Yoga in schools

​Yoga is hugely beneficial to children and young adults.   Anxiety levels can be massively reduced by the simple act of deep diaphragmatic breathing, which activates the parasympathetic nervous system and gets them out of 'fight or flight mode'.  Moving the body with the flow of breath enables young people to remain relaxed while building strength and flexibility.  They learn to be present and calm in all situations and not to identify with their thoughts, but to notice how everything changes.  Classes need to to be dynamic, enjoyable and regular in order for tangible benefits to be observed.  Older students can manage longer periods of stillness having moved their bodies and generated energy flow and can be taught how to develop their own independent practice.  Benefits will be chiefly in these key areas:

1) Physical fitness
2) Calmness
3) Focus
4) Attitude
5) Self esteem

My Experience in Schools

I taught yoga to children in schools in Brazil for 5 years and during my 8 years as a teacher at Waverley Abbey Junior School in Surrey.  I also teach Yoga to the staff at various local schools and have taken INSET's on the basic elements of Yoga and mindfulness that teachers can use with their own classes.  As well as a weekly yoga club, where children who are interested in yoga can come and explore different poses and elements of mindfulness, Yoga can be incorporated into each day with a whole class or with sessions for small groups or particular children with specific learning needs.

On sunny days my class and I would go out on to the field and we had a yoga pose of the week that we would work on until we were ready to do a sun salutation or variations of it, where they flowed dynamically between poses.  Mirror games and other strategies would allow them to see whether what they saw, thought and felt they were doing were the same.  Visual cues displayed also helped learners access the poses and feel secure about what was coming next.  

In a curriculum allowing for only 2 PE/Games lessons a week, this daily activity just on a physical level, activating all muscles and developing greater flexibility in the joints was excellent.  Students spend so much time sitting on a chair in school, that this opportunity to stretch and move was really welcomed by the children.  Many children used to complain of stiffness after only 20 minutes of sitting cross legged for assembly, until they did a few hip opening yoga poses and commented that assembly was 'much easier now'.

After some stretching, dynamic or stabilising poses, or some games which enabled them to use the poses in an engaging way, the children would sit or lie on the grass, feeling the earth supporting them and following the path of their breath in and out.  Like adults, they could find it hard to be still, to calm down, not to giggle  etc, but by becoming aware of the sensation of their breath, they learnt how to settle and calm down quickly and enjoyed the opportunity to relax.  They would go back to class refreshed and ready to work.

In class we also had 'mindful moments' which could involve breathing exercises, stretching, brain gym or silent sitting.  All these practices helped them relax if stressed, energise if tired, focus if distracted and rebalance.  The atmosphere in class would tangibly change.  They developed ways to be in control by taking their awareness into their bodies, to particular sensations or sounds or images that they were guided to.  This grounded them and helped them develop confidence as they realised they had a safe place inside themselves and that through focus they could keep in control.

We would often return to these 'mindful moments' briefly before seemingly unrelated activities, such as discussions, role playing or improvisation sessions, where a degree of empathy was necessary.  The children were more centred and more considerate of each other's contributions.

Post Covid Education

​Inevitably there will be an increase in anxiety amongst students and staff, an increase in learning difficulties after such a long time at home and a need to maintain good levels of physical fitness.  Yoga would be an extremely beneficial holistic way to tackle all these disparate elements.

Please contact me for more information or to discuss the needs of your school.