Instructor: Rachel Imholte
Community: High School Ages, Summer School Make-up Recovery, 30-40 minutes
Plan Creation Date: July 9, 2015
Yoga Calm Principle/Lesson Goal: Grounding
Lesson Plan:
Calm
- Belly Breathing – Ask for a volunteer to lead (usually 5-7 breaths). Think of your bottom being “rooted” to the desk, your feet “rooted” to the floor, and your breath “rooted” in your heart.
- Pulse Count – Find your pulse and go back to the image of your breath being “rooted” in your heart. What does that mean to you? How does that image help you feel grounded?
Activate
Student-led
- Twist – Keeping your bottom “rooted” to your desk, and your feet “rooted” to the floor twist in both directions 2X.
- Mountain – Standing next to your desk feel your feet “grounding” into the floor. Try not to become rigid, relax the shoulders extending the “grounded” feeling through your fingertips. Think about the connection between your breath and feeling grounded and centered. How does your breath calm you and support you? Be curious if your “grounded” breath can affect and nurture others to feel grounded.
- Forward Bend – Bring your hands to your hips and slowly bend forward. Bend your knees and let your arms and head relax. Slowly come back to Mountain.
- Star – Move into Star pose. Feel the Earth beneath your feet by touching all four corners of each foot into the floor. Try not to scrunch your toes, relax them. Keep your shoulders level, and expand your chest to let your heart shine! Breathe.
- Side Angle – Notice with the different poses that you are always supported, not just by your body, but by your breath as well. Focus on inhaling and exhaling through your nose regardless of the pose. Form a 90 degree angle with your knee, thigh, and calf as you bend your leg. Feel the stretch along your hip flexor and side as you move your arm over your head. Take a few deep breaths. Switch sides.
- Partner Pull – Work with your partner to find a sense of “grounding.” How can you make the pose less about pulling aggressively and more about supporting each other? Are your feet gripping the floor, or are they grounded? Try different variations such as using both hands and Teeter-totter. Remember to breathe!
Calm
- Past, Present, and Future – Instead of actually going into Warrior II pose, have students sit in their desks and visualize themselves in the pose. Walk them through Warrior II, and tell them what their hands represent (past and future), and the direction their head and eyes are in (future). Talk about the feeling of being grounded that this image gives, and then remind them they can come back to this image any time they need to for support, for strength, and for grounding.
- Child’s Pose – After students have had enough time to visualize their Warrior, have students place their heads on their fists and take a few breaths.
- Follow Up – Ask students to journal about a time they felt grounded. What did that feel like? Write about a time they felt their lives were in chaos. What did that feel like? What helped them feel grounded today in our Yoga Calm lesson? Allow students time to share.