Teaching Storytime Yoga for Kids in Japan

Andrew tells the story during class

Currently, I serve as a grade five homeroom teacher at LCA International School, which is a bi-lingual school in the suburbs of Yokohama yet still close enough to Tokyo to make traveling there a day trip. This school year, which runs on the Japanese calendar from April to March, I volunteered to lead an after-school club for upper elementary school students - between 6 and 12 LCA International School grade one through grade six students.

Children warm-up for Storytime Yoga®.

It was a year-long commitment to introduce as many students as possible to Storytime Yoga™ through 90 minute class one day a week with a five minute break halfway through the class.  There were 40 scheduled classes throughout the year beginning in April 2012 and concluding in March 2013 with seasonal workshops too.

Children re-enacting the story with inversions.

I found space to teach seasonal workshops in spring, summer, autumn, and winter. I used a library, a multi-purpose room, a hall or wherever my merry band and I could find enough space that accommodated everyone and their necessities, while providing space for exploration and games. We focused on personal and social development; interpersonal and intrapersonal relationships; and literacy through storytelling

Kids yoga re-enacting stories.

Although the children have been exploring their bodies’ movement possibilities, their breath, and their connection to other cultures/languages through stories, I really focused on connecting the children to their personal and social development through unifying themes; e.g. love, trust, respect, words/actions, etc. The children discuss and journal about how they personally connect to the theme of each story after they enact each it in their bodies.

Many children lack a parent who serves as both a mentor and a counselor at home. I dare not say that I was a substitute; yet, I provided every child a caring environment and supportive atmosphere to sort out their lives. After all, most children—and these children are no exception—just want an adult to listen to them. And they need the reassurance that they are being loved.

I introduced many of the stories given to us by Sydney, and I really enjoy introducing stories related to the seasons because Japan has so many distinct seasons. This experience is in stark contrast to my impressionable years growing up in the San Fernando Valley—a suburb of Los Angeles, which introduced me to endless ways to describe sunny with…a chance of more sun tomorrow. However, my favorite story to teach and teach again is “The Peddler’s Dream” because it’s one thing to live your dreams or to live in a dream world and it’s an entirely different way of being to live within your dreams. And how would our world change if we all chose to live within our dreams?

This experience has made me realize how important my position as teacher is. I try to make all the time my students and I spend together worthwhile. After all, once they’ve forgotten everything they’ve learned, then they’ll be ready for an education. And I hope I am sparking some ancient memories to influence them toward an education rather than the drudgery of their schooling.