During our VERY first class we started by getting the wiggles out and also practicing Tadasana, or Mountain Pose. Each child stood in their most solid Mountain Pose and I went around the circle trying to push him or her over. It is surprising how strong children can get standing in this grounding pose! Then we shook, danced, and moved all around, but when I said "Mountain!" all the students needed to once again find their strongest standing pose.
After that, everyone grabbed their snack and we discussed the three parts of the class: MIND, MOVE, and MAKE. Many students shared what their ideas of mindfulness, movement, and artistic creation were. Then we talked about COMMUNITY, what a community is, and how we are working to create a community together in this class.
Since this was our first class we took the time to introduce ourselves! Standing in a circle I asked everyone to share his or her name and the superpower he or she most wanted to have while reflecting on how this superpower could help others. Then each person created an individual movement that everyone in the class had to perform while saying his or her name. It was fun hearing everyone's desired superpower and watching each student lead the group in a quick movement activity. The students came up with amazing superpowers! One girl wanted to be able to talk to animals, another teleported using rainbows, and yet another had the ability to grant any wish imaginable but also to take the wish away if it was used in a negatively. Wow!
After that, we focused on the mindfulness part of our class. I talked about how mindfulness is paying attention to what is happening right now, in the present moment. Everyone was sitting on the floor in a circle, and I asked each child to slump over and try to take a good, deep, nourishing breath. "Was that hard or easy? How did that feel in your body?" I asked. Everyone agreed that it was hard to take a deep breath when the body was in a slumped form. Then I had everyone sit up straight and tall and try to take a breath. Everyone thought that that was much easier and felt so much better! "This is your mindful body," I said, "throughout the course of this class I'll ask you to find your mindful body." We practiced taking a few deep, lovely breaths while sitting in this pose.
Next, I told the students I had a surprise for them! Each child received his or her very own sketchbook. We will use these throughout the course of Session 1. During the first class they designed the front covers of their sketchbooks. They could either draw themselves demonstrating the superpower they most wanted, or draw something that represented them. Below I'm sharing a few of the sketchbook designs.
