schools

Levels of Certification for Kids Yoga Teachers – Who Gets What?

With news of the ongoing advocacy work of Yoga Alliance to prevent Yoga Teaching from becoming legislated, it is not unreasonable to feel a little confused about what is actually required to teach yoga. At this year’s Yoga Show and Conference in Toronto, the most common question we were asked was: “What training do I need to become a Kids Yoga Teacher?”

Here’s the short answer: yoga training standards are not required or enforced.

A big part of this is thanks to Yoga Alliance’s work to demonstrate that yoga teachers are self-regulated with industry standards. Typically, reputable kids’ yoga instructors will work towards completing the industry standards. However, there are valuable milestones that can be achieved on the way to full certification:

Weekend or Workshop Certificate

Most Kids Yoga Teacher Training gives a certificate of completion at the end of a course, regardless of the length of the training. Young Yoga Masters provides a certificate after each completed 16 hour module, so you can start teaching right away.

Who typically gets this level of Certification?

Those already working with children in a school, daycare, or camp typically take a weekend certification course and use the training immediately with the kids they are already teaching.
Those who want to test the waters and see if teaching kids’ yoga is right for them.
Those on their way to becoming a Registered Children’s Yoga Teacher who have chosen a training with a Yoga Alliance registered school

95-Hour Certificate

Yoga Alliance set 95 hours of specialty training in kids’ yoga as the standard for a Registered Children’s Yoga School (RCYS). A RCYS must follow specific training requirements and provide training in various categories to create a well-rounded training. Young Yoga Masters is a Yoga Alliance registered children’s yoga school.

Who typically gets this level of Certification?

Those only interested in teaching children, not adults.
Those who need insurance for their yoga business (insurance companies usually require more than a weekend of training)
Those who need more practical experience teaching kids to feel confident
Those teaching yoga to children who want more ideas and more variety to keep kids engaged
Those on their way to becoming a Registered Children’s Yoga Teacher who have chosen a training with a Yoga Alliance registered school

Yoga Alliance Registered Children’s Yoga Teacher (RCYT)

Yoga Alliance’s standard for Registered Children’s Yoga Teachers is:

200 hours Adult Yoga Teacher Training plus
95 Hour Children’s Yoga Teacher Training followed by 30 hours of practical experience teaching children.

Who typically gets this level of Certification?

Those who want full qualifications to teach yoga to children, qualifications that meet the Yoga Industry standards
Those who want to strengthen their yoga teaching foundation beyond the playful approach of kids yoga to areas like alignment and sequencing
Those who one day want to be Children’s Yoga Teacher Trainers

Infographic outlining different levels of certification

So What Training is Right for YOU?

Take a minute to consider where you fit into the information above.

All Yoga teacher training is incredibly valuable, exploring many topics and teaching habits yogis may have not considered or come across in their own practice.

In-depth training explores best pedagogical practice and ethical concerns you should be aware of. For example:

It is crucial as an instructor to understand ways of determining when and how to physically assist students and when verbal cues may be more comfortable and appropriate.
How can poses be adjusted for those with different abilities?
How to review your lesson plans to make sure they ensure best practices?

Can you Get Insurance with the Certificate you Have?

If you are staring a business you want to make sure you have enough training to get insurance. Each insurance company for each region has different requirements. If you are running a business the time will come when you need insurance. Ask your insurance company about certification and a bonus question that is helpful to know:

how much training do I need to be a kids yoga teacher,
what kind of waiver do I need my students to complete to be covered by the policy (some don’t require a waiver and some do)

Expanding Your Network and Building Community

An added benefit of participating in lengthy training with other like-minded individuals translates to an easy entry to the yogic community, or expansion of your existing network. Though this is not a requirement, it is certainly a benefit to training participation.

Your network can be a great resource long after training is complete, whether it be for personal support, finding a sub, hearing about new classes, or professional development.

Training can be a time of tremendous personal growth as well.

Will this Certificate Serve Your Long Term Goals?

We have had more than one very experienced children’s yoga teacher take our Yoga Alliance Registered training just so they could get the Certificate and be listed as a lead trainer in another Yoga Alliance school!

If you take a training with an school that is not registered with Yoga Alliance, that door closes for you. It won’t affect you when you when you are getting jobs teaching.

It will affect you if you have a long term goal of being a trainer.

Yoga Alliance won’t recognize you as a Trainer or a School if your Certificate is not from a Yoga Alliance registered school.

For many people this doesn’t matter for quite a while, but if you plan to become a trainer one day, your choice now could save you time and money later.

Recommendations for Choosing a Level of Training

In the end the best practices lean towards choosing training registered with Yoga Alliance that will count towards your 95-hour certificate.

There was a time when Yoga Alliance was not responsive to the needs of Yoga Teachers, but that time passed when Yoga Alliance began to advocate on behalf of teachers at the policy level. We are happy to have Registered Adult and Children’s Yoga Schools.

These are just a few of many important questions to consider before taking the lead in a yoga class.

Whether you get a weekend training or full certification will be your choice in the end, and you’ll consider what you are getting and what you won’t get with the training you choose.

What factors are important to you in choosing a Yoga Teacher Training? How will you decide?

Kids Yoga in Schools – Not My Favorite Location

This is Part Two of the Series on Creative Ways to Get Kids Yoga into Schools. How can kids yoga teachers bring yoga into schools? Let’s talk! Check out why its not my favorite location and what these teachers do to bring yoga into schools. Leave a comment to give your opinion, advice, or experience on teaching yoga in schools.

For school teachers, take a look at Part One for ideas to bring yoga into the classroom.

School is Not My Favorite Place for Classes

Over the years, I’ve had many adventures teaching in schools and looking back, many of them had their challenges. First of all, there is a lack of budget in schools, it’s hard to get paid. You may get passed from one person to another trying to get answers. If you get a class going, you’ll probably have a lot of children in your classes. You may also find yourself leading yoga poses in all kinds of strange spots like hallways and beside desks.

As I built my kids yoga teaching business my preference grew for a class in a community centre, daycare, private school or studio. There were so many obstacles working with schools and their accompanying bureaucracy.

Yet with a little ingenuity, you can get kids yoga into a school and enjoy it. Many would argue, this is where the kids need it the most!

What Has Worked to Get Kids Yoga in School

Here are a few effective methods that have worked for me and other teachers to get yoga classes in schools:

Lunchtime Kids Yoga Class: One RCYT (Registered Children’s Yoga Teacher) charges $5 per child for her 30 minute lunch time class and has to cap the class at 20 kids. Her kids attend the school so she gets to see them at lunch. She can make up to $100 per class because they don’t charge her a room rental. It’s a win-win-win for all involved.

here is an empty schoolyard that has lots of space for a children's yoga class — An empty playground, soon to be filled with children.

After School Class: Personally, I’ve taught two ongoing classes by working with the school itself. One was held in the music room, It was arranged by a member of the parent teacher association so I didn’t pay a room rental. With the help of the parent, we charged per child for a series and collected the payments ourselves. I had to have a staff volunteer to supervise and that ended up being the reason the classes stopped. We couldn’t find another volunteer when the staff took a year off.

Programs Through the School: My other class was part of a joint school/city run after school program. It was one of my first kids yoga classes, back in 1999. I hope this pay rate is out of date because there were 25 kids in the class and I got paid a whopping $22.50 per class! The children came to the gym after the school bell rang, ate a snack sitting on the floor (they brought their own snack from home), then stayed for the hour yoga class. There was very little admin for the class, I just showed up, signed in, took attendance and taught. Each class usually took me about 2 hours, but I only got paid for one hour.

I admit, the after school class in the gym was the first class I dropped as my business grew. It was so much work for so little money. At the beginning of my yoga teaching, I ran around teaching 25 classes a week, making ends meet.

That class was also how I learned to get good at teaching kids yoga. When I could teach 25 kids in one class, I felt confident to teach anywhere. It was a great way to learn on the job.

kids yoga class in the gym school — Teachers in the Summer Certification get experience teaching all kinds of classes.

When I posed the questions about Yoga in Schools on my Facebook Page, I got another great idea:

A Gentle Way to Start the Day

I deliver classes before school (8-8.45 am) as a lovely gentle way to start the day. They are very popular and were requested by parents of children who dread going to school and launching straight into school work. They were also popular with children who have job share teachers as the hand-over day can be quite difficult.

I charge £3.50 (just over 5 US dollars) per session but don’t need to pay for the space so would maybe charge more if there was a hall charge. I currently don’t have more than 12 children per session so that I can give each one some attention but there is enough for some fun group games.

– Sam from Yoga Tales on Facebook

Getting Your Foot in the Door

The trick to getting into a school is to have a connection, a staff or parent (or be a parent). You’ve got to get your foot in the door before they close it in your face.

Knowing someone seems to help to get free use of the space. Otherwise some schools will charge you an hourly rate. If you pay an hourly rate please leave a comment and let us know the going rates these days at your school classes.

kids in yoga class climb on each other ot make a pyramid — This class took place in the hallway in the basement of the school.

Kids Yoga Classes as Part of Physical Education

I’ve taught a few classes as Part of the Physical Education program paid from from the school budget. These have always been one or two time classes, not ongoing. I charged between $50 – $150 per class depending on where the school was located. Other teachers I know have charged up to $350 for a one time classroom presentation.

Insight from the National Kids Yoga Conference

In a panel discussion at the National Kids Yoga Conference, I heard yoga teachers who raise funds and collect donations to cover the cost of teaching yoga in schools.

Others volunteer at a school until the school sees the value of the yoga program, then push the school to find a way to fund them.

Still other teachers insist on being paid from the beginning. By emphasizing the benefits of yoga, the teacher can be paid out of one of the school budgets for character education, phys ed, or professional development.

I’ve found getting paid by the school quite difficult, but learned that Kids Yoga Teachers can be very resourceful!

Be Reliable and They’ll Want You Back!

One thing I know for sure, if you are reliable, and people can find you, you’ll have the best chance of filling your schedule with kids yoga classes.

One of the private school’s where I teach, I’ve gone to for over a decade! It’s much easier to return to a school rather then to keep finding new classes. If the program is stress-free, they will ask you back and that is good for everybody.

Please leave a comment if you can add to the conversation on yoga in schools.

What happened when you taught in a school and how did it work out?
(post a link to your Facebook Page in the comments too)

Have you had a hard time getting kids yoga into schools?

What are your obstacles?

I suspect there are many teachers who have had challenges getting into schools, and others who have found creative ways to bring yoga to the kids. I’d like to hear your thoughts on the subject and if this is a topic you’d like to hear more about.

Yours truly,

Aruna
Young Yoga Masters.com

Upcoming Events and Children s Yoga Teacher Training

Creative Ways to Get Kids Yoga into Schools

Back to School isn’t just for kids! Come get trained as a kids yoga teacher – check out our upcoming courses here. You’ll get so many wonderful ideas to bring yoga into your classroom.

Emptyschool — An empty playground, soon to be filled with children.

In 2010, I wrote about How to Start a Kids Yoga Program at a School. Well, things have changed in schools and in Yoga in the past few years and it’s time to give this article an update with new information that may be helpful for you to bring yoga into your school.

First of all, I usually recommend that new kids yoga teachers, who are not school teachers, look for yoga classes outside of schools. Why? Because most schools don’t have a budget to pay for a regular yoga teacher. There are still a few creative ideas to help you get into the school anyway. Take a look in Part Two of this post coming out during the week.

For those who are school teachers and are trained in kids yoga, here are a few ideas for you. Yoga in the classroom tends to lead to a happier day for both students and teachers.

For School Teachers who are Also Kids Yoga Teachers

How Well Do You Know Your School System?
The first thing to do is to get to know your school curriculum and its vernacular. Each schools system has its own language. Google Search your city name and “education,” “Ministry,” or “Board” until you find the official government website.

Here are a few examples from the Ontario, Canada Ministry of Education that relate to bringing yoga into schools:

Physical Education Curriculum and Yoga

Curriculum in my area is divided into “Strands” (see what I mean about vernacular!). There are three strands in Grades 1 – 8, and four in high school. Look at how yoga can fulfill these Strands and incorporate it into your classes.

Yoga for Daily Physical Activity (DPA) and Lets Move

In Ontario there is also a requirement for 20 minutes of DPA. In other places there are different programs that you can tap into like the Let’s Move Program. A vigorous yoga practice, dancing, and sun salutations can work up a sweat and fulfill these initiatives.

Tie Ins for Yoga and the School Curriculum

The meditative practice of yoga makes it great to tie yoga in WHILE you are fulfilling another part of the Curriculum. It’s what our resident school teacher/yoga teacher, Janet Wiilams, calls a Two for One. Here are some examples of how yoga can be tied in with the school curriculum:

Character Development Initiative,
Silent Reading (reading Yoga books and doing the movements),
Set up a Yoga Station in your Room,
Measuring angles of a yoga pose,
learning about science and anatomy,
and playing word games with the Yoga Alphabet

As Your Extra Curricular Work

Most teachers I meet explain that they are expected to lead one of the extra curricular activities in the school. It may be coaching a team, directing a play, or starting a yoga club. The yoga club gives you much more freedom to bring in the spiritual side of yoga because the kids are not required to do yoga, it is something they sign up for as a choice. Leading the Yoga Club is a big hit for extra curricular work.

kids yoga teacher training pictures of the yoga alphabet train, yoga cards, healthy stretching, and fun learning — Click to see upcoming dates.

There are so many ways a school teacher can bring yoga into the school and classroom.

Stay tuned for Part Two of this Series on Creative Ways to Get Kids Yoga into Schools:
How Yoga Teachers who are NOT School Teachers can bring yoga into schools.

Aruna Kathy Humphrys
www.YoungYogaMasters.com

More News

Kids Yoga Teacher Certification – Registration Now Open!

The Yoga Literacy Kids Yoga Training is part of the 95 Hour Yoga Alliance Registered Children’s Yoga School. Don’t miss out on the top quality training. Its like no other!

Pass on the wisdom of yoga to the future generations! Too see the upcoming courses click here.

If you take a Kids Yoga Training – take one that counts towards your Certification!

The Yoga Literacy Weekend Includes:
Yoga Alphabet book, cards, printable alphabet, manuals, and stickers.

* * * * *

5 Kid’s Yoga Tips from a School Teacher

Young Yoga Masters interviews Janet Williams, a certified primary/junior teacher and registered yoga instructor about yoga in the classroom.

These 5 Tips give you the Who, What, When, Where, and Why of kids yoga.

1: Why do Yoga with Kids?

Young Yoga Masters: Janet. You’ve been a school teacher and a yoga instructor for almost 20 years so you know what’s up with yoga in the classroom. What is your experience of the benefit of bringing yoga into the classroom? Give us one of your favorite stories of how children change after doing yoga.

Janet: One of my favorite stories is one I received in an e-mail – unsolicited. Here’s what she wrote me:

As an experienced Supply Teacher, I know that it can be a challenge to get children to listen during Physical Education because of the less structured format and the high excitement level. The first class that I tried “What I See, I Can Be” with, were a notorious Grade 2/3 split. They were known as a difficult class to control and all morning they acted up. When we got to Gym Class, I put on the CD and had the children follow along with the yoga book. The results were amazing! To my delight, the yoga book and CD captured their interest and attention. The children who had been uncooperative all morning settled down and remained settled down for the rest of the day.

This letter from this teacher came right after I wrote my book, and confirmed my mission to bring yoga to children. She so clearly describes the benefits of bringing yoga into the classroom, to settle kids down and bring them health at the same time.

2: Who can Teach Kid’s Yoga?

Young Yoga Masters: Can anyone bring yoga into the classroom? A lot of people think you need to be “really into yoga.” Do you?

Janet: No, not at all. You don’t have to be really into yoga or a yoga teacher to bring yoga to children, although it can help in providing confidence in teaching. With the right resources and training, you can learn a number of routines that pretty much all kids love, routines that motivate children to do yoga. I’ve had many people, like one Phys Ed Consultant at a School Board, who didn’t know about yoga but was sold after just one yoga class after seeing how much the kids loved it. Teachers can pick up a few good routines and start with those in the classroom.

3: When to do Yoga with Children?

Young Yoga Masters: Teachers are already overloaded! What can teachers do to get kids doing yoga when they already have so much curriculum to cover?

Janet: Its true, teachers are overloaded. There’s not enough time in the day to do all the things they are expected to do. So I suggest two things, the first is what I call “2 for 1.” Any time a teacher can teach two things at once, it is a good thing.

So for example, in math, when the kids are learning angles, one child measures the angles of another child’s arms using a protractor. It is a great physical, hands on, healthy 2 for 1. I also think it helps kids better remember the lesson.

The second way is for a teacher to bring a Children’s Yoga Teacher into the classroom. This way the teacher can do some prep or marking while they keep an eye on the yoga class. If they get a kids yoga teacher who knows how to handle children it gives them a break from teaching. That’s why the practicum is so important in Kids Yoga Teacher Training, so the kids yoga teachers can deliver a good class.

4: Where to hold a Yoga Class at School?

Young Yoga Masters: How can a teacher find space for yoga at school?

Janet is the author the award winning book: What I See, I Can Be

Janet: Being able to do yoga in the classroom means choosing the right yoga poses. I chose the poses that can be done beside a desk. Of course when you have a gym or playground you have less restrictions, but when I developed the yoga flow in my book, I made sure all the poses can be done anywhere.

For example, in the worst case scenario, when the desks can’t be moved and there is no carpeted area we just go ahead and do yoga right beside the desk. Even a pose like the final relaxation, we do on the floor beside the desk. Kids don’t care about it, they are all over the playground anyway. But if the floor is really unsuitable, we just lay our head on the desk. All 13 yoga poses in my book were very purposefully chosen for classrooms, so kids could do all the yoga beside the desk.

5: What gets kids motivated to do yoga?

Young Yoga Masters: What is the best way to get kids who are new to yoga to give it a try?

Janet: If I’m going into a new class I make sure I go in with visual aids. As all good teachers know you want children to HEAR the instructions and SEE the instructions. This helps all the different types of learners. I bring in my book and my poster to every class, so the children can see and do.

Over the weeks I incorporate other props to engage their imagination. This helps them hold each yoga pose for longer times. Plus I am fully engaged as a teacher, by walking around the room and providing positive feedback to boost their self-confidence and self-esteem. Yoga is a time to empower children. Of course I make corrections when the children could potentially hurt themselves, but I encourage the effort that they put in, rather than criticizing them for not being perfect.

Bonus Tip

Young Yoga Masters: Do you have one final tip for a new teacher who wants to bring yoga to kids.

Janet: Kids get bored of stuff very quickly, so as a kid’s yoga teacher you need to have a very large treasure chest of visual aids and props. Having a lot of training and resources means you have back-up ideas when something isn’t working.

I’ve thought up many ideas on my own, but it was also really nice to just get ideas that work by taking Kids Yoga Teacher Training. That’s what I want to give teachers in our Registered Children’s Yoga School, so teachers don’t have to come up with everything on their own. That can be exhausting, plus you don’t know if it will work until you try it. So it helps to have experienced mentors to guide you when you’re filling your treasure chest.

Young Yoga Masters: Thank you Janet for these wonderful tips for bringing yoga to children. We highly recommend the What I See, I Can Be Guided Yoga Flow for Children!

Getting Yoga in Schools is a Problem

How to Get Yoga into the Classroom through the Principals

Have you ever noticed how every problem is also an opportunity?

For instance, one of my problems now is getting ready for the International Principals Conference in ten days. I’ve been researching and figuring out what school principals want. The problem is showing them how great yoga is for schools amid a hundred other groups also trying to show how great their product is for schools. Getting yoga into these schools is a problem.

Its a problem to solve and an opportunity to get more children doing yoga that I can’t pass up.

bow — Frog Yoga – Started as a Printable Coloring Page

I notice how many achievements came as solutions to my problems. Like:

When I couldn’t teach one more “trip to the Zoo” yoga class – I created more real yoga classes which eventually became my Kids Yoga Teacher Training,
When I couldn’t find my tribe of kids yoga teachers – I started this blog,
I hated having to find a photocopier so I developed the printable coloring books,
Pre-school children can’t color, they just scribble lines, so color pictures got developed.

bow-blue shorts. — Frog Yoga – the problem led to Color Pages too!

The yogic way is to not resist problems. In yoga we’re taught to breathe deeper into the problem. Relax. Don’t resist. Breathe. Release. Because every problem contains the clue to the solution.

Every Problem Contains the Clue to the Solution

This blog post is dedicated to problems. I admit I’m nervous about the conference and getting ready for 2,000 school principals. I’ve only got four days to connect with them, then the conference will be over. This Conference moves from country to country every two years, so they won’t be here next year. This is it!

Yet I feel excited to have this opportunity and grateful for this problem to solve. Problems connect you to your passion. Problems give you the thrill of doing new things. Problems make you get clear on what you want. And problems contain the seeds for personal growth.

They just sometimes get disguised as frustration, anxiety, confusion, and fear.

As you read this I invite you to notice the next time you’re frustrated or nervous about something. I invite you to notice your problems. Then write them down because the solution may be the breakthrough the world has been waiting for.

Consider How to Teach Children About Problems

Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close
they were to success when they gave up.

~ Thomas Edison, 1877

When you teach kids consider telling them how much you appreciate problems. When kids say in frustration, “I can’t do it!” You can relate and teach them about how problems contain the clue to solutions.

What about now? Do you have any problems with kids yoga? Feel free to leave them in the comments – no matter how tough they may be.

I think getting to know the problems will be the first step to finding the solution. Do you agree?

P.S. Tell Me What You Think!

P.S. Can you help me with my problem? Tell Me What You Think. I’d love to get your feedback if you’ve ever talked to a school principal. Please share your experience by filling out this 4 Question survey. It’ll be fast and could help get more yoga into schools.

Click here for the survey.

Thank you to everyone for your support!

5 Ideas for End of School Year Kids Yoga

“You’re not going yet!?”

Right after we do yoga breathing at the beginning of my toddler class, on three year old exclaims, “You’re not going yet!?”

Because we do yoga breathing at the end of class too, she sometimes things we’re coming to a close. She doesn’t like to say good-bye and I have to admit, especially as we’re drawing to the end of another school year, I can relate!

I’ve written before about the sadness I experience as a teacher at the end of the school year. I’ve done yoga with kids from their diaper days, to seeing the big gap in their front teeth, to them transforming into adults. If you’ve ever got the privilege to teach in the same school long term, you know what its like. Relationships form, we make connections that light us up when we see the kids in our classes.

A six year old student that I’ve taught since she was two years old was in the hospital with pneumonia this winter, we didn’t know if she would make it, she was very sick. Thank God she returned, much tinier, after missing three weeks of school. Now she’ll be moving on to grade one. Simply put, I love her. But from past experience I’ve seen that for most kids, the last class is no big deal. They’re thinking more about summer holidays, swimming, or learning to ride a bike.

Its me who’s silently saying, “You’re not going yet!?”

Fortunately we have many powerful yoga teachings about attachment to help us let go and move on. The good news is they work equally well for children and teachers.

5 Ideas for End of School Year Yoga

Idea 1: Normalize The Process:

In yoga, the Hindu philosophy explains the cycle of Brahma (Creator), Vishnu (Sustainor), Shiva (Destroyer). In Kundalini Yoga we say Sa (Universe) Ta (Life) Na (Death) Ma (Rebirth). In Christianity, Christ died so there could be a resurrection of new life. So many spiritual practices point to teachings on the cycle of life: Endings lead to new beginnings.

In my end of year classes I try to bring this to life with a theme about cycles. Consider using these yoga flows:

Growth Cycle: start with a seed (child pose), become a sprout (kneeling with upward hands) then grow up to a plant (mountain pose), the plant creates a flower (standing with upward hands), the flower blossoms and dies (downward dog) which plants a new seed (child pose).
The Seasons (warm-up first): Spring (half-wheel/bridge lifts – inhale up, exhale down), summer (from corpse pose come to legs up to 90 degrees or shoulder stand), fall (plow pose), winter (corpse pose).
Meditation for Change: If thoughts go to sadness about losing someone, use the “Sa Ta Na Ma” meditation to refocus your mind during these times. Here’s a link to how the Kirtan Kriya Meditation is done. I regularly do this meditation for about six minutes with children.
Saying Good-bye lets us practice Non-Attachment.

Idea 2: Take Care of Unfinished Business

This may be the last time you will see some of the kids so if there is anything you want to share, now is the time. Yogi Bhajan said “I did not come to collect students, but to train teachers.” As teachers we want to build students to be ten times as powerful as ourselves. I think about how I can make these children ten times more powerful than I am! That’s how I will know I’ve done a good job. The wheels start turning in their young minds when they hear my last instruction to go and teach what they’ve learned. They sit up a little taller and consider who they can teach yoga to. Now their yoga practice doesn’t have to end when my classes end.

Idea 3: Gratitude Circle

Etch out some circle time for each person to say what they are grateful for about yoga and each other. An attitude of gratitude helps us remember all we have instead of crying about what we don’t have.

Idea 4: Make a Wish and Let It Go

When the three year old I mentioned says “You’re not going yet!?” at the beginning of class, we make a wish and then let it go. Consider giving kids their wish emotionally, “Wouldn’t it be great if we could do yoga together all day. That would be so fun, wouldn’t it?” I recommend you DON’T finish it with, “But we can’t do that” or some other negation of the wish. Just make the wish and let go of it.

Then move on to thoughts of all the fun things planned for the class, “Now we’ve got our warm-up song, our yoga poses, downward dog, cobra pose… and our meditation. Wow, we’ve got a lot to do together!”

I’ve done this for three or four weeks with my little friend and she smiles and gets ready for yoga. By the end of the class she’s satisfied that we’ve completed our routine.When I feel sad, I make a silent wish for the children I’m going to miss, a wish for them to have a happy and healthy future.

Idea 5: Choose Your Favorite Yoga Poses for Yoga at Home

Since the kids have done yoga all year, they know a lot. For the last class try invite each child to name their favorite place to do yoga at home. Then go on to have them teach each other their favorite yoga pose.

Children will get a mental picture of their home practice, bringing them one step closer to actually doing yoga at home. Plus it’s fun to hear poses like – upside down on the couch pose or TV watching cobra pose.

You probably won’t be able to do all these in your last class. But you may pick and choose a few of these ideas to make a smooth transition at the end of the school year.

Am I the only sentimental yoga teacher out there?

I doubt it. I’ve met enough yoga teachers to know how open-hearted most of us are. Have you ever grown attached to your students? What are you going to miss about them? Feel free to share your memories, your wishes, or your own tips in the comments because sharing is a great way of processing our feelings and letting go of attachments.

I wish for all of you a smooth transition and a wonderful summer!

“You’re not going yet!?”

There’s a three year old girl who right after we do our yoga breathing at the beginning of class emphasizes, “You’re not going yet!?” She doesn’t like to say good-bye and I have to admit, especially as we’re drawing to the close of another school year, I can relate!