Based in Galway, qualified yoga instructor and heritage professional Siobhán Sloane is running a yoga camp for this Easter. Creative by Nature is an interactive yoga and nature-inspired camp for children aged seven to 12 years, which will run from 30 March to 8 April 2021.

The three-day camps will take place on two occasions during the Easter break. The first course will run from 30 March to 1 April while the second takes place from 6 to 8 April. Running from 10am to 11.30am each day, the interactive sessions are livestreamed from Galway, allowing children all over Ireland to take part.

Activities include an introduction to yoga by exploring how Irish woodland animals move, mindful arts and crafts, age-appropriate breathing techniques and child-led stories. The sessions will include mindful drawing, colouring, games and relaxation to help children express their creativity.

Children have been wonderfully resilient

Siobhán has her own business called Find Your Essential Nature and leads wellness in nature guided experiences for adults in Galway and the Burren to help people find balance and connect to their senses. She has also delivered nature-based programmes to many primary school aged children.

She explains how helping children explore their creativity is important.

“Children have been wonderfully resilient, adapting to home-schooling while missing their friends and freedom,” she says.

They have been forced to become like little adults

“We know that people are stressed, not just from doing too much, but from doing too little of that which rejuvenates us. The same can be true for children.

“They have been forced to become like little adults in an office environment,” she continues.

“We don't need to put heavy language on this, we simply need to equip children with tools to recognise their emotions and manage them by breathing, stretching and taking some time to colour mindfully.”

The camps will run from 30 March to 8 April 2021.

Siobhán explains that she wanted to create a space for children to learn about nature from their homes this Easter.

“With the mid-term break coming up and some parents still working from home, I wanted to bring some of what we would do in the outdoor setting into the living rooms,” she says.

“The Creative by Nature Easter camps will give children time and space to explore their creativity, move and stretch their bodies playfully, create stories, practice breathing and have moments of silence."

The camps take place via private Zoom link and the price is €50 for one child with no charge for siblings. Further information about the Creative by Nature Easter Camps is available here.

Read more

Catherine Callaghan: ‘steadiness is a super power’

Yoga to release tension in the body caused by worry or stress