Trauma-Sensitive Yoga Deck for Kids

50 trauma-informed, color-coded cards—yoga poses, mindful movement exercises, and age-appropriate practices to help kids nurture embodiment, process complex trauma, and feel safer in their bodies

A comprehensive, empowering, developmentally appropriate, and easy-to-use deck that’s grounded in attachment theory, neuroscience, and trauma theory

The Trauma-Sensitive Yoga Deck for Kids centers that healing from traumatic experiences happens not just in the mind, but in the body—and offers tools and movement exercises to help children sense their bodies and experience safety within them.

The deck’s practices focus on present-moment awareness, rhythmic movement, choice-making, and safe, effective touch. Across the deck and the accompanying booklet, the authors underscore empowering children to be the experts on their own bodies through invitational language, non-coercion, and authentic shared experience. Designed for therapists, social workers, parents, and other care facilitators, The Trauma-Sensitive Yoga Deck for Kids supports:

• Practical application: With 50 color-coded cards; adaptable exercises; movement practices that can be used individually or within groups; and a focus on four paths to embodiment
• Understanding trauma-informed foundations: Explores the distinctions among PTSD, C-PTSD, and developmental trauma
• Imagination, sensory awareness, and empowered choice: Name-free, writing-free, and gender- and demographically neutral, the cards are designed for all kids to see themselves in the movement exercises.
• Agency, creativity, and empowerment: Core practice principles include non-coercion; non-abandonment; and avoidance of physical adjustments, praise, or judgment—there’s no “right” way to do any of the movements.

In addition to poses and movement invitations, the deck and booklet also include a range of games and somatic play activities suitable for individual and group settings.