I went into a classroom the other day with my own lesson plan in mind and I noticed they were studying boats. They even drew plans for their boats before building them with recycled materials. Immediately I was inspired to teach a boat themed class. I ditched my plans and decided to go with the flow instead. Integrating yoga into the themes of a classroom is what I love to do. It is one of the reasons I do this work and I think it’s so much fun to tap into that kind of spontaneous creativity. 1) Self Care: The first thing we did was cover ourselves with sunscreen. We made sure to get every body part starting with our toes. 2) Butterfly pose: We needed to think of all the things we would pack to go on a boat trip. We packed our bags with hats, bathing suits, snacks, games… Read More »
Ahimsa and Self Care
This week has been a particularly challenging one for me. I started the week at a local prep school teaching six 30-40 min classes in the course of a morning, then 2 more classes in the afternoon at different schools. By the time the day ended, I was exhausted and re-thinking my chosen profession. I taught lots of classes of kids who just weren’t responding in a way that made teaching fun for me. Was it me? Was it them? Probably a bit of both. Mid week, I had to leave super early to get to the Bronx where I’ve been teaching at a school where my friend is the Assistant Principal. I was slated to teach six 30 min classes in a row to be able to leave by noon so I can get back in time to teach my local classes. The 2 1/2 hour drive to get there… Read More »
Birthday Yoga!
This week was my birthday and I had to teach a bit so I figured I may as well have fun with it. I made the classes about my birthday which made me happy, was super sweet and the kids really liked it. I did this with my 20 min and 30 min Pre-k and Kindergarten classes. 1) Sun Warmup: We start the class using our suns to warm up our bodies. It is fun to explain to the kids about how the Earth circles the sun every 365 days which is a full year until it is your birthday again! It’s such a cool concept to teach and the kids really enjoy learning that. 2) Butterfly Pose: Next it’s time to make a birthday cake. We bring our toes to kiss to make our bowl. Each child has a chance to add an ingredient to the mix. We take our… Read More »
