[currentuser role=”instructor_level”]
Instructor: Cynthia Endicott
Community: Grades 1-5, Boys and Girls Club, 60 minutes
Plan Creation Date: May 20, 2015
Yoga Calm Principle/Lesson Goal: Strength
Lesson Plan:
Calm
- Ground Rules – Review Yoga Calm Ground Rules with posters
- Belly Breathing – Please come into a comfortable position on your mat. You may sit crisscross/ applesauce. Let’s all sit up straight and tall and relax our hands on our thighs. Become aware of your breath and your breathing pattern. Inhale and exhale through your nose. Become aware of how you are feeling in your body right now.
Please follow our leader as she demonstrates “belly breathing” using the Hoberman Sphere. I will demonstrate first. Who would like to lead? _____________Please choose a counter. Let’s breathe with her for ____ breaths. Now close your eyes and breathe__3__ more times bringing the air deep into your belly on the inhale, pausing, and then slowly releasing all the air on the exhale. Imagine you are blowing up an enormous red balloon, taking in as much air as you can hold, then releasing the air to create a bright, red globe.
Activate
- Volcano Breath – standing – Come to standing with both feet pointing forward about hips width (or two fists) apart. Root both feet into the ground. Tighten your knees, legs. Stand tall and bring your shoulders back. Hold your head high as if it were being pulled up into the sky by a string. Bring your hands together at heart center. Become aware of your breathing. Imagine your breath rising up deep from the earth, like a volcano. Feel that energy and power rising up and releasing as we breathe together. Let’s do three more together and this last time when we bring our hands together at heart center let’s think about a person we know that could use this energy and strength and send it out to them. Would anyone like to share who they are thinking of?
- Mountain Pose – Now stand proudly in Mountain, head raised high like a king or a queen, feeling your strong legs supporting you. Picture Mount Rainier as it towers above Tacoma in all its strength and beauty.
- Star Pose – Activate your arms and legs, feeling your own strength and power as you extend your arms from your center like laser beams.
- Warrior 2 Pose – Turn to the right and bend your right knee so it is at a right angle with your knee over your ankle. Feel strong and proud as you inhale and exhale slowly. Let’s try holding the pose for a 5 count to help your body feel strong. (both sides). Turn back to Star, arms extended strongly, reaching out in both directions from your center line.
- Star Pose – Activate your arms and legs, feeling all your strength as you extend your out through your fingertips. Allow strength and energy come up and fill your body.
- Warrior 2 Pose – Now turn to the left and bend your left knee. Make sure you are in the Present, not leaning into the future or back into the past. Feel strong and proud as you inhale and exhale slowly. Let’s try holding this side for a 5 count to help your body get strong. Turn back to Star arms extended strongly, reaching out in both directions from your center line. Then jump to Mountain.
- Crescent Moon – Let’s inhale and reach both hands up towards the sky. Now exhale, reach towards the right to make a Crescent Moon. Come back to center. Reach straight for the sky and bend to the left .Feel a good side stretch. Return to Mountain.
- Warrior I Pose – Raise both arms into touchdown position. Feel your powerful legs supporting you. Step back with your right leg into a lunge. Stand tall like a proud warrior and carry your strength with you in your heart. Step back up into Mountain. Now step back with your left leg. See if you can breathe into this pose and relax on your strong legs with both arms extended close to your ears.
- Mountain – Step back into Mountain
- Forward Fold – Walk your hands down your legs and come into a Forward Fold. It is OK to bend your knees because we want to bend from the hips and keep our spine long and straight.
- Table Top – From here come down to the floor into a neutral position on your hands and knees.
- Child’s Pose – Push back into Child’s Pose and rest while you inhale and exhale slowly.
- Cat/Cow – Let’s push back to our neutral position, raise our heads and drop our bellies as we breathe in for Cow. Now drop your head forward between your arms, hunching your back up into a cat stretch. Repeat, alternating three times on your own breath.
- Child’s Pose – Push back into a relaxing position.
- Cobra – Come forward onto your tummy. With your hands close to your chest push up into Cobra Hissing) Now rest with your hands in front of you like a little pillow.
- Supermen – raise your head and reach forward with both arms on the inhale. Stretch forward into our Superman pose. Imagine you are flying out into the universe! Relax and rest your head on your hands in front of you. Turn over on your right side and come onto your back. Bring up both knees and give yourself a hug.
- Twist – Put feet back down on the floor with knees bent. Stretch out both arms. Bring both knees up again and do a gentle twist to the left. Back to center. Bring both knees to the right. Back to center.
- Bridge – Put both feet on the ground, knees bent. Bring your shoulder blades in and raise up your hips on an inhale. Use robot arms. Hold. Slowly come back down one vertebra at a time. Repeat.
- Rock and Roll – Hug your knees to your chest and rock gently. Can you rock up to a standing position?
- Boat – Come into boat balancing with your arms out to your side. Hold and breathe comfortably. Release and come into a comfortable resting position on the floor for final relaxation.
Calm
- Relaxation – Let’s relax our whole body starting with our head. Allow the earth to support you as you rest and get ready for the rest of your day. Remember the proud strong warrior and the strength we sent out to our loved ones. Allow yourself to relax and know they are there for you.
- Roll over and return to a comfortable seated position. Thank-you for joining us in our practice today. Hands to heart center.