Yoga in a story? Rachel’s Day in the Garden is a great way to engage children in exercise and activity. They love to follow along with the Rachel and be involved as if they were also part of the book. *Note: The free printable has some nature items and color cards to accompany the text, and they may be used with or without the book.
Synopsis
Join Rachel as she and her adorable puppy look for signs of spring in the garden. Crawl like a caterpillar, buzz like a bee, and flutter like a butterfly. Discover spring, explore movement, and learn the colors of the rainbow! Age group: Preschoolers ages 3-6.
The author has many Yoga books and educational materials at her website. The books are also on Amazon, where I purchased my copy. The book has an informational introductory page, the story, a list of Yoga poses, as well as a parent teacher guide. 
Giselle Shardlow is the author of Kids Yoga Stories. Her yoga books for kids get children learning, moving, and having fun. Giselle draws from her experiences as a teacher, traveler, yogi, and mom to write the yoga stories found at www.kidsyogastories.com/
Rachel’s Day in the Garden
This is a book of colors, as well as Yoga and an imaginary story. Rachel wakes up and basks in the rays of the yellow sun. Each color word is described with adjectives to help children learn more than isolated color names.
Another sample page from the book shows how engaging and fun the text is, and demonstrates an understanding of children. The art takes up much of the page and words are limited for a complete imaginary experience. This is a fiction story as far as the time in the garden, but also has actual Yoga poses included. 
An illustrated list of Yoga poses featuring Rachel is included in the book for quick reference. The children will relate to character from the story and will recognize how to pose.
Where to find the book:
- Goodreads Link: Add Rachel’s Garden to your “Want to Read” Goodreads shelf.
- Amazon Link (non-affiliate)
- Book Sales Page
Benefits of yoga for kids:
- increases strength and flexibility
- helps them relax, unwind, and calm down to reduce stress and anxiety
- helps them sleep better
- promotes interaction between adult and child, and between multiple children
- improves their fine and gross motor skills, as well as their coordination
- develops self-confidence, self-expression, and body awareness
- promotes a healthy, active lifestyle
It is engaging for children to try the yoga poses in the story. The book was lots of fun and there was great participation. I volunteer in a daycare and the mom had to help children with some of the poses which they LOVED trying. The 3 year olds were very proud of themselves even with some help. I highly recommend the story as a way to engage children in exercise that they will enjoy.
I purchased my own copy of this book although I did get a free preview.
Thank you for reading, Carolyn
