Instructor: Laura Barbour

Class: Grades 3-4, Classroom or Small Group

Plan Creation Date: April 24, 2009

Yoga Calm Principle/Lesson Goal: Strength

Lesson Plan:

Center

Pinwheel Breath: Practice Belly Breathing with Hoberman Sphere, inhaling and exhaling slowly. Now, with a small pinwheel in your hand, purse lips as if whistling and blow your breath out to spin the pinwheel. See how slowly you can spin the pinwheel without gasping for your next breath. Try to keep the pinwheel spinning for 10 seconds and then try to lengthen the time.

Seated Pulse Count: Place two fingers along the side of your mouth. Tip head back slightly and draw a line with your fingers along the groove along your neck. Press gently to find your pulse. Quietly raise your hand when you find your pulse. Count pulse beats quietly to yourself. Now count for 15 seconds. How many beats did you count?

Volcano Breath: Sitting up in your chair, place your palms together in front of your heart. Take a long, slow, deep breath in through your nose and pause when your lungs are full. Hold the pause and bring your arms up over your head, opening your heart. Exhale and slowly explode the volcano moving your arms out to the side and back together at your heart. Practice three more Volcano Breaths together this time in silence. Close your eyes and think of someone you are strong for or someone who is strong for you. Hold an image of the person strongly in your mind. As you breathe out send your heart thoughts out to that person.

Activate

Yoga Calm Top 10

Woodchopper: Stand with feet a little bit wider than hip-width apart and bend knees slightly. Hold hands together over your head and imagine you are holding an ax. Imagine a piece of wood on the ground in front of you. On the count of three, swing your hands down to chop the piece of wood. Make a loud “Huh!” sound as your ax chops the wood.

Mountain: Stand with feet pointing straight ahead and hip-width apart. Place your hands together in front of your heart. Activate your body. Lift your belly, your head and your heart. Relax your shoulders. Feel your strength as you stand with your feet grounded to the earth.

Roots: Stand tall and strong in Mountain pose. Activate your body with feet planted firmly on the ground. Gently rock back and forth. Make the rocking movement smaller and smaller until you are balanced on the center of your feet. Gently rock side to side and then slowly return to center. Gently make big circles to the right and be aware of how your weight shifts to the four edges of your foot as you circle. Make the circles smaller and smaller until you come back to center. Make big circles to the left and make your circles smaller until you come back to center.

Crescent Moon: From Upward Mountain, breathe in, press feet down, and stretch slightly to the right, curving into the shape of a crescent moon. Lengthen both sides of your body. Exhale and come back to center. Now stretch in Crescent Moon to the left.

Modified Dancer: Stand with feet hip-width apart. Shift your weight to your right foot. Lift the left foot behind and hold it with your left hand. When you find your balance, raise your right arm. Look straight ahead. Lock your eyes on a spot on the wall to help you concentrate and balance. Repeat these steps on your right side.

Twist: Lie on your back and pull your knees into your chest. Feel your back press into the ground. Roll your knees to the right until they reach the ground. Stretch your arms out to the sides and look to the left. Breathe deeply and with each exhalation feel your body sink further into the ground. Roll your knees back to the center and repeat on the left side.

Educate

Strong Voice: Students lie on the floor with their legs stretched out and their arms to the side. We will take deep Belly Breaths together to ground ourselves and turn our awareness inside. I will slowly read the question from the Strong Voice Worksheet, pausing between each question allowing students time to process their ideas.

  • Can you find the strong voice inside you?
  • Where do you feel the strong voice inside your body?
  • Is the voice high or low?
  • Is the voice loud or soft?
  • Does the voice make you think of someone?
  • What does the voice say?
  • What can you do to find your strong voice when you are angry or afraid?
  • When do you need your strong voice?
  • Draw a picture of yourself feeling strong.

Integrate

Guided Relaxation: From Ready..Set…R.E.L.A.X. by Jeffrey Allen, M.Ed. and Roger Klein, Psy.D.

Pillar of Strength: Sit comfortably with your feet on the floor and your eyes closed. Take three long, deep breaths. (pause) Feel yourself relaxing more and more with each breath. Let the rhythm of the music calm you. Feel your muscles relax and your heart and breathing slow. Say to yourself, “I am calm and relaxed.”

Imagine that you are a telephone pole. You are high off the ground. As your breathing slows you start to feel calm and relaxed. The breeze rocks you gently back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. Look up and see the soft, white clouds moving ever so slowly across the clear blue sky. Feel the top of a tree tickle you as it brushes against your wood. It is a beautiful day and you are calm and relaxed. Listen to the birds as they fly around you. One has chosen to land on you and rest. Once you were home to a nest of birds. You feel secure when you look forward and backward and see the many telephone lines you help to hold up. The wires are like your arms connecting you to others many miles away. You reach out and touch someone. You feel proud knowing how important you are. Many people appreciate and depend on you.

Breathing slowly, you sway in the breeze feeling calm and relaxed. You are tall, you are strong, you are relaxed. Repeat to yourself slowly three times “I am important to myself and others” (you may substitute “I am strong. I am in control. I am responsible. I can do it.”)…(pause) Next time you see a telephone pole, stand tall knowing how important YOU are.

Take a deep breath and return to your room. Open your eyes and stretch. (pause) Take a few moments to appreciate the good feelings that come with relaxation.

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