I’d like to get into the habit of doing daily yoga to help my back because I had struggled from sciatica. What are the best stretches to do for this and to tone my core and strengthen it?

I’m a yoga instructor - I put the soles of my feet on the bed, walk them out wide and begin to lower my knees to the left then to the right (like windshield wipers) as you’re moving have the energy of pressing your knees forward. Hold on each side. Then figure four/supine pigeon - right ankle on top of left thigh, hands behind left thigh as you lift that leg and pull it toward you - press the right knee away as you pull left thigh in

Gentle stretches like the knee-to-chest stretch, pelvic tilt, and pigeon pose can help relieve sciatica pain by reducing tension on the sciatic nerve. Focus on slow, controlled movements and avoid overexertion. Harvard Heath site has great pics and details: https://www.health.harvard.edu/pain/sciatica-gentle-stretches-to-help-relieve-pain-and-improve-mobility

I found nerve gliding exercises to be very useful for my sciatica. Also they tend to be easy to do so a good way to kickstart on the streching part, often with only a couple of minutes. From there I would suggest to expand into stretch/yoga exercises that you like. I had trouble getting motivated to stretch in the morning until I ditch the routines I found and I did only the exercises I liked... It felt so much better that now I’m expanding my routine and building the habit of stretching when waking up... The day just feels better that way!

There are a lot of options to choose from go to youtube I personally follow Sarahbeth yoga she has few sets for back issue and sciatica.

As a yoga teacher, I am trained in basic anatomy but do not have specific training in physical therapy. What I like to do for my back is to hang inverted (you can look up yoga swing) - it feels incredible to have the spine lengthen with the shift of gravity! For my core, in poses that aren’t a challenge for the back, do slow twists and slow side bends so I can feel my core engage to get out of the pose. Cat/cows are a good all around movement - slow deliberate moves that allow you to engage core muscles - for any movement, don’t just whip through it. With twists, side bends and cat/cows you also move your spine through all spinal movements which help spine health.