly older children, let’s say 6ish and up)- See who can do a Surya Namaskar faster.  I usually start this out slow; reminding the children of the sequence of poses and then we speed it up.  A simple race but effective in getting their heart rate up, getting their fidgets out, and releasing some pent up energy.  

#2. When they’ve had enough of using their eyes; they’re done reading and watching to learn.  Let them use their eyes for fun.  Here’s the thing switching from screen to books might work for some children but chances are they just don’t want to sit still anymore, try:

Walk and Name (this is ideal for kindergarten and first graders).  Go on a walk and play a little “I spy”.  When they identify the object, practice it’s yoga pose! (i.e. bird pose) This is a great way to play, move, and work on  vocabulary recall and word bank building! 

#3. When you want to target a deeper level of focus and concentration (maybe before a test or harder assignment) and they are just tapped out, try:

Motion Meditations such as Finger Taps and Clap and Rub:

The truth is we don’t know how long school will have a virtual element to it.  But the good news is, with these Bendy Bookworm Yoga tricks, you’ll be prepared to combat the impending screen fatigue AND teach your child some skills to have in their own Back 2 School- BUT Still At Home -And Not Old Enough To Hit The Bottle- Toolbox.

NEED TO ADD MORE MOVEMENT TO YOUR CHILD’S DAY? ADD IN BENDY BOOKWORM YOGA; MOVEMENT YOUR CHILDREN CAN PRACTICE ON THEIR OWN. THEY WILL GAIN ALL THE BENEFITS OF A READ A LOUD STORY TIME PLUS PARTICIPATE IN ACTIVE ENGAGEMENT THROUGH MOVEMENT!