Seastars, bow and arrows and things that grow

After a couple years of teaching, I’m starting to really understand the value of partner poses for children. There is something very valuable about the cooperation it takes to work together to create a pose with another.

I planned to do bow and arrow, make a square, and rock and sunbather with a modification for partner poses..

Rock and sunbather

Rock and sunbather is similar to waterfall pose in that the students take turns supporting each other so I modified the things they like about both poses and created a new version. Instead of making a wheel over someone’s back (back bend) they simply stretched out straight on the other who was in childs pose instead of table pose. The sunbather completely relaxes, opens up and stretches out, while the rock gets a small back massage and is pressed into their curled up pose. Then they switch and experience the opposite pose.  I think this is important to experience because yoga is all about doing poses and their opposites. Down dog, and cobra, fold and open etc.

 We did a yoga sequence of “things that grow” and then we tried a new pose called seastar. They stretched their arms and legs out and stretched their necks into a fifth leg and they were seastars! This was a complete opening and stretching before we went into svasana.

Bow and Arrow

Before doing bow and arrow which is bow pose (lying on your stomach, grabbing your feet and pulling everything up toward the ceiling.) and arrow which is standing tall and stretching with hands together toward the ceiling, we did them alone first. Then we partnered and took turns being the bow and being the arrow. They liked this although it was slightly challenging and most had to be walked through it. We talked a little about the focused energy needed for a bow to fly across the room toward the intended target. They liked it!

Square pose

We first used the wall to make ourselves into a right triangle, then they paired up to make a square with each other. The kids were soon giggling because they were looking at each other from a new angle, upside down and laughing. This made them laugh even harder and their square would start falling apart. I came around with the camera, which has them try and do their best and they were able to stop laughing long enough to make a square together.

 My son invented a pose with me last weekend while we were on a walk in the forest. We started doing some stretching poses in the nook of a huge tree and this led to inventing new ones. My son invented one he called full moon. He put the soles of his feet together and let his knees fall open. Then he arched his back, supporting it with his hands and let his head hang back so he was looking up at the tips of the tall pines, with the moon visible between them. He shared it with the class along with it’s creation story and everyone was buzzing about it later.

Svasana was a guided meditation that relaxed each part of their body from head to toe. A few were a little restless but by the end they were still. I gonged the Tibetan bowl to awake them and slowly brought them out of their relaxation. They continue to say that this is their favorite part of yoga. It’s my favorite part too.

Holiday fever!

The last two classes before winter break were a little challenging but the good news is I found my rose water spray - which is the biggest draw to my class I think! Like I've mentioned in earlier blogs, the kids find it so rewarding. I think it might have something to do with the high temperature in the yoga studio
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Because I rotate 22 children 6 at a time, my classes may seem like they are all the same because I do similar things - 4 classes in a row, just with different children.
I added a few challenging poses adding pigeon, lion and other animals, and then I tried something new. I wanted them to look at other yoga practitioners in poses to inspire them to push for nicer form in their own practice, so I found a book with photographs of a person in 1,ooo different poses.
They each picked a number between 1 and 1,000, then I went to that page and we all tried to do the pose on the page number they picked.. The first challenge for these K-1 students was thinking of a high number! Once they did, we all bonded over how hard or easy the pose ended up being. I just wanted to give them a glimpse of what could be if they stuck with yoga.
They always beg for waterfall, because they love partner poses so I obliged.
This year I will be incorporating more storytelling while we do yoga and possibly reward good behavior by allowing someone to tell a story during svasana..
Happy new year!

All about the rose water!

The yoga room we use is very hot. They usually do ashtanga there and keep the room toasty.
The kids find it a little stifling, but they adapt. I started rewarding them for good behavior by spritzing them with rose water during svasana and after they put their shoes on they get an extra spray. This is now the highlight of the experience! I never knew this but the children beg me for it. I have not had it the last couple sessions however since I have misplaced it and I assure them I will have it again.
As with most people, svasana is also the favorite part of yoga. They love the visualizations and they must like to lie quietly, despite how active they usually are.
Next week I will be introducing some brand new poses since I have gone through the class once now. By only taking 6 students at a time, it takes 4 weeks to get through the class and I have time to perfect my lessons by doing similar classes every time so they don't miss anything!
I will load photos later, must get them off my phone first.