Breath

During our third Mind, Move, Make class we talked about the importance of the human breath.  I asked my students to tell me why humans need to breath.  After a discussion, we came to the determination that humans need to breath to capture oxygen and get rid of carbon dioxide.  

We talked about how consciously thinking about the breath can also help them in many other ways.  I shared that when I'm worried, nervous, angry or sad I try to remember to close my eyes and focus on my breath.  Breathing mindfully doesn't make an existing problem disappear, but it does bring a feeling of calm that didn't exist before engaging in the practice.

Together we discussed situations in which focusing on the breath could help them, like before taking a test or when a sibling does something frustrating.  A few students shared times when they felt nervous or angry in the past when they could've used their breath to gather a sense of calm.  Hopefully they remember to use this tool in the future when these feelings arise!

During the movement portion of the class we worked on Downward Facing Dog and talked about how that should feel in the body.  We moved through a Sun Salutation sequence that we've been working on.  At one point I asked the students if they wanted me to do the Sun Salutation with them or watch them do it and simply talk them through it verbally.  They all wanted me to watch them instead of doing it with them!  We finished the practice with a few balancing poses.  Each student used the rock I gave them during the first class as a visual focal point, or drishti, to help maintain balance.

Artistically, the students started by creating two different drawings.  For one drawing they used shape and color as the primary elements, and for the other they used line.  When completed, both drawings were cut into pieces and woven together to create a new, integrated, finished piece of artwork.

Several interesting things were discovered from this project.  My students learned how two very different artworks can be combined to create a completely new piece of work.  To get to this point they had to take a risk and cut up their beautiful drawings.  Everyone managed to sacrifice their two original works for the sake of creating something new, unique, and unexpected.

   

One Good Thing

To start our second session of Mind, Move, Make I asked the students to share one good thing that happened to them during the course of the day.  As humans, sometimes we remember and dwell on the not-so-great parts of our day and we forget how lucky we are.  We don't pause to notice the amazing, wonderful things happening around us all the time.

I kicked off the Sharing Circle by telling them that I was thankful for having a hot shower that morning, with clean water!  I explained that not everyone in the world has the luxury of clean water, let alone HOT clean water.  Also, I have a seven-month-old baby at home and anyone who has children can attest to the fact that being able to even TAKE a shower at all is sometimes a miracle because Little One needs so much time and attention!

We used the rocks I gave the students last class to take turns talking
during circle time.

When it came to be her turn, one caring, thoughtful girl was bubbling over about telling us her one good thing.  She said, "I am thankful that Emiko joined our class today, and I am thankful that Julie teaches us yoga."  Emiko was a new student to our class, and I thought it was lovely that the other student chose to welcome her in this beautiful way.  I was also very honored that she chose my class as another good thing to be thankful for in her day!

After everyone had the chance to share, I had the students lay on their yoga mats and contemplate their breath.  During a yoga class I recently attended, instructor Rosie Acosta asked us to visualize being wrapped in a cocoon of white light while we were in Savasana.  I loved how the use of this image transformed my experience, so I decided to try it with my students.  I asked them to imagine they were little caterpillars who had just completed the most magnificent cocoon ever created.  Their cocoon could be made of anything: chocolate, legos, silk, petals, stuffed animals; anything that made them feel safe and comfortable.  Their only job was to visualize their special cocoon and focus on their breath.  

After that, we started to move!  I introduced the children to Garudasana, or Eagle Pose.  In both Hindu and Buddhist mythology, Garuda is a large mythical bird.  Before we got into the pose I invited the students to imagine their own version of Garuda; what would their imaginary bird look like?  Then I talked them into the pose.

We revisited Tree Pose, and when I told the students we were going into Tree I heard several voices call out a cheer of "yesssss!" and that made me smile.  Our last pose for the day was Happy Baby in honor of Harlow, my seven-month-old.

For the art portion of the class, many of the students needed to complete their Zentangle designs on the fabric circles.  Then each student began sewing his or her rock pouch to house the gift I gave them last session.  Some children had the chance to move on to our next project and began to create a piece of artwork using black permanent marker and oil pastels.  These drawings will be incorporated into a weaving.

Stay tuned to see how this is done!   

Our First Class

After a great deal of time, thought, and planning for Mind, Move, Make our first class finally happened!

 

To open the class we had a discussion about gratitude; the children shared their ideas of what gratitude means to them.  All the students got to name one thing in their lives for which they are grateful.  They shared that they are thankful for people and pets instead of naming physical possessions as the most important things in their lives.

This is my singing bowl!  The students are excited to learn how to play it.

After the discussion I asked all the students to lay on their yoga mats with one hand on their heart and one hand on their stomach giving them a chance to relax and decompress after a long day at school.  After ringing the singing bowl, a bell-like musical instrument, I asked the children to count their breaths until they could no longer hear the sound of the bowl ringing.  This allowed them to get in touch with their breath and focus their listening skills on one sound.  When they couldn’t hear the bell anymore I asked them to show me that the sound was gone with the action of silently switching the hand on their heart to their stomach and vice versa.  Then they shared the number of breaths they counted before the sound disappeared.

Next, the students found a comfortable seat on their yoga mats.  I asked them to close their eyes and open their hands because I had a gift for them.  “I think she’s going to give us cookies!” one student said enthusiastically.  When all the students were seated, calm, and ready I gave each one a small, smooth stone.  

They were instructed to explore the object with their eyes closed and use their other senses to figure out what it was while keeping the secret to themselves if they figured it out.  I was happy to watch the children using touch and smell to solve the Mystery of the Unknown Object.  One student even decided to taste his rock, which made me smile and chuckle quietly to myself; I was thankful that I washed the rocks beforehand!   

Each student used his or her rock as a point of visual focus, or drishti, during our movement practice.  The children placed the rocks at the top of their yoga mats and I talked them into tree pose.  Having a point of visual focus is helpful in maintaining balance and concentration.  Several of the students still found this posture difficult, but I imagine by the end of our eleven classes together they will all master the pose!

After moving through a few sun salutations and exploring downward facing dog, we were ready to start creating artwork!  I introduced the children to the art of Zentangle which was developed by a monk and a calligrapher.  There is no “wrong way” to Zentangle, and we created our designs on fabric using black sharpie marker.  

Next session we will sew the fabric into pouches to house the rock that I gave them.   Their “homework” was to find two more rocks before our next session.