This week’s DharmaKids lesson is inspired by the heartwarming book Does a Kangaroo Have a Mother, Too? By Eric Carle — a gentle reminder that love, care, and connection can be found all throughout the animal kingdom. As we celebrate Mother’s Day, children will explore the special bonds between parents and their little ones through movement, mindfulness, and imagination. From kangaroos and cubs to birds and babies, this lesson encourages kids to notice the ways we care for one another every day. Together, we’ll practice gratitude for the people, animals, and caregivers who help us feel safe and loved. It’s a playful and heartfelt opportunity to connect, move, and celebrate the nurturing spirit that lives in all of us.
Download your printable pose guide (PDF) featuring a few highlighted poses from this sequence!
Recommended Tools:
- DharmaKids Yoga Bundle
- Zabuton & Zafu meditation pillow
- Yoga Dust Brush
- Hoberman Sphere
- Eye Pillows
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Bird timer
- Book: Does A Kangaroo Have A Mother Too? By Eric Carle
Follow along with this week’s DharmaKids mini lesson as we move through the highlighted yoga poses from our PDF. This short practice is designed to help kids connect movement, breath, and playful learning in a simple, approachable way. Roll out your mat, open the lesson, and enjoy a few mindful moments together.
1. Opening with Namaste
We begin by greeting each other with Namaste, which means:
“The light in me sees the light in you.”
For young children, I explain this as:
We each have something special about us—something we’re really good at, something we enjoy doing, or something we’re learning to do. Examples of this are, jumping high, running fast, drawing, cooking or learning to read. I hold out one hand and say,
“This hand reminds me of something that makes me special.”
Then I talk about how we all do kind things for others—like helping a friend who is sad, putting recycling in the bin, or cleaning up the classroom. I hold out my other hand and say,
“This hand reminds me of all the kind things I do for others.”
When we put our palms together, it shows that we are both special and kind. That is our light. When we begin and end yoga, we honor that light in each other with Namaste.
2. Breathing Practice
We sit criss-cross applesauce and begin to breathe deeply to prepare our minds and bodies for yoga.
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Inhale through the nose like you’re smelling a beautiful flower, hands on our bellies, which get bigger as we breathe in.
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Exhale through the mouth, gently, making our bellies smaller again.
We repeat this three times. To help visualize the breath, we use the Hoberman Sphere, which expands and contracts like our bellies do when we breathe. Children can open the ball slowly or quickly to match their breath. This “breathing ball” is also a useful focusing tool in later poses.
3. Reading Does A Kangaroo Have A Mother Too?
We read the book Does A Kangaroo Have A Mother Too? one page at a time. After reading each page, we pause to do the corresponding pose together. Once we’ve completed the pose, we return to the book and continue reading. We repeat this pattern—read a page, do the pose—until the story is complete. Then we transition into Savasana. Please note, if the child(ren) does not have a mother in his/her/their life, use the word “Family” to replace “Mother”.
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Kangaroo Hop (Utkatasana to Jump), pages 1-2- Stand tall, bring your feet together and bend your knees like a kangaroo getting ready to jump. Bring your hands to your belly, imagine carrying a tiny joey in your pouch. Next take a gentle hop forward or around your mat as you bounce and play!
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Lion’s Breath (Simhasana), 3-4- Sit tall on your knees and put your hands on your knees. Take a big breath in through your nose, then open your mouth wide, stick out your tongue, lean forward and reach your hands to the floor as you roar your breath out like a big, brave lion-“Haaa!” Open your eyes wide and let all your extra energy or sillies out with your mighty lion roar.
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Giraffe (Utthita Parsvakonasana), pages 5-6 Stand with your feet wide apart and bend one knee while stretching the other leg long and straight. Reach one arm down to your leg or the floor, and stretch the other arm up and over your head like a giraffe reaching its long neck to nibble leaves from a tall tree. Take slow breaths and grow tall and strong like a gentle giraffe.
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Penguin (Tadasana), pages 7-8- Adult penguins carry their eggs on top of their feet. Let’s carry our baby penguins too! Stand tall with your arms by your sides and your feet together. Imagine a baby penguin resting on top of your feet as you take tiny little steps forward. Keep your feet close together and your steps very small so your baby penguin doesn’t fall off. Now see if you can carefully walk backwards!
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Swan (Vajrasana Variation on Toes), pages 9-10- Start by sitting on your knees with your hands resting on the floor. Tuck your toes under and slowly lift your knees off the floor, balancing on your toes. Look at something that isn’t moving. Stretch one arm out, can you stretch the other one too? Breathe a few breaths here, with your wings out, keeping all the swan babies together!
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Fox (Dandayamana Bharmanasana), pages 11-12- Start on your hands and knees like a mommy or daddy fox at the entrance to a den. Stretch one leg straight back behind you, looking at something on the floor that is not moving to help you find your balance. Then reach the opposite arm forward, like you are reaching carefully into the den for your baby fox cub. Stay long and steady as you balance, and take slow, gentle breaths like a calm forest fox. When you are ready, bring your hand and knee down and repeat on the other side.
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Dolphin (Ardha Pincha Mayurasana), pages 13-14- Start on your hands and knees. Lower your forearms to the floor and clasp your hands or keep your arms parallel, then straighten your legs to lift your hips up high like a dolphin jumping out of the ocean. Press your feet into the ground, take slow breaths. If you want to swim, rock forward and backwards on your toes and imagine you are a playful dolphin gliding through the waves.
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Sheep (Marjaryasana–Bitilasana), pages 15-16- Start on your hands and knees. As you breathe in, lift your chest and look up high. As you breathe out, round your back, look down at your belly, and softly say, “Baaa.” Continue moving slowly with your breath like a calm, fluffy sheep.
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Bear, pages 17-18- Start on your hands and feet with your knees lifted slightly off the ground. Keep your back strong and flat as you slowly walk forward like a Mommy or Daddy bear leading their cubs through the forest. Take heavy, careful bear steps and growl softly as you move.
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Elephant (Uttanasana), pages 19-20- Stand tall with your feet strong on the ground. Bring your arms together like a long elephant trunk. Fold forward and let your trunk reach toward your baby elephant. Slowly sway your trunk side to side as you take big, gentle breaths like a calm parent elephant leading the herd.
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Monkey (Ananda Balasana), pages 21-22- Lie on your back and lift your feet up toward the sky. Reach for your toes or hold the outsides of your feet like a baby monkey hanging onto its parent. Gently rock side to side and take slow, playful breaths as your little monkey swings and hangs on tight.
4. Savasana (Final Rest)
After we finish our story and poses, we quiet our minds and calm our bodies with Savasana.
“Savasana helps our brains become calm and clear, making room for new thoughts and ideas.”
I demonstrate with the Yoga Dust Brush—a clear-handled brush filled with floating glitter. I show the kids how the glitter swirls when the brush is moving and settles when the brush lies still. I explain:
“Our thoughts are like that glitter—when we lie still, they settle down and our minds become clear.”
Children lie on their backs, breathing gently.
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Optional tools: Eye pillows or breathing buddies (stuffed animal) on bellies, and/or star machine with calming music or the bird timer.
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I gently “brush” a little yoga dust on each child’s forehead to help them relax.
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I guide them to breathe in through their noses, expanding their bellies to rise, and out through their mouths, letting their bellies fall.
5. Magic Yoga Hugs & Closing Namaste
After a few quiet minutes, we begin to wake up:
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Stretch arms overhead for a full-body stretch.
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Hug knees to chest, and slowly roll up to a criss-cross seated position.
We bring our hands to our hearts and think of someone or something we love—family, friends, pets, even a favorite toy or blanket. It can be someone alive or someone who’s passed on.
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Breathe in and raise your arms up.
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Breathe out and give yourself a hug.
“As we breathe out, whoever or whatever you were thinking of will receive a magic yoga hug, wherever they are!”
Repeat once more, either with the same person/thing or someone new.
Then, we place our special and kind hands together and bring them;:
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On our hearts: > “We respect each other with loving hearts.” Have the children repeat “loving hearts”.
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On our mouths: > “We respect each other with kind words.” Have the children repeat “kind words”.
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On our foreheads: > “We respect each other by trying new things with open minds.” Have the children repeat “open minds”.
Finally, we all say together:
“Namaste.”
