yoga for schools

An increasing number of organisations including the Association for Physical Education and the Youth Sport Trust yoga practice can meaningfully support overall wellbeing.

 

At Anjli Yoga, our work in schools is rooted in a simple belief:


when children and young people understand themselves, they thrive

Yoga for Schools offers children and young people practical, embodied tools to support their physical health, emotional regulation, focus and self-awareness — skills that are increasingly essential in today’s fast-moving and highly stimulating world.

National organisations such as the Association for Physical Education and the Youth Sport Trust recognise that yoga practice can meaningfully support overall wellbeing. Research continues to show the importance of movement, breath regulation and mindful awareness in supporting concentration, resilience and emotional health.

But for us, yoga is more than exercise. 

It's a collection of practices that can be adapted in an age-appropriate way for children and young people to: 

  • Notice what they're feeling

  • Understand how emotions show up in the body

  • Learn how to regulate energy and attention

  • Build confidence from the inside out

 Preparing Children and Young People for the Future

Children and young people are growing up in an era of rapid change, digital immersion and constant information. Alongside academic knowledge, they need embodied skills that help them:

  • Adapt to change with flexibility

  • Persevere through uncertainty

  • Communicate with emotional intelligence

  • Collaborate with empathy

  • Maintain focus in stimulating environments

  • Trust their own inner guidance

Yoga provides structured opportunities to practise these skills in real time.

Through movement, balance, breath and reflection, Children and Young People learn how to self-regulate rather than react to external influences.

This is how we gently support the shift from overwhelm to awareness.

Yoga for Children and Young People Is Unique

Children’s yoga and yoga for young people are not simplified adult classes. 

They're developmentally informed practices that use:

  • Storytelling and imagination

  • Partner and group collaboration

  • Playful sequencing

  • Interoceptive awareness (noticing internal sensations)

  • Accessible language for emotional literacy

Sessions are stimulating and engaging, yet intentionally structured to support calm focus and embodied confidence.

Children and young people aren't asked to perform or perfect poses.

They're invited to explore and notice.

The Anjli Yoga Approach: 5 Principles to Wellbeing

Our school programmes are guided by five integrated principles:

  1. Connection – to self and world

    Through engaging themes and relevant curriculum links, Children and Young People explore their bodies, thoughts and emotions in an age-appropriate way, strengthening both self-awareness and empathy.

  2. Physical movement

    • Stretching to release tension and emotional holding

    • Strength-building to develop resilience and confidence

    • Sequencing to improve coordination, motivation and body awareness

    Movement becomes a safe outlet for energy and feeling. 

    3. Balance

    Balance postures develop:

    • Concentration

    • Focus

    • Steady attention

    • Emotional equilibrium

    Children and young people learn how to steady their bodies and, in turn, steady their minds.

    4. Breath awareness

    Breathing techniques are used to:

    • Calm heightened states

    • Gently energise low states

    • Support “whole-brain” integration

    • Improve clarity and readiness for learning

    Breath becomes a tool Children and Young People can access independently.

    5. Relaxation moments

    Short reflective practices support:

    • Relaxation

    • Nervous system regulation

    • Emotional processing

    • Mental resilience

    These moments create space for integration rather than constant stimulation.

Supporting Curriculum and Whole-School Wellbeing

Anjli Yoga complements:

  • The National Curriculum

  • PSHE and RSE programmes

  • Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural (SMSC) Education

  • Whole-school wellbeing strategies

Yoga themes can be woven into classroom learning, enhancing engagement while supporting emotional and social development.

Example Programmes

Primary:

  • Topic-linked yoga (Romans, Egypt, Environment, Festivals including Chinese New Year, Vesak, Diwali)

  • Tolerance, diversity and healthy bodies

  • Exam preparation workshops (focus, calm, confidence)

  • Year 6–7 transition workshops on change and resilience

Secondary

  • Personal Power Yoga

  • Building Brain Connections Yoga

  • Right Time, Right Energy

  • Yoga for Calm

  • Yoga for Sleep

  • Yoga for Flexibility

  • Yoga to Support the Menstrual Cycle

  • Exam-season resilience workshops

Bespoke programmes can be designed to meet specific school needs.

The vision

At Anjli Yoga, our vision is to help guide children and young people toward deeper self-understanding, emotional literacy and embodied confidence.

In a world that often pulls attention outward, yoga gently guides it inward — helping children and young people develop the awareness, compassion and resilience that support not only academic success, but lifelong wellbeing.

When children and young people learn to understand themselves, they become calmer, clearer and more connected.

And from that place, they are better prepared for whatever future awaits them.