Investigating Early Childhood Teachers' Perceptions of a Preschool Yoga Program

Yoga for young children has become a growing area of interest in early childhood settings across the United States. Evidence suggests that yoga has the ability to improve young children's physical development, executive functioning, self-regulation, and can aid in decreasing stress and anxiety. While the scope of research on yoga for young children has primarily focused on the experiences and outcomes of the children who participate, far less is known about the experiences and perceptions of teachers who have engaged in such programs with their students. This study utilized a qualitative case study to investigate teachers' perceptions of yoga in a school setting. It took place at a laboratory preschool in North Mississippi over the course of 6 months from January to June 2017. A variety of qualitative research methods were employed to garner data including semi-structured interviews, classroom visits, and observations of weekly yoga classes. Findings from the study revealed teachers perceive the benefits of yoga to be increased physical development, self-regulation, and socioemotional skills, along with behavioral and cognitive benefits in the classroom. In addition, teacher buy-in was found to be critical to program success, as the teachers who perceived yoga positively were more willing to incorporate it into their classroom, thus extending its benefits. Of particular interest were reports by preschool teachers of students who continued to use yoga in their daily lives and retain many of the skills learned in yoga even months after they had taken yoga classes.