VARSITY YOGA
Introduction
I started practicing Yoga on the advice of a therapist whom I was seeing to work with anxiety and depression. After experiencing the healing that the practices brought about, I set out to learn how to teach these practices to others. I’ve been fortunate to lead the Yoga program at my school during my five and a half years there and I am grateful to the colleagues who started and fostered the program before me. What follows are some of my experiences and advice for developing a Yoga program for high schoolers, a program they have affectionately named Varsity Yoga.
You might be asking “What are some of the main differences between adult students and high school students?” I must say that I haven’t noticed many glaring differences. My high school students have shown the same range of qualities and interests as my adult students. A more important question we must ask is “What am I assuming about the group of people in this class?” When teaching Yoga, or any subject for that matter, it is important to teach to what we observe, not to our fixed ideas about what to expect. In doing so, we create a space where the students can learn to observe and ultimately take ownership of their own awakening. I have focused on the high school program here because that is what I’ve spent the most time cultivating and the environment presents some unique challenges and opportunities.
Yoga is offered for an athletic credit at my school. During the Fall, Winter, and Spring students must participate in two of the three seasons over the course of each year in order to graduate. When the Yoga class was meeting in-person (we are currently virtual), I offered Yoga in the Winter and Spring. I spent one Fall season teaching my full course load, leading after-school Yoga, and serving as pit orchestra director for our musical. I only attempted this once for reasons that are certainly obvious. During my time there, the number of participants and the quality of interest have steadily grown, which is a credit to the students themselves and to the profound benefits of these practices.
The content of my teaching grows from my own practice. I have been most effective when I have taught what I was currently practicing. When leading a program, we must consider deeply the path we are asking our students to take and make sure we have traveled and continue to travel this path ourselves. Our class currently practices a sequence closely related to the Ashtanga Primary Series on most days and practices Yoga Nidra and/or meditation once a week and on Moon Days. That said, we should all be teaching what we practice. I try to structure each session so that the students spend more time practicing Yoga than learning about Yoga. More on this later.
My guiding principle is that the practices of Yoga are vehicles for liberation and ultimately liberation in themselves. Though the practices can, when approached sustainably, offer many physical benefits, I do my best to create and hold a space for students to heal and to wake up while perhaps getting stronger and more flexible. In this light, I encourage my students to notice small changes rather than seek out huge ones. Just like the mind can create the conditions for mediation, we can create the conditions for awakening, starting with examining ourselves.
It is important, through inquiry, to teach and to hold space with same care that we bring to our own practice. The following are some questions we must ask ourselves that will assess whether or not we are able to access our practice outside of its formal structure:
Am I quick to anger?
Do I lack integrity?
Do I struggle to listen deeply to others?
Do I struggle to stay present?
How often is my ego inspiring my actions and reactions?
When we have committed to staying in constant dialogue about our own challenges and when we feel ready to hold this same space for inquiry for our students, we can start asking more logistical questions about our Yoga program and how it aligns with the mission of the school.
What time of day is the class?
How long is each class?
How often does the class meet?
Where will the class meet?
What other athletic activities are the students doing?
What other contemplative activities are the students doing?
Which department does your class fall under?
In the posts which follow, I will offer up my experiences and advice around these topics as they relate to high school Yoga programs:
Setting and Schedule
Content of the Physical Practice
Modifications
Content of Contemplative Practices
Pedagogy
Yoga Philosophy
Inclusion