Grounded in Concentration
This is a memory game. The object of the game is to turn over pairs of matching chips. Concentration can be played with any number of players or alone.
You will need two tubes of the Grounded Pose Chips. Decide how many poses to include in the game based on the number of players and time. Pick poses that the class is familiar with unless you plan on teaching the poses during the game. (This is not ideal since it interrupts the play). Lay the chips face down on a surface. In turn each player choose two chips and turns them face up. If they are of the same pose (e.g. Down Dog and Down Dog) then that player wins the pair, everybody practices the pose and plays again. If they are not of the same pose, the players still practice the 2 poses, the chips are turned face down again and play passes to the player on the left. The game ends when the last pair has been picked up. *The winner is the person with the most pairs, and there may be a tie for first place.
Variation: concentrate and relate
This is played the same way with the following twist. If the chips are two different poses then the player states a relationship or connection that the poses share and everyone practices both poses. The answer must be backed up with a
good explanation. For example, We Will Rock You and Bridge are both back bending poses. Calm Steam Silly and Take Out The Trash both help to release energy, thoughts or emotions that you don’t want to hold onto any longer. Tall Mountain and Forward Fold flow perfectly from one to the other linked to the breath. If the player is unable to relate the two poses to each other, turn the chips over and the play passes to the next person. (This can be played with just one tube of chips)
Grounded Tips:
Set the chips out in organized rows. Two tubes of pose chips takes up an entire yoga mat.
Set a timer for each pose to encourage the players to be mindful of their alignment.
Set out 12 or fewer poses for the Pre-Grounded Kids.
This game may be played in pairs. This works well for large groups (Yoga Clubs, PE)
*We have learned from our students that it is OK to have a winner sometimes. We will dive deeper into this topic on another post. Stay tuned.
In celebrating Dr. Seuss’ birthday we learned how to work our feet and our hands. Just as Suess’ Mr. Brown Can Moo!, Mrs. Cat can MEOW! In “Mrs. Cat Can Meow! Can You?” A Poem of Wacky, Wonderful Noises – While Clawing the Mat we allowed our inner animal out on the mat while paying close attention to our hands and feet. Are they wacky? Are they flat? Are they clawing the mat? When practicing this wacky flow while making Suesserrific noises you too will learn the importance of clawing the mat. In playing “Stop Foot, Go” (a zany spin on the all time favorite game, Musical Chairs) and studying the 4 corners of our feet we checked on our left foot and our right foot making sure they were fuzzy fur feet. While “Roaring”, “split – splatting” and “meowing” along with Mrs. Cat we learned that when our four paws are aligned we feel more steady, more grounded, and in balance with the universe.
