As I write this, I realize how much time it now takes to parent older children! The days of playful kids whose needs involved making sure they didn’t run out into the street, now evolves into their growing social/emotional needs. And they really do have needs and this is a very important time of their lives.
Something happens by about 5th grade, when kids become conscious and start changing into adolescents. They wake up and say, “My family is screwy! Life sucks!” That kind of thing. Kids need to feel safe and still supported while they start to expand the reach of their wings. Firmness with a lot of love is needed. And so are yoga and stories!
I find that this age group of kids yoga teaching entails a different approach. Stories are just as important to set the stage for their life and the class. A hero tale, fairy tale, or folktale or myth guides the child psychologically on a journey in which they are able to relate their own life. Kids need tools more than ever to deal with life’s challenges. Joseph Campbell said that without myths and stories, life is a labyrinth. Suicide, depression and anxiety are all symptoms of a society without myths as maps to assist in living in the world. Campbell also said that if you really want to help people, you help them learn how to live in the world.
How do I deal with the disappointments of life? Hero tales and biographies of famous people are helpful. Abraham Lincoln and Wilma Rudolph for a few. Fairy tales and Native American folk lore are full of heros and heroines who are facing obstacle after obstacle. Children who have suffered abuse can vicariously feel vindicated with stories such as the Grimm’s The Juniper Tree. There are healing stories such as the Grail myth. Kids’ imaginations really benefit from the imagery, as it is the image that is our creative power. The Imago Dei, or image of God. We are like God as we create. Powerful imaginations make powerful creators, intelligent and visionary. Scientists tend to read a lot of science fiction, and Albert Einstein said to tell kids fairy tales if you want them to be geniuses!
Children’s yoga evolves into yoga therapy as we teach proper muscular skeletal alignment as I’ve seen kids with just about as many problems as adults! Now is the time to teach them the discipline of yoga and the physical challenges, to develop their resolve and correct any misalignments early. Teaching kids is about giving them a pep talk. Encouraging them to be the best that they can be. You will find that across socio-economic classes, every kid needs some kind of a cheerleader adult. You never know what their home life is like, and sometimes the yoga teacher/teacher adult is a life line to them. Distressed kids who act up tend to be discouraged kids. Give them heart, connect with them with yoga and stories and form a powerful relationship with these kids. Children’s yoga at this age should include journaling and discussion about topics in the story and yoga. HOw can you apply this yoga or story theme in your life? How are you like the hero/heroine and the obstacles she or he faced? Svadyaya, or self-reflection, is a big part of yoga, as the whole universe is becoming self-aware, and we are identical with this awareness of the Self.
I will be teaching again 3-5th graders at Whittier Elementary In Boulder, Colorado and will post my work with older youth. I am seeking to do more teen work. When it materializes you will know!
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