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Instructor: Madelaine Winstanley
Community: Grades 2-3, School Setting, 30 minutes
Plan Creation Date: December 3, 2014
Yoga Calm Principle/Lesson Goal: Community
Resources: Class plan, Chime bar, Hoberman Sphere, Mindful Moment Cards
Lesson Plan:
Calm
- Chime – Chime bar to signal the beginning of class – Select a child to come up to the front of the classroom. Assist them to ask everyone to make their bodies still and close their eyes – ring the chime bar and wait until everyone has raised their hand to signal that the sound has stopped for them. Hands down and eyes closed. Take a moment to notice how you are feeling right now. There’s no right or wrong answer, when we’re mindful, we’re just noticing what’s happening. Eyes open.
- Aims for today – It’s the final week of the school year and you are at the end of your time together as a class. I thought today we could celebrate the community you have built here in your classroom.
- Seated Belly Breathing – with a student leader and counter. Feel this group breathing together. Invite the group to compliment the leader, and the leader to compliment the counter.
- Seated Volcano Breath – Choose a student leader to lead the activity. Three breaths together, then – close your eyes, choose a friend in the class and send a wish for the summer holidays to that friend (repeat twice). A small number of volunteers may like to share their wishes. Invite the group to compliment the leader.
Activate
- Arm Swings – give students to the count of five to move steadily into place standing behind their chairs. Stand with your feet together and your palms turned outwards. Inhale and raise your arms out to the side and then overhead. Exhale and lower your arms back to your sides. Let the movement of your arms follow your breath. See how slowly and smoothly you can move together as a group like a flock of birds flying in slow motion – step out as the leader and challenge the group to keep moving together.
- Shoulder Clock – Cooperate now with someone nearby (demonstrate with one pair and then have them lead).- choose a partner nearby who is a similar height to you. Stand side by side a short distance apart, and place your inside palms together overhead in twelve o’clock position. Breathe into your upper chest, keeping your chest and the top of your head lifted, and spread your fingers. Then, as you exhale, take your hands back to one o’clock position. Continue to six o’clock then switch sides.
- Tree Prep – Stand with your legs and feet together. See if you can slowly shift your weight onto your right foot, bend your left knee and lift your left foot off the floor (offer different options for the height of the left foot acknowledging the differences in preferences, ability and confidence that are always present in the group with each activity they undertake). Now activate your body and imagine one of your friends in this class holding your right foot steadily to the ground. Press your palms together in front of your heart then stretch your arms and head up like branches to the sky. Repeat on the other leg.
- Tree Circle – Notice how your friends help to support you. Switch legs and repeat.
- Tree – Now feel that support as you come back into tree pose by yourself. Switch legs and repeat.
- Changing and Mirroring Tree – start with the teacher leading and then provide an opportunity for two or three volunteers to lead. Next, challenge the group to change who is leading by just watching and working together – I shouldn’t be able to tell who’s leading (remind students to switch legs).
- Compliment Circle – Volunteers are invited to share with the group one thing they feel the class has done well this year.
Calm
- Child’s Pose – seated at desks making a pillow with forearms on the desk to read the head. Relax your neck, hips and back. Let your head be heavy. Breathe into your back and let it puff up like a parachute.
- Relaxation – Mindful Moment Card – Community (edited to be specifically about the school community) Imagine yourself in a peaceful setting. Now think of the people here at school who support you and help you. Picture all of those people creating a protective circle around you. Who are they? How do they support you? If you could speak to them, what would you say to them?
- Chime – End by ringing the bell – let the bell help you take these feelings of community and support into the rest of your day.