Yoga

14 Jun 2013

ABC Yoga

One of the best things about being a kids yoga teacher is coming up with creative lessons!

I have been having lots of fun in my yoga classes experimenting with some new props and yoga resources.

This week, I was excited to try out my new Rainbow Kids ABC Play Cards, which I bought online on the Rainbow Kids Yoga website!

ABC Yoga is a great way for kids to learn about the alphabet AND explore yoga!

I introduced my lesson by asking:

Did you know we can use our bodies to make each letter of the alphabet? I brought these very special cards for us to do some special ABC Yoga Poses. Are you ready…what’s the first letter of the alphabet?

They all called out “A”!! and that’s where the fun began…

The A card was for ALIEN which is a modified DOWNWARD DOG, so I asked them what yoga pose it looked like and we started in Down Dog and lifted one arm to make the line across our “A”. For some of the poses, such as BUTTERFLY, we did both the letter shape AND the actual yoga pose (Baddha Konasana).

The kids loved the whimsical illustrations on the cards (A for ALIEN, F for FLAMINGO, M for MERMAID, U for UNICORN) and trying to guess what pose came next!

They also came up with other favorite yoga poses that began with some of the letters, including as CAT, DOG, FROG, LION and more!

After doing 26 yoga poses, they were more than ready for Savasana and now that the school year is almost over, I can see how much more relaxed and able to be still they are. At the end of one of my classes, the children started singing the ABC’s song which warmed my heart because I know they enjoyed doing ABC YOGA!

Being a writer and word lover myself, the more I use books and other resources that reinforce literacy, the more I appreciate being able to teach kids to develop a love of language, as well as yoga!

By: beyogabelove Category: Children, Creativity, Fun, Kids Yoga, Props, Theme Classes, Yoga

9 May 2013

Yoga and Imagination~ Perfect Together

Kids Yoga is part poses, part play and ALL IMAGINATION!

In today’s yoga classes, my theme was simply YOGA. I have been teaching yoga to this particular group of preschoolers for over a year and a half and they have come a long way from the first day I walked into their classroom. It’s amazing to see their development physically, mentally and emotionally. These kids are always so enthusiastic about yoga that they are constantly asking to share the new poses they made up. So today, I allowed them to lead the class in doing their very own original yoga poses!

What is YOGA?

We began the class with a discussion on what YOGA is. I got some really amazing answers from the children about why we do yoga and what they like about yoga:

“It helps us be strong.”

“It’s exercise and makes us healthy.”

“To practice.”

“You get to be whatever you want to be”

Then we went through the sequence of our yoga class. When I asked why we started class with OMs their responses were:

“We chant our OMs so we can get ready for yoga.”

“We say OM so we can be calm.”

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Ready, Set, BREATHE

I then asked the children what came next in yoga class and they immediately called out “BREATHING”. We talked about how important it is to breathe and how good it feels. I asked what their favorite breathing exercise was, some liked Balloon (belly) Breathing and others liked Volcano, so we did both.

I can BE a Yoga Teacher!

I then turned the class over to the children and they each got a turn to teach their pose to the rest of the class. It was amazing to see that they understood the concept that how each pose stretches a certain part of the body. Some of the poses they made up were cheetah, fire truck, helicopter, and dinosaur while other children showed us new versions of their favorite poses, including tree, camel, and dog. Letting them demonstrate the pose allowed them to learn leadership and you could tell how proud they were after we clapped our hands for our “teachers”.

Time to Relax

After our stretching, moving and trying out all hese creative new poses, the children were ready for Savasana. I played Kira Willey’s Colors, which includes yoga poses in the many colors of the rainbow:

I am purple today, bright and happy like a butterfly in the air

I am yellow today, I shine my light out like the sun

I’m a rainbow today, all the colors of the world…are in me

The class was a huge success and it makes me so happy to see how much my kids have progressed in their yoga practice and to know that they really “get” how yoga helps them in their lives.

By: beyogabelove Category: Children, Creativity, Inspiration, Kids Yoga, Self Development, Teaching, Theme Classes, Yoga

11 Apr 2013

Be Like a Butterfly~ Becoming Who You Are

“We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.” ~Maya Angelou

Spring is a time of change and this week in my yoga classes, the children explored the life cycle of a butterfly. I began by reading them a Butterfly poem. Then we acted out how the little caterpillar grows inside its chrysalis and undergoes its transformation to become a beautiful butterfly. We sang their favorite Butterfly song and then played a butterfly game with feathers. The children paired up and one child would throw the feather gently in the air while the other tried to catch it carefully in the palm of their hand. They all enjoyed finding creative ways (like blowing on it) to pass the feather.

A butterfly symbolizes transformation and freedom. It represents hope for the future and stepping into a new life.

Sometimes I forget how much I have grown and what I needed to let go of to have the life I have now. As I continue to evolve into the woman I was meant to be, I am shedding old beliefs that no longer serve me, that have kept me from being “fully me”. Every day, I take more risks, I become more comfortable in my own skin and I love who I am a little bit more.

I teach yoga because I want all children to experience the freedom of the butterfly~ where they are not afraid to be who they are and to reach for their dreams.

Like a butterfly, we are always changing…until one day we emerge from our cocoon, spread our wings and FLY!

By: beyogabelove Category: Children, Creativity, Freedom, Kids Yoga, Poetry, Self Love, Spirituality, Transformation, Yoga

7 Apr 2013

Connecting Through Acro Yoga

I attended another awesome Acro Yoga event sponsored by MERJ at Om Factory in NYC. MERJ connects people with similar interests through local activities. Members can select an event or interest they enjoy and find activity partners who would like to join them in that activity.

The idea behind both MERJ and Acro Yoga is to connect with others, so this event was the perfect way to bring people together.

The best part of these Acro Yoga events is the instant connections you get to make with near strangers. Since Acro Yoga is very hands-on, the barriers that are usually there when you first meet someone are left at the door.

The event was led by two Acro Yoga facilitators, one of which was Sandhi Ferreira, who also teaches at OmFactory and Jivamukti. There was a really relaxed vibe and a DJ playing chill music in the background. We began with some group stretching to break the ice and get to know each other. From the smiles on everyone’s faces, it is clear to see that there was some real connection and fun going on!

Then we broke off into small groups and practiced some Acro Yoga. The instructors demonstrated all the poses to make sure we were clear about the steps involved. I learned some new flying poses and we all had a great time working together.

We each had the opportunity to be the base, the flyer and the spotter, which helped us build confidence in our ability to set up and support the pose. There is something so reassuring about knowing that you are being fully supported and that someone will catch you if you fall.
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Aside from having lots of fun, I had a breakthrough thanks to Sandhi’s support. I realized that I don’t really have a hard time trusting others when being the flyer, but when it came time to be a base, I had a hard time trusting myself. I would be holding someone up in a flying posture and and then the fear and doubt would creep in. I was afraid I was not strong enough to hold someone up or that I would drop them.

Trusting myself is been something I have been delving into for some time and I was so grateful to have a teacher support me in breaking through my own limitations and embracing my power. It was so liberating to be able to let go of my fear and step into my POWER. I am excited to continue growing and evolving through my Acro Yoga practice, as I continue learning about trust.

What would you do if you truly TRUSTED YOURSELF?

I would love to hear from you…

By: beyogabelove Category: Acro Yoga, Partner Yoga, Relationships, Self Development, Teaching, Trust, Yoga

4 Apr 2013

Spring is in the Air!

With Spring in the air, it is the perfect time for children to explore Nature themes and poses.

This week, I introduced a Nature theme with a discussion about Spring and what happens during this season. Since children are already learning about Spring and new life as part of their school curriculum, acting out the phases of development of a butterfly or a tree or a flower helps to reinforce these concepts. April is also National Poetry Month, so I read a poem with many elements of Nature, such as trees, sun, rain, wind, etc. as a prompt for our Nature yoga poses.

Learning about life cycles helps children appreciate and have respect for the natural world and the Earth.

Speorder levitra canada ts by and large don’t endorse the item inside the U.S. alongside different countries; however it might be the cause of these wicked habits. sales uk viagra The strapon is commonly used for pegging. A healthy lifestyle and some changes in your habits are essential when you want to cure erectile dysfunction, such as sildenafil (free shipping viagra , Revatio), tadalafil (cialis, Adcirca) or vardenafil (cialis prices, Staxyn), are also conducive in mitigating premature ejaculation. Get your life back with cheap cialis If you want your confidence back, then you should look into buying cialis today. Rather than just doing Nature poses, it is more fun to engage them in an interactive story. The children enjoyed pretending to be little seeds in the ground and imagining what it would be like to grow with water, sway in the wind, take in the sunlight and sprout into tiny plants, growing bigger and bigger until they became Trees. For butterfly pose, they began as caterpillars wiggling on the grass and then going into their cocoons, feeling their wings grow and emerging as a beautiful Butterflies!

There are so many Nature poses to choose from, birds, insects, animals… You can even teach them variations of many poses they already know, such as Flower. We started with our basic flower pose and then I challenged them to try balancing in Lotus Flower pose. Then we did a group Sunflower pose. We all sat in a circle with our legs stretched out and reaching for our toes in forward fold, as the sunflower was “sleeping” and as the Sun came out, we stretched our arms out and up over our heads as we breathed out.

I ended class with a Nature Meditation. The children rested in Savasana while I led them through a guided visualization which included many of the Natural elements and creatures we explored in our class.

By: beyogabelove Category: Children, Kids Yoga, Meditation, Poetry, Self Development, Spirituality, Teaching, Theme Classes, Transformation, Yoga

28 Mar 2013

Listening with Your Heart

Listening is one of the most challenging lessons that educators are faced with when teaching children.

One of the themes we explored this month in my yoga classes was LISTENING. After I introduced the theme, I asked the children to share why listening is so important and where they can listen. Many of them responded that they listen to teachers so they can learn and to their parents when they ask them to do something. We discussed how listening was a great way of helping too. Then I told them that we were going to practice our listening by reading 2 poems and asked them to “put on their listening ears”.

Poetry is such a wonderful resource for teaching.

Children are captivated by the sound of rhyming words and the singsong of your voice as you recite each verse. After reading the first poem, I asked the children to help me with the next “action poem” where I read part of the poem and we pointed to different parts of our bodies and they filled in the missing words.

This is the poem I used:

I listen mostly with my _____ (ears, point to ears)

But I sometimes listen with my _____ (eyes, point to eyes)

I look at your _____ (face, point to face)

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I listen mostly with my ______ (eyes, point to eyes)

That’s a really good place to start

But I learn a lot about you

When I listen with my ______ (heart, point to heart)

Playing listening games is a fun way to teach listening skills.

One was yoga telephone where the children sit in a circle and close their eyes. I placed a small animal puppet in one child’s hands and when they all opened their eyes, that child whispers the name of the animal to the next child and then each child whispers in the next child’s ear until it goes around the circle. Then the last child names the puppet and we all do the yoga pose together. For younger kids, we passed the puppet around the circle and the children had to listen to when the music stopped and the child with the puppet in their hand led the class in that yoga pose.

Most importantly, children learn that listening is not something they only do with their ears, but also with their eyes, their hearts, their whole beings. They understand the importance of listening to their teachers, parents, family and friends as a way to show that they care.

image credit amtbweb.org

By: beyogabelove Category: Children, Creativity, Kids Yoga, Poetry, Self Development, Teaching, Yoga

24 Mar 2013

Creating Space

Yoga creates space for what you want to come into your life.

This week I was finally able to make it to my Tuesday night yoga class with one of my mentors, Becky Middleton at Garden State Yoga. Whenever I take Becky’s class, something opens up for me. At the beginning of class, she asked us to set an intention.

As I tuned into my breath, my intention was clear… I am devoting my practice to nurturing myself.

For the first time in a long time, perhaps ever…my intention was my own, for me and only me.

Becky led us through a rigorous Vinyasa class that balanced power with fluidity and grace. She incorporated some beautiful dance-like movements, which were reminiscent of a bird in flight. The sequence really opened my heart to what I have been exploring over the past year: keeping my attention on myself, loving myself and owning my power. Sometimes you do not recognize your own transformation until you take the time to really be present-in your body on the mat.
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At some point during the class, I had this deeply moving realization that yoga allows me to CREATE SPACE.

My body opens with each pose

My mind expands with each breath

My soul comes home

I am grateful for my yoga practice and my teachers. I am grounded in my intention to nourish myself, first and foremost.

In this spaciousness I have created, love can continue to blossom.

I am opening, ever opening to LOVE.

By: beyogabelove Category: Love, Poetry, Self Development, Self Love, Spirituality, Transformation, Yoga

21 Mar 2013

The Light Inside-Teaching Kids About Spirituality

As a yoga teacher, part of my job is guiding my students to find their own light.

How do you teach a young child about spirituality? Children may not understand the concept of a “soul”, but they do understand the idea of a LIGHT inside or the LOVE in their heart.

Over the past few months, my yoga lessons have revolved around finding PEACE inside or how we can express the LOVE in our hearts. The children have been learning how they calm their bodies and their minds through yoga, breathing and meditation. The other day, I asked my classes if they knew why we chant OMs before yoga, and they responded “to find peace”. It’s moments like these that make me love teaching!

Children are always learning…absorbing everything they see, hear and feel.

They relate what they learn to their inner experience. Teaching a child to pay attention to their breath, tune into their feelings, and listen with their heart will help them develop a strong connection to themselves and the world around them. This builds their sense of trust in themselves and self confidence. We may think they are too young to understand but they “get it”.

The greatest lesson you can teach young children is to LISTEN to their inner voice.

It’s not often that children get to just “be” and relax. At the end of every class,they lie down in Savasana or

DO NOTHING DOLL…Nothing to think, Nothing to Do, Doing Nothing is Good for You.

While my students are resting in Savasana, with their eyes closed, I tell them a “story”, a guided visualization where they are lying on a beach or going on a cloud ride in the sky. I ask them if they can try to be so still, so quiet that they can hear the sound of their own breathing. I tell them to breathe in that calm feeling from the top of their heads to their tip toes. It may take weeks or even months before they can lie down without wiggling around or talking, but eventually they can and even enjoy it. I let them know that no matter what, they can find that quiet place inside where they can always go when they are feeling sad or upset.

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I usually end my yoga classes with a soothing song, either Kira Wiley’s Namaste Song or Snatam Kaur’s Longtime Sun. I explain that just like the sun, we each have a LIGHT inside us and to remember to let it SHINE. When I look around our circle and see their blissful faces, I know that they are IN that peaceful place, shining their light!

I leave you with this beautiful blessing. May your own light guide you on your path so that you may find your peace. Namaste.

May the longtime sun

Shine upon you

All love surround you

And the pure light within you

Guide your way on

~ Celctic Blessing

By: beyogabelove Category: Children, Inspiration, Kids Yoga, Love, Meditation, Music, Peace, Soul, Spirituality, Teaching, Yoga

19 Mar 2013

Partner Yoga Fun

This is a repost of a prior blog entry because my Partner Yoga poses have been quite popular.

Here are some great ideas here for doing Partner Yoga with kids, tweens and teens. Enjoy!!

My niece has been doing yoga with her Auntie B (me) since she was a baby and is familiar with many of the kids’s versions of the poses. Now that she is older, she has been more open to learning new poses and has even come to a yoga class with me.

The other night, my niece and I decided to do some yoga.

We set up our yoga mats in the living room and I had brought my Yoga Pretzel Deck which has lots of fun yoga activities for kids of all ages. She looked through the cards and was immediately drawn to the Partner Poses, so she pulled out the cards and we gave them a try.

Partner Yoga is FUN!

We started with Partner Warrior and then moved on to some sitting poses like See Saw and Partner Boat. We had quite a few laughs trying to lift our legs up at the same time because my niece has extraordinarily long legs for a 12 year old! We tried every single one of the partner poses, some more than once.

Our favorites were Double Downward Dog and Lizard on a Rock, where one person rests in Child’s Pose (the “Rock”) and the other (the “Lizard” lays on their back…what an amazing back stretch! And from the smile on her face, it’s easy to see how much she liked this pose.

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Lizard on a Rock

We had a hard time (and non-stop amusement) trying to get up off the floor from sitting back to back in Partner Chair, but my niece would not give up. She was determined to figure out how we could lift each other up and we almost got up, but it didn’t happen. We really enjoyed some flying poses where we lifted each other up in the air!

Wheee!

Partner yoga is such a wonderful bonding experience for children and adults alike…it involves supporting your partner, helping each other stretch and looking at each other while in the pose. It was so much fun doing yoga together and hearing the sound of my niece’s laughter!

By: beyogabelove Category: Children, Creativity, Family, Love, Partner Yoga, Relationships, Yoga

18 Mar 2013

Missing Pieces- A Poem

Missing Pieces

There are lies we tell ourselves

to not face the reality

of broken promises, unspoken words

We look outside for answers, for truth

as if it could be found in

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someone, something, anything

and still find nothing

What if the missing pieces were inside?

in the stillness, the void

that holds everything

the thread that ties it all together

and unravels the truth all at once

By: beyogabelove Category: Inspiration, Poetry, Self Development, Spirituality, Transformation, Yoga

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