There’s nothing stopping even the youngest children from embracing mindfulness through yoga, said Lisa Schreiber.
The author, yogi and former Baltimore resident put that theory to the test when, on July 7, she taught a room full of young campers at the JCC of Greater Baltimore’s Noah’s Ark Summer Camp a variety of different poses from her new book “The Promise of Shabbat: Yoga Poses for Happy Kids.”
“Kids are sponges, especially at this age. They can absorb any new information that comes at them,” Schreiber said. “The earlier that kids can learn self-management or self-regulation strategies and methods, the better off they will be as they learn to face challenges.”
Schreiber, who now lives in Orlando, Fla., did not set out to be an author. She first became interested in yoga when she took a prenatal yoga class while pregnant with her son. This led to her joining Mommy and Me yoga classes, and later becoming a certified kids’ yoga instructor and adult yoga instructor.
The idea for “The Promise of Shabbat” came to her during a discussion with one of her friends from her local branch of the PJ Library, who mentioned that there were no Jewish-content books focusing on yoga.
“She looked at me and said ‘You should do that,’” Schreiber recalled. “It didn’t take me long at all to come up with a story for the book, and then it just kind of took off.”
During the July 7 session, she led campers as young as 2 in several poses featured in her book, including the star pose, table pose and downward-facing dog. The book itself focused on several children who use yoga to deal with negative situations during the week leading up to Shabbat.
The yoga demonstration is just one of the many Shabbat events that Noah’s Ark camp regularly holds. Kimberly Davidson, the camp director, noted that Shabbat is always a special occasion for campers. Normally, the camp’s staff use Shabbat to honor special “Mitzvah Mensches” at camp — campers who do an exemplary job at showing Jewish values and being kind to others.
“The kids love the Shabbat songs that we sing; they love when ‘the dinosaur comes knocking at the door,’” she said, referring to a popular Shabbat song at camp. “And [they love] when they get that Shabbat feeling all over their bodies. It’s a time where we can just reflect and really just enjoy each other.”
Davidson was connected to Schreiber through a mutual friend who works in the JCC’s marketing department, who suggested Schreiber due to her book’s focus on Shabbat. Davidson shares the author’s opinion on early learning, believing that it is important for children to practice mindfulness at a young age.
“Early intervention is the key to everything, if you ask me,” she said. “Hopefully, they’ll carry the tools and coping mechanisms they learn as they grow, and use them to help them get through tough situations.”
Yoga may seem unconnected to Judaism on the surface, but Schreiber draws parallels between the practice and Jewish religious practices. The connection between yoga and Shabbat in her book is a personal one.
“For me, practicing yoga and observing Shabbat have the same effect,” she explained. “They bring me peace, joy, rest and comfort … all of those things are described in the book. Practicing both of those can enhance happiness and life for anyone, even though they are different.”
Schreiber has been touring with “The Promise of Shabbat” all over the East Coast, taking it to JCCs and synagogues in New Jersey, Florida and more, and holding similar yoga demonstrations for children. She wants to encourage more people to practice yoga, especially parents with young children.
“You’re never too early,” she added. “Even babies can practice basic poses with the help of a parent.”
Davidson said that Schreiber bringing everyone at camp together through yoga was an inspiring sight.
“Watching everyone do the yoga poses at the same time was an amazing feeling from a director’s perspective,” she said. “And to see the kids practicing self-care. It’s very important that you take care of yourself, so that you can give to your community, so that you can do for others. And yoga is one of those ways to really have self-care.”
