Believe it or not, but a Chinese child earned money to the tune of US$21,000 (around SDG 28,000), just by teaching yoga. Yes, you read that right.
A resident of Wenling in Taizhou city in China, the seven-year-old Sun Chuyang, or Mike, is a well-known child prodigy.
Child earns money by becoming a yoga master
He started learning yoga when he was reportedly just three and became the youngest certified yoga instructor in China only last year.
He has since taught the discipline to over 100 kids and earned all that money!
Chuyang teaches a lot of young children and his classes are almost always full. | Image: YouTube screengrab
What prompted Chuyang to learn yoga?
It wasn’t his interest or that of his parents that prompted young Chuyang to start yoga. His initiation into the discipline was was a way to fight autism.
At the tender age of two, Chuyang was diagnosed with autism. This prompted his mother to look for alternative ways to help him, and in the process, she found yoga. Even though she was running an apparel store, she decided to close shop for a few hours each day to take her son to a nearby yoga class.
To her surprise, Chuyang picked up the discipline quickly. And in three years he mastered it, so much so that he received his instructor certificate.
This child earns money as a certified yoga instructor. He is seen in the picture with his parents. | Image courtesy: China Daily/Asia News Network
With a certificate in his kitty, Chuyang now goes to different yoga centres as a teacher, and the child earns money through his classes.
Chuyang has in fact proved that a yoga intervention does help in improving behavioural problems caused by conditions such as autism. And not to forget, it is this discipline that also helps this child earn money.
Yes! Yoga hugely benefits kids with autism
Image source: iStock
In a study conducted by Kristie Patten Koenig, assistant professor of occupational therapy, New York University, US, it was found that daily yoga reduced kids’ aggressive behaviour, hyper-activeness as well as social withdrawal.
Koenig was quoted by NPR as saying, “We know that anxiety fuels a lot of the negative behaviour, so the yoga program gives them a strategy to cope with it. And if it’s done every morning, it becomes an integral part of the day that sets the status of the classroom and allows the kids to become calm, focused and ready to learn.”
Kids with autism often face problems in communication and do not understand social cues. The study found that regular yoga helps overcome these issues.
Overall yoga helps children with autism in the following ways.
- Better social-communication skills. A study published in PubMed supports the claim that yoga helps to improve social communication. This is especially true for those suffering from Autism and because it increases imitation skills in such kids. When they copy a teacher, it improves their physical abilities. The study proves that there is “improvement in children’s imitation skills especially pointing to body, postural and oral facial movements. Parents reported change in the play pattern of these children with toys, peers and objects at home.”
- Easy expression of emotions. Breathing techniques taught in yoga can help children understand their own emotions and express them better. Instead of acting out in anger or frustration, they may express it constructively and express themselves openly.
- Reduced anxiety. Due to challenges such as difficulty in proper communication, deficit in sensory integration and a variety of other challenges, children with autism are often anxious. But yoga, with its mindful breathing and calming guided imagery, can help such children feel relaxed and less anxious.
- Better self-awareness. Yoga helps children with autism develop a better sense of self-awareness and thereby, increases their self-esteem. It also helps in developing a better sense of body awareness. The various poses that increase flexibility also help such children understand the limitations of their bodies and the freedom therewith.
- Reduced challenging behaviour. Children with autism often fail to completely express themselves and therefore, resort to angry and frustrated behaviour. But yoga keeps all of this and more in check. It helps children to develop a self-regulatory mechanism and ways to organise one’s thoughts.
Science has proved that yoga is quite effective for children with autism. So there is no reason you cannot try it as well, if you have a child who has autism.
Watch this amazing little boy here:
*This story is from our archives.
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