TOOLS FOR TEACHERS

Designed for the modern classroom, Yoga Ed. Tools for Teachers combines fundamental yoga techniques in simple 5 – 15 minute activities and sequences that anyone can do and experience immediate results.

Yoga Tools require no prior knowledge of yoga and can be done by anyone of any age or body type. When implemented regularly, they help teachers manage their own stress and show up as a positive model for their students. The Yoga Ed. philosophy is expressed best in Ghandi's quote: "Be the change you want to see." When teachers share the yoga tools they use to help themselves with their students, they create a more focused and harmonious environment and support students in feeling ready and able to learn.

Yoga Tools are an integrated part of the Class and Behavior Management curriculum with the LAUSD District Intern Certification Program and recommended professional development by the LAUSD Nutrition Network.

Teachers who use Yoga Tools report them as being effective in enhancing:

• Behavior and self-discipline
• Attention and ability to stay on task
• Self- confidence in learning and handling frustration
• Creativity
• Communication
• Health and Fitness
  

All Yoga Tools are designed for the pre-school environment, require no extra equipment or space and take only 5 - 15 minutes. In pre-schools that practice the 4 kinds of Yoga Tools: breathing exercises, basic yoga poses, kinesthetic games and relaxation-visualization. Teachers report that the time spent on Yoga Ed. is developmentally appropriate and well worth it. Everyone feels, behaves and performs better and the class environment is more calm and harmonious.

Tools for Teachers – K-8 (English and Spanish versions):

Yoga Ed. Tools for Teachers are simple yoga-based practices that anyone can do in 5 – 15 minutes and experience immediate and long-term positive results in focus, energy, concentration, learning readiness, fitness and productivity. All Yoga Tools activities are designed for the classroom and require no previous experience or extra equipment or space.

In classrooms that practice the four kinds of Yoga Tools: conscious breathing, basic yoga poses, kinesthetic play and relaxation/visualization, teachers report that the time spent on yoga is well worth it. Doing Yoga Tools overrides the stress response and lowers blood levels of the stress hormone cortisol, clearing the slate for learning, and developing both mental and physical focus, strength, balance and flexibility.
Yoga Ed. believes that when teachers regularly relax, balance, and support their own mind-body state, they become less stressed and more effective. They present themselves to their students as confident, receptive and patient, setting the tone and the conditions for productive learning as well as positive student behavior and attitude.

We invite you to learn how to use Yoga Tools on a daily basis to meet the stresses of life and challenges of your profession. Experiment with simple these breath and movement activities to activate your awareness and align, open and center body and mind. Experience how easily you can transform your inner state from chaos to calm, frustration to finesse, tired to energized, tense to relaxed or distracted to integrated and, in just a few minutes, be a more effective teacher.

Tools for Teachers – High School:

Yoga Ed. Yoga Tools for High School Teachers, G9 – 12, are yoga-based activities designed for high school teachers and students to use in the classroom to enhance health, behavior and learning. These simple and accessible breath, movement, relaxation and visualization practices support well-being and produce both immediate and long-term positive results in focus, attention, communication, productivity and effectiveness.

All Yoga Tools are designed for the classroom, require no extra equipment or space and take only 5 - 15 minutes. They are easy to learn and do, regardless of age, fitness level or body type. Use them as needed throughout the day to embody a positive, relaxed, energized state. Learn to regularly de-stress, empower yourself and excel.

The ability to identify, care for and shift your “state” is the foundation of lifetime health as well as of optimal learners and high achievers. In his book, Tools for Engagement, Managing Emotional States for Learner Success, Eric Jensen, a leader in the application of neuroscience in education, concludes that “positively affecting students’ states can and should be a big part of an educator’s role.” (p.3) Here’s why (p.6):

Yoga Tools power is their ability to impact you at the level of your mind-body “state”. The practices literally shift your physiological state of being. Medical and behavioral research shows that Yoga Tools override the stress response and lower blood levels of cortisol, which clears the slate for learning and develops both mental and physical focus, strength, balance and flexibility. When implemented on a regular basis, Yoga Tools not only enhance health, they enable you to become a more effective teacher and your students more productive learners.

Tools for Teachers – At Risk Youth:

Yoga Ed Tools for At-Risk Youth are simple, yoga-based exercises and activities, such as breathing, basic poses, games, relaxation and visualization, that are designed for a classroom or recreational room type setting, need no extra space or equipment and take only 5 – 15 minutes. Anyone can do them to shift their mind-body state and experience immediate, positive results. Help yourself as well as your clients and students feel and do better by incorporating Yoga Tools into your daily routine.

• Activities that calm, integrate and energize mind-body in 5 – 15 minutes
• No yoga experience needed; user-friendly to all body types and sizes
• Require no extra space or equipment
• Effective behavior and group management
• Enhance focus, concentration, creativity, communication and discipline
• Addresses common discipline issues such as acting out or withdrawing
• Educates teachers and leaders on common issues that at-risk youth face around emotional and behavioral challenges.
• Taught by certified Yoga Ed. Instructors in introductory or weekend workshops and staff development in-service programs.

Tools for Teachers – Learning Differences:

Yoga Ed Tools are simple, yoga-based exercises and activities, such as breathing, basic poses, games, relaxation and visualization, that are designed by an OT for a classroom or recreational room type setting. Activities need no extra space or equipment and take only 10 seconds to 10 minutes. Children can do them individually or as a group to shift their mind-body state and experience immediate, positive results. Help yourself as well as your students feel and do better by incorporating Yoga Tools into your daily routine.