Mindful Moves

November 23, 2020
Cardoza, the founder of a national nonprofit aiming to help educators integrate yoga into the school day, offers a practical guide for young readers to get in touch with their emotions and become more attentive toward their physical responses. After defining mindfulness (it’s “about noticing what’s happening—right here, right now”) and explaining how it might assist (it “helps us explore how we feel”), Cardoza offers forms of practice. These include yoga poses, breathing exercises, and numbered sequential activities designed to emphasize increased awareness of sensory elements. Boldly colored illustrations featuring anthropomorphic animals and humans with varying skin tones, hair textures, and abilities help readers envision the actions Cardoza prescribes. A comprehensible and user-friendly entry point into yoga and mindfulness. Ages 5–7.