June is Pride Month, and at It's Yoga Kids®, we celebrate it with our whole hearts. Because our mission has always been about every child. Every body. Every family. Every identity. We exist to help all children feel healthier and happier. That means creating spaces where every young person feels seen, safe, and free to be fully themselves.

This June, one story from the world of college sports stopped us in our tracks and reminded us exactly why inclusion in movement spaces matters so deeply.

Jordan Lucas: the celebration heard around the volleyball world

CSUN redshirt junior Jordan Lucas is an openly gay volleyball player and his expressive, joyful point celebrations became the talk of college sports this spring. Lucas' celebration style is eccentric and unmistakably his own letting the world know he's fully, unapologetically himself every time he scores.

Then a color commentator suggested during a broadcast that a player should physically assault Lucas for those very celebrations. Condemnation was immediate — from social media, from the volleyball community, and from prominent voices across sport. The commentator was removed from future broadcasts and issued a public apology.

But here is what happened next, and it is the part that gave us hope. Lucas posted a compilation of his point celebrations on Instagram. It was viewed more than 30 million times and liked 1.7 million times. The world showed up for him. Loudly. Joyfully. Overwhelmingly.

Jordan Lucas did not shrink. He did not apologize. He celebrated — and the world celebrated with him. That is the power of belonging.

Why belonging belongs on the yoga mat

At It's Yoga Kids®, we talk a lot about physical fitness and mental health. But underneath all of it is something even more fundamental: every child's right to feel safe in their body and celebrated for who they are.

Research consistently shows that LGBTQAI+ youth who feel accepted, by their families, their communities, and their peers, have significantly better mental health outcomes. Belonging is not a bonus. It is a basic human need. And movement spaces, when they are truly inclusive, become some of the most powerful places where belonging is felt in the body, not just talked about.

In our classes, every child is encouraged to move in their own way, celebrate in their own style, and show up exactly as they are. No two bodies are the same. No two expressions of joy are the same. And that is not just accepted at It's Yoga Kids® — it is celebrated.

Father's Day is almost here, and this year, we have a gift idea that beats every tie, coffee mug, and gift card on the list. It's an hour of pure connection, movement, and joy, on the mat, side by side, with the people who matter most.

Because here's what we know at It's Yoga Kids®: the moments children remember are not the big, expensive ones. They are the ordinary, embodied, present ones. The moments when Dad got on the floor. When he tried something new. When he laughed, wobbled, and tried again. Those are the memories that last a lifetime.

What yoga does for dads and for the kids watching them

Fathers are powerful models. When a child watches their dad breathe through something hard, hold a pose when his legs are shaking, or pause before reacting, they are learning what strength really looks like. Not the kind that never bends. The kind that stays steady, calm, and present.

Graduation season is here. Whether your child is stepping up from preschool to kindergarten, middle school to high school, high school to college, or college to life, one thing is true for all of them: transitions are big. They are exciting and nerve-wracking, full of pride and full of uncertainty, all at the same time.

At It's Yoga Kids®, we believe the skills children need to navigate these moments are the same ones we teach on the mat every single day. Strength. Flexibility. Focus. Calm. Not just in the body, but in the heart and mind too.

Why transitions feel so hard

Even the most joyful transitions carry grief. Leaving a teacher who believed in you. Saying goodbye to the friends who knew you in this chapter. Stepping into a new space where you have to prove yourself all over again. For children, these feelings can be overwhelming, especially when the adults around them are only focused on celebration.

Research on child development tells us that transitions are one of the most significant stressors young people face, not because something is wrong, but because change requires the nervous system to work harder. The body tenses. The mind races. Sleep can suffer. Anxiety rises.

This is exactly where yoga meets children where they are.

What yoga gives children at every step up