Questions About Teaching Yoga to Inner City Kids

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

Hi All,
I’m a yoga teacher-in-training who will be holding classes at Philadelphia school for a 5th grade under-privileged kids. I’m a bit nervous, as I’ve been informed yoga is extremely foreign to the kids, and I’m not sure how to make it accessible to them(with them being in between little kids and teens- it can’t be tooooo kiddie, and it can’t be too adult and serious). Additionally, I’m not sure the kids will relate to me very well. I was wondering if anyone here has had experience with a similar population, or knew of any resources that I could study to get a better feel of how to approach the situation, or just had some suggestions of what I can do to keep the kids interested and how to approach the poses. Any feedback would be appreciated.

-Fire

#2

Have you dealt much with kids? Just don’t expect them not to giggle etc. Have fun with it and just intro them to yoga. You will do fine. Kids are like sponges, they love to try stuff.

#3

Hello Fire,

How brave of you to accept a position knowing that you’ll be nervous and unsure whether the students in question will relate to you. I would be fascinated to hear about the process that led up to this and what brought you to “yes”.

You will have to figure out what to tell them in terms of introducing the practice - what it is, why we’re doing it, how it helps etcetera. And that will have to be done in such a way as to not overwhelm them.

Ten year-olds can be very easy to work with. They also have powerful peer networks and you may need to watch their chatting. Since they are older than seven, they can begin an alignment-based practice so the asana can fit that mold. At that age, children have furtive minds so you may need to keep them moving a bit in order to get them into their bodies. Sun Salutations may help you there.

As any yoga teacher would, an environment of safety and trust will need to be cultivated and initially you need to relate to them. Eventually they will relate back.

I would avoid using Sanskrit initially instead opting for the English transliterations. Remember that the principles and philosophy of yoga guides us as teachers in all ways. So simply do that which aligns itself with those principles. This might vary depending on the nature, depth, length, and style of your training and its continuation.

gordon

#4

Hello firefire,

What a wonderful opportunity for you. I was very lucky to have similar experience teaching in a residential summer program for three years. So my first question would be, how often will you have them per week? That will define to a great extent how you approach the teaching. I was very lucky to have them everyday for a month. I had parents calling me afterward…“What did you do to my kid? He’s is actually forming coherent sentences.” It was awesome.

I treated them the same as I do adults, and found it to be the best way to keep them focused and also excited about what they were learning. If you treat them like kids…they’re gone. I did occasionally have some trouble with A.D.D kids who were medicated, etc. So it would be nice if you could find that out. It may not be possible because of confidentiality conflicts. And then if and when the class discipline broke down, THEN I would end class early to speak to them more about the purpose of yoga, what is the nature of distraction, how it’s connected to breathing, etc. BUT NOT BEFORE! Save it for when you need it.

Start with eye exercises. They love something they can do well with control. They love om. All in all, let response inform you. Make changes based on their ability. Be ready to improvise, but plan and stick to a very steady routine. They should know they are building on something, that it will be the same each time come back, always beginning and progressing the same.

You are in for a treat and I wish you great success. If you have any more questions, I would love to help you. I’m right down the road in Richmond, VA.

peace,
siva