Elementary Ages, School Setting, Strength Lesson Plan (Thompson)

Instructor: Samantha Thompson

Community: Elementary Ages, School Setting, 30 minutes

Plan Creation Date: November 1, 2016

Yoga Calm Principle/Lesson Goal: Strength

Lesson Plan:

Calm

• Belly Breathing – with Hoberman Sphere-find your strong breath.  Use your strength to breathe deeply, using all of our breath.  Usually we only use about 25% of our breath, find all of your breath during our breathing today. Have students take turns leading with the breathing ball.

Activate

• Mountain Strength Test – How different does your weak mountain feel vs. your strong mountain?  Have students demonstrate at the front of the room.

Tree- Think of how strong a tree becomes.  Think of the huge Redwood trees (provide poster or picture on the screen).  95% of all of the huge redwood trees were cut or burned down before national parks were created.  Think of how strong and powerful the trees are that still remain.  Stand tall in your tree, like one of the ones that survived!
• Wood Chopper – breathe in and huh!  Use your strength and power to chop the wood of a tree that fell down naturally.  Repeat 3 or 4 times.  Put your power in your breath and in this movement.
• Activate and Relax Game with Lunge, Warrior II, Star – What does it feel like when your muscles are engaged and strong?  Does it feel different or the same with the different poses?
• Forward Fold
• 

Downward Dog – From your forward fold, put your hands to the ground, pressing all four corners of your hands into the ground, continuing to breathe through the body and noticing where you feel the stretch and the strength you are building in each of those places where you feel it.
• Alternate Arm/Leg Kicks – because this uses both sides of the body, we are activating and integrating both sides of the brain which helps make our brain stronger.
• Plank – feel all of the strength your body needs to activate and hold this pose
• Cobra – Press the tops of your feet into the ground as you expand your spine, looking to the ceiling and pressing all four corners of your hands to the floor as you breathe out.
• Child’s Pose – Use this moment to give your body rest after all of the strength and power it used and just breathe.  Allow your muscles the rest time to grow and become stronger.  Notice how your body feels.
• Twist