BEAM ACADEMY

💙 A special thank you to The West Finchley Day Nursery and Preschool💙

Some partnerships become a meaningful part of your journey, and West Finchley is certainly one of them.

Since 2022, we've watched children grow in confidence, develop new skills, and embrace movement with enthusiasm, curiosity, and joy. It has been wonderful to be welcomed back term after term and to see the value that wellbeing experiences can bring to early years settings.

We are incredibly grateful for the continued support, trust, and warm welcome we receive from The West Finchley team.

Thank you for being part of the BEAM community and for helping us create positive wellbeing experiences for children year after year.

We look forward to many more mindful moments together.

West Finchley Day Nursery and Preschool

Did you know your hands can help tell a story?

In children's yoga and mindfulness sessions, simple hand shapes can become part of imaginative adventures, breathing exercises, and moments of calm.

Today, we're exploring a few animal-inspired hand shapes:

🦋 Butterfly Hands
🐰 Bunny Hands
🦁 Lion Paws
🐢 Turtle Shell

Try making each one and see where your imagination takes you.

Butterfly Hands
Hold your butterfly in front of your chest and gently flutter your wings as you fly from flower to flower.

Bunny Hands
Place your bunny hands behind your head to create long bunny ears and hop around like a rabbit.

Lion Paws
Hold your lion paws out in front of you, stretch your arms, open your mouth wide, and let out a mighty roar!

Turtle Shell
Hold your turtle shell in front of your chest, tuck your chin down, curl into your shell, and take 3 slow breaths before peeking back out.
There’s no right or wrong way to play. Encourage children to use their imagination and create their own animal adventures.

This week's challenge is our Mindful Movers Word Search ✨

Can you find all the hidden yoga and mindfulness words?

• Look carefully
• Find the wellbeing words
• See how many you can spot
• Challenge a friend or family member to join in

For an extra mindfulness challenge, choose one of the words you find and act it out:

🌳 TREE = Try Tree Pose
🌊 PEACE = Take 3 slow breaths
❤️ KINDNESS = Think of one kind thing you could do today
🌞 SMILE = Share a smile with someone nearby

Activities don't always need to be complicated to support wellbeing. Sometimes a simple puzzle can encourage focus, curiosity, and meaningful conversations 🌿

💬 How many words did you find?

💙 Thank You, Bemerton Children's Centre 💙

Since 2021, it has been a privilege to work alongside Bemerton Children's Centre, supporting children through yoga, mindfulness, movement, and wellbeing activities.

Over the years, we've had the opportunity to meet so many wonderful children, helping them build confidence, explore movement, and enjoy moments of calm, creativity, and connection.

We are incredibly grateful for the trust, support, and partnership that Bemerton Children's Centre has shown us throughout the years.

Thank you for being part of the BEAM journey and for your continued commitment to supporting children's wellbeing in your community.

Here's to many more smiles, adventures, and mindful moments together. 🌟

'sCentre

Fruit & Veg Portrait Challenge

Looking for a fun after-school activity?

Grab a plate and a selection of fruit and vegetables you can eat raw.

Try:

🍎 Apple slices
🥒 Cucumber
🥕 Carrot
🍇 Grapes
🍓 Strawberries

Each person creates a face on their plate.

The challenge is to make someone everyone knows. It could be Mum, Dad, Granny, Granda, Brother, Sister, Teacher, or even the family dog!

Once everyone has finished, take turns presenting your portrait:

•What did you use for the eyes?
•What did you use for the nose?
•What did you use for the mouth?
•What did you use for the hair?

Then everyone guesses who it is!

Now it's time to make your portrait disappear!
Take turns removing one piece at a time.

Take a bite and become a Food Critic:

• What does it taste like?
• What does it remind you of?
• Can you describe it in one word?

Keep going until every piece of your portrait has disappeared!
It's a playful way to encourage creativity, conversation, observation, and curiosity around food while having a little fun together.

Proud to support Mildmay Community Nursery 💛

Since January 2021, we've loved being part of the Mildmay Community Nursery journey, bringing yoga, and imaginative play to their children each week.

It's always a joy to work alongside early years settings that recognise the importance of giving children opportunities to move, explore, create, and build confidence through play.

Over the years, we've shared countless stories, adventures, songs, stretches, games, and moments of calm together, helping children discover new ways to connect with their bodies, emotions, and imaginations.

We're incredibly grateful to the staff, children, and families for welcoming BEAM into the nursery community and for being part of our journey for over five years.

Thank you for your continued support, trust, and partnership. We look forward to many more years of movement, mindfulness, and magical adventures together 🌿

Children don’t care if it’s called yoga.

They care if it feels:
•Playful
•Imaginative
•Exciting
•Safe to join in

That’s why imaginative storytelling can help children engage more naturally in movement activities.

For many children, direct instructions like:
“Stand still.”
“Balance.”
“Do this pose.”

This can sometimes feel:
❌ Pressure-filled
❌ Unfamiliar
❌ Worrying about getting it wrong

But:
☁️ “Can you tiptoe across the sleepy clouds?”
🌧️ “Can you jump over the rain puddles?”
⭐ “Can you stretch up and reach the stars?”

Suddenly movement becomes:
✔ A game
✔ An adventure
✔ Imaginative play
✔ Something children WANT to join in

Storytelling helps children move naturally without focusing on perfection first.

It also supports:
🧠 Listening and attention
🤸 Coordination and body awareness
💭 Creativity and imagination
🩵 Confidence and participation
Try this simple storytelling activity:

“Magic Path”
Place cushions, hoops, spots, or paper around the room to create a magical pathway.

As children move through the path, guide the story:
☁️ “Tiptoe carefully across the sleepy clouds!”
🌧️ “Jump over the giant rain puddles!”
🌉 “Balance across the magic bridge!”
⭐ “FREEZE! Reach up high and touch the stars…”

The goal isn’t perfect poses.
It’s helping children feel engaged, playful, confident, and connected through movement

Why do we use storytelling in yoga sessions?

Because children engage best when movement feels playful, imaginative, and fun.

Instead of saying:
“Stand still.”
“Stretch.”
“Balance.”

We might say:
✨ “Can you grow tall like a tree?”
✨ “Can you hop like a frog?”
✨ “Can you curl up like a sleepy lion?”

Storytelling helps children move naturally without feeling pressured or worried about “getting it right.”

It also supports:
Attention and listening
Coordination and body awareness
Imagination and creativity
Confidence and participation

Try this simple activity:
“Frog Pond”

Place a few cushions, hoops, spots, or markers around the room or outside space as “lily pads.”

Children crouch low like frogs and hop from one lily pad to the next while the teacher guides the story:

✨ “Quick frogs! Jump across the pond!”
✨ “Watch out for the sleepy crocodile!”
✨ “Can you freeze super still on your lily pad?”

You can make the hops:
🐸 Big
🐸 Tiny
🐸 Slow
🐸 Fast

and even add balancing or stretching challenges along the way.

For many children, imaginative movement feels safer and more engaging than direct instruction alone.

That’s why our sessions combine yoga, mindfulness, movement, music, props, and storytelling to create activities that children genuinely enjoy being part of.

Because when children feel relaxed, playful, and connected. Learning often follows naturally

Proud to support Earlsfield Primary

Since January 2024, we’ve loved bringing children’s yoga sessions into the Earlsfield Primary school community.

It’s always wonderful to be part of school environments that create space for movement, confidence, creativity, and wellbeing within the school day.

We’re so grateful to the staff, pupils, and families for continuing to welcome BEAM into the school community each term.