Instructor: Katie Kenefick

Community: Grade 5, Classroom Setting

Plan Creation Date: February 26, 2013

Yoga Calm Principle/Lesson Goal: Grounding

Lesson Plan:

Calm

  • Centering with Chime – Treat yourself like a King or Queen – sit up nice and tall, root your feet to the earth and get your ears ready to listen. Notice what you’re hearing in the room.
  • Belly Breathing – with Hoberman Sphere – Breathe with the Hoberman Sphere 10 breaths.
  • Pulse Count – Tip your head to the side take two fingers at the side of your mouth and trace them back to the groove in your neck. Count your pulse for 15 seconds. Listen to space in-between the beats. Ask students to share pulse counts. Add distracters – students run around and clap, jump, make noise, etc. to disrupt students Pulse Counts. Ask students what they did to keep themselves grounded and focused on counting the space in-between the beats.

Activate

  • Roots – Begin by moving your body left and right, forward and back then move in a circle. Make the circle smaller and smaller until you can stand strong in your Mountain , rooted through the four corners of your feet. Do you feel grounded to the earth?
  • Mountain – Stand strong in your Mountain and feel your feet grounded and connected to the earth.
  • Tree – Standing with your feet together, shift your weight to your left foot. Bend your right knee and draw the right foot up as high as you can, avoiding your knee joint. Feel grounded through your standing leg. Press palms together in front of heart for balance.  To challenge yourself, close your eyes! Grow your branches – bring your arms overhead and sway them in the wind!
  • Upward Mountain – Extend your arms overhead, palms face each other and fingers extend up. Press feet down, lift belly, head and heart – imagine sending energy from the earth through your strong fingertips as you reach to the sky.
  • Dancer Modified – Standing with your feet together, shift your weight to your right foot. Lift your left foot behind you and hold it with your left hand. Imagine someone you love holding your foot firm to the ground as you grow taller.
  • Mountain – Stand strong in your Mountain and feel your feet grounded and connected to the earth.
  • Tree – Standing with your feet together, shift your weight to your left foot. Bend your left knee and draw the left foot up as high as you can, avoiding your knee joint. Feel grounded through your standing leg. Press palms together in front of heart for balance.  To challenge yourself, close your eyes! Grow your branches – bring your arms overhead and sway them in the wind!
  • Upward Mountain – Extend your arms overhead, palms face each other and fingers extend up. Press feet down, lift belly, head and heart – imagine sending energy from the earth through your strong fingertips as you reach to the sky.
  • Dancer Modified – Standing with your feet together, shift your weight to your left foot. Lift your right foot behind you and hold it with your right hand. Imagine someone you love holding your foot firm to the ground as you grow taller.

Calm

  • Head on Stacked Hands – Press into your forehead with your hands as you breathe into your back.
  • Progressive Relaxation – let your body relax as you bring attention to your feet. Tense your feet, your legs, belly, back, arms, fists, shoulders up to ears, eyes, cheeks, jaw, release.  With your whole body relaxed, take three long, slow, breaths and feel grounded, centered and focused, ready for the rest of class.

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