FAQs
Who are the children SMILY can help,
and in what settings?
The SMILY program is designed for children ages 3 through 10. It is
equally beneficial for children with or without special needs. Of
course, this is a movement based program so is best applied with
children who can move their bodies with some voluntary control. It
can be modified as an individual treatment approach for children
with greater challenges. SMILY is appropriate in classrooms,
clinics, hospitals and home based therapy settings. SMILY makes a
wonderful inclusion based treatment approach, and can be done with a
whole class of children together. It is also very fun for a small
group “pull-out” format. SMILY helps develop physical abilities as
well as the early learning skills related to reading and
handwriting.
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What does a typical SMILY session look
like?
SMILY sessions are usually 30 to 45 minutes long. We begin with some
belly breathing while lying on our backs. Then, the teacher or
therapist tells the introductory story for the current routine.
There are 8 SMILY routines, and we typically stay with one routine
for several weeks. The characters in the story are the names of the
yoga poses, and each routine has its own song. So, we sing while
moving our bodies through the yoga poses. The SMILY book contains
large stick figure drawings that are hung on the wall from right to
left as additional visual input for imitation of posture. The
routines are sequenced so that each posture flows easily into the
next between standing, sitting and lying poses. Each routine has 8
poses, and we go through 2 or 3 repetitions. After the final
repetition we practice quiet relaxation, known as Dreamer, for 1 to
3 or even 5 minutes. After this comes the functional activity
related to the routine. Each routine has 10 structured activities
for language development, fine motor, visual motor and visual
perceptual skill development. The SMILY book contains all the
materials needed for these functional activities, providing a total
of 80 structured sessions.
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Who can teach SMILY to children? How
can I learn?
Everything you need to implement the SMILY program is contained in
the book and its companion 2 CD soundtrack set. The book has all the
lesson materials, and the soundtrack includes the stories, songs and
detailed posture instruction for all 8 routines. If you would like a
more direct learning experience, contact April Merrilee about
scheduling a workshop in your area. She leads full day and two day
workshops for therapists and teachers working in public and private
schools, clinics and hospitals around the country. You can contact
her toll free at (575) 388-9393 for details, or send an e-mail.
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How can I justify the use of SMILY to
parents, teachers and administrators?
Just use the information in the SMILY Book! April has provided a
detailed review of research studies and literature that support the
use of yoga, movement, and music for helping children learn.
She looks at the sensory motor skills needed for developing the
early literacy skills of reading and writing, and shows how the
SMILY approach meets those needs. The book also includes the
specific benefits that result from yoga, deep breathing and
relaxation practice. In addition, April outlines a wide variety of
General Education benchmarks that can be addressed through the SMILY
program – especially for Language Arts, Mathematics, Arts and
Health. Much of this information is presented in easy-to-use tables
that can be shared with others.
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How does SMILY support Special
Education guidelines?
The SMILY program is easily adaptable to meeting Least Restrictive
Environment (LRE) guidelines. If a child truly needs individual
therapy, SMILY can be used as a one-on-one session. Or if it is best
for the student to stay with his general class, SMILY works very
well as an inclusion based model. It can also be introduced into the
Resource Room or therapy room for small group formats: whichever is
most appropriate according to LRE. This is further supported within
the SMILY book where April details many General Education benchmarks
that the program inherently addresses. So, the use of SMILY helps to
integrate children with special needs quite easily into the general
education setting.
Also, SMILY is a treatment approach that has been shown to support
existing IEP goals, whether they are educational or therapeutic. The
book contains sample goals, but almost any goal finds some support
somewhere within the SMILY format! SMILY is a modality that meets
the wide and varied needs of students of different ages and
abilities across multiple settings.
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How does SMILY enhance the literacy skills of reading and
handwriting?
These skills arise out of a foundational base of properly
functioning sensory integrative skills such as motor planning, motor
memory, bilateral coordination and visual perceptual skills. In her
book, April shows which sensory motor components are needed for
early learning and exactly how the SMILY approach addresses those
developmental aspects. The foundational skills are met through the
movement, music, breathing and deep relaxation. Then, SMILY supports
specific task development through structured functional activities
such as cutting, tracing, drawing, copying and writing. Perhaps most
importantly, these activities relate back to the story, song and
poses used in each routine. This gives the children a strong
contextual meaning and purposeful reason for engaging in reading and
handwriting tasks. So, it’s easy to encourage participation in
activities that might otherwise be a struggle or have minimal
meaning to the student.
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Can I really teach yoga at school? Is
it a religion?
This is an important question that may arise and should always be
answered with the utmost respect for any individual’s perspective.
Be prepared to describe what the SMILY program facilitates, in order
to assure yourself and/or others that it does not promote any
religious experience in any way. Yoga is not a religion. Some yoga
practices do include a spiritual approach, but the SMILY program
does not. Remember what SMILY stands for: Sensory Motor Integration
and Learning with Yoga. Look at the research studies, literature
reviews and Sensory Integrative Principles in the SMILY book to show
that it is applicable to the school setting. It is very appropriate
for use in the school setting, particularly as a means of physical
exercise. SMILY is focused specifically on the development of early
learning skills that are supported through the use of music,
movement, language and functional activity.
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What are April’s qualifications?
As an alumni of the Occupational Therapy program at the University
of New Mexico, April has been a pediatric Occupational Therapist
working in a school based setting since 1999. She also owns and
operates her own private practice, Stream of Life Therapeutics LLC,
integrating yoga and OT for children and adults in Pagosa Springs,
CO.
April has been practicing yoga since 1987 and teaching since 1994.
She holds four separate yoga teacher certifications, including Yoga
for the Special Child and Yoga Therapy. She has used yoga for
rehabilitation with adults, and developed the SMILY program through
years of experience in the schools, with children of various ages
and abilities. April has studied Sensory Integration through several
courses and workshops, and has pursued an understanding of how
sensory motor components relate directly to the educational
environment and classroom learning. SMILY is April’s original
creation, and represents a true blend of her training in both yoga
and Occupational Therapy practice.
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After graduating summa cum laude from the Allied Health
Department of the Medical School at the University of New Mexico, I
began my career as an Occupational Therapist working in adult rehab
services. When an opportunity arose 10 years ago to work in the
public school system, I went without hesitation and discovered that