Part 4 - Sounds & Chanting
Part 4 - Sounds & Chanting
Many children and young people with and without special needs love sounds, singing, and vocalising, many children learn to sing before they learn how to speak, and so chanting can be an effective way to stimulate the brain activity, calm the energy stored up in the body and once again calm the nervous system. Sounds we chant in the class are HA (pronounced literally 'HAAAAAAh'), RI (Pronounced 'REEEEEE') & OM (pronounced like OOOooommmmm) All together it makes 'Hari Om'. These sounds resonate and vibrate through the whole of the upper body from the base of the spine all the way up the spinal cord through the organs and Chakras and up into the brain. It has been shown scientifically that the vibrations caused from these sounds stimulate the vagus nerve which in turn supports the balance of the nervous system (The Sympathetic & the Parasympathetic Nervous Systems). So it's a very powerful, energising but also calming activity during yoga sessions to chant these sounds in the presence of and with the children.
Chanting Hari Om - This isn't chanted for any religious or traditional purposes, it is simply a practice or a method that helps children to calm their nervous system, direct and centre their energies, and focus their attention on one specific thing at that moment - Sound. It also helps because when we vocalise and use sound for extended periods of time, we are elongating our exhalations again which in turn calms us down and steadies our breathing, finding more rhythm in our breathing patterns. However, if you, the child or anyone is uncomfortable with chanting certain sounds, feel free to skip the chanting and perhaps replace with breathing activities, or humming instead.
To begin with, place your hand(s) on your naval, and feel the abdomen's movements with the breath, begin to deepen the breath and feel the flow and movement of the body going with the breathing. Then deepen your inhalation through the nose, and once filling up the lungs, with your hands still on your abdomen, chanting 'HA' all the way to the end of your exhale until the chant ends and your breath runs out, repeat 2 or 3 times to get a sense of what is happening in the body. You will feel with attentive awareness, the naval is vibrating from the sound of 'HA' resonating in the body. To make this interactive with the child, you can place your hand on their naval, or their hand if comfortable on your naval, so they feel the vibration from their hands. When you chant, you can maintain eye contact with your child, and gently encourage them to breathe deeply and they may even replicate the sound to some extent by opening their mouth and allowing sound to travel with their out-breath, but try not to impose your breath or sound onto them whilst doing so.
Then place your hand(s) on your throat, take a deep breath in through the nose and on the exhale, lengthen the breath out and chant RI ('REEEEEEEE') you will feel a strong vibration resonating through the throat region, again if comfortable, allow the child to place their hand on your throat, to feel the vibration, maintaining eye contact as you do so.
Finally, placing your hands on the crown of your head, or on the jawline (whichever suits you best) breathing in deeply through the nose and exhaling 'OM' (Ooooommmmmmmmm) this will vibrate as the sound changes through the spinal cord and travel up into the head and brain, you can share this experience with the child by inviting them to place their hands on their own head and trying or placing their hands on your head to feel the vibration.
River Flute by Kevin MacLeod
Link httpsincompetech.filmmusic.iosong4713-river-flute
License httpcreativecommons.orglicensesby4.0
Part 4 - Sounds & Chanting
Many children and young people with and without special needs love sounds, singing, and vocalising, many children learn to sing before they learn how to speak, and so chanting can be an effective way to stimulate the brain activity, calm the energy stored up in the body and once again calm the nervous system. Sounds we chant in the class are HA (pronounced literally 'HAAAAAAh'), RI (Pronounced 'REEEEEE') & OM (pronounced like OOOooommmmm) All together it makes 'Hari Om'. These sounds resonate and vibrate through the whole of the upper body from the base of the spine all the way up the spinal cord through the organs and Chakras and up into the brain. It has been shown scientifically that the vibrations caused from these sounds stimulate the vagus nerve which in turn supports the balance of the nervous system (The Sympathetic & the Parasympathetic Nervous Systems). So it's a very powerful, energising but also calming activity during yoga sessions to chant these sounds in the presence of and with the children.
Chanting Hari Om - This isn't chanted for any religious or traditional purposes, it is simply a practice or a method that helps children to calm their nervous system, direct and centre their energies, and focus their attention on one specific thing at that moment - Sound. It also helps because when we vocalise and use sound for extended periods of time, we are elongating our exhalations again which in turn calms us down and steadies our breathing, finding more rhythm in our breathing patterns. However, if you, the child or anyone is uncomfortable with chanting certain sounds, feel free to skip the chanting and perhaps replace with breathing activities, or humming instead.
River Flute by Kevin MacLeod
Link httpsincompetech.filmmusic.iosong4713-river-flute
License httpcreativecommons.orglicensesby4.0
Part 4 - Sounds & Chanting
Many children and young people with and without special needs love sounds, singing, and vocalising, many children learn to sing before they learn how to speak, and so chanting can be an effective way to stimulate the brain activity, calm the energy stored up in the body and once again calm the nervous system. Sounds we chant in the class are HA (pronounced literally 'HAAAAAAh'), RI (Pronounced 'REEEEEE') & OM (pronounced like OOOooommmmm) All together it makes 'Hari Om'. These sounds resonate and vibrate through the whole of the upper body from the base of the spine all the way up the spinal cord through the organs and Chakras and up into the brain. It has been shown scientifically that the vibrations caused from these sounds stimulate the vagus nerve which in turn supports the balance of the nervous system (The Sympathetic & the Parasympathetic Nervous Systems). So it's a very powerful, energising but also calming activity during yoga sessions to chant these sounds in the presence of and with the children.
Chanting Hari Om - This isn't chanted for any religious or traditional purposes, it is simply a practice or a method that helps children to calm their nervous system, direct and centre their energies, and focus their attention on one specific thing at that moment - Sound. It also helps because when we vocalise and use sound for extended periods of time, we are elongating our exhalations again which in turn calms us down and steadies our breathing, finding more rhythm in our breathing patterns. However, if you, the child or anyone is uncomfortable with chanting certain sounds, feel free to skip the chanting and perhaps replace with breathing activities, or humming instead.
River Flute by Kevin MacLeod
Link httpsincompetech.filmmusic.iosong4713-river-flute
Part 4 - Sounds & Chanting
Bhramari/Humming - The Bhramari technique is an ancient technique that simply involves closing the mouth, breathing in, filling up the capacity of the lungs, and humming all the way to the end of the exhale. You can hum at different pitches which have different energetic effects, as you breathe all the way out with the hum this calms your parasympathetic nervous system and will help anyone else in the presence of you to feel calm also. This has been used for millennia to help deal with anxiety as it stimulates the activity in the brain and can help to open up new neural pathways in the brain also, so humming for long periods of time can be very effective with children who are in high arousal, agitation, frustration or anxiety.
River Flute by Kevin MacLeod
Link httpsincompetech.filmmusic.iosong4713-river-flute
License httpcreativecommons.orglicensesby4.0