FINALLY! AFTER THREE YEARS OF PLANNING AND CANCELLING DUE TO BREXIT, THEN COVID, WE HAVE OUR DROP IN EVENT AT PORTCULLIS HOUSE on the 19th of October, THE WORKING OFFICE OF ALL MPS AND RESEARCHERS. Sir Anthony Seldon will be addressing the MPs as well as a few young TeenYoga Ambassadors. We will take the

It was an honour to be asked to speak at the Festival in 2022, although we soon realised that with 300 speakers over 2 days, there would be a lot of choice for the attendees. Keynote speaker Amanda Spielman delivered an impassioned talk about Ofsted and how schools cannot separate wellbeing from education, the two

On the 18th of June, we were invited to the conference at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre, inaugurated by Prince Charles. We put together a panel of teenagers including Olivia, Maia (15 yrs old), Shivani, Leonie and Sophia (17). Our trustee, Dr Jo Barker who works in CAMHS as a Psychiatrist specialising in Eating Disorders

TEEN YOGA AMBASSADORS PROGRAMME   In 2020, mid-pandemic, the TeenYoga charity launched the first Teen Yoga Ambassador course. It had 10 girls join. Here are some of their stories; Joy had suffered severe panic attacks and through yoga, had become a confident and clear-headed young woman.  The breathing exercises combined with movement and visualisation particularly

This talk is from 2018, the inaugural speech at House of Commons YOGA IN SCHOOLS Mental health issues are a dominant issue for young people today, and stress is the root cause. 1 in 5 UK teens between the ages of 13 and 18 will experience at least one major mental health issue. 1) According

CLOSING 2021 AND LOOKING FORWARD TO NEW BEGINNINGS IN 2022   2021 will probably be remembered as the second year of Covid, a year most people might want to forget, so much of our freedom curtailed and so many restrictions on our movements. Many yogis have a free spirit and thrive off travel to India

          Our first Instill conference took place in London in 2015, with 70 attendees. The conference was a foray into whether there was interest in the topic of Young People, Yoga, Research and Education. The conference was then called Instill.    This year the conference was opened by Sir Michael Dixon,

        April has been a crazy busy month for TYF with the launch of three new courses. The Teen Yoga Ambassador course has had some publicity and is something that we are all extremely excited about, where we invite various young people from all backgrounds to join us for three weekends to

        Coming to the end of Lockdown and of what feels like a year of isolation for many, will be a big moment for most young people. When we are young, our natural tendency is to seek company and role models, breaking with old structures, trying out risky behaviours and finding out

With eternal rain, wind and dreary, cold days, it is easy to understand why some of us feel “under the weather”.  In yoga we tune into Nature’s rhythms; time of day, the weather, the season, our monthly cycle and our age. All this informs us how to behave, whether we should be energetic or passive,

Teen Yoga Online Summit 2020 Between the 7th and 13th December the TeenYoga Summit exploded onto our screens raising just under £5000 for the foundation together with the raffle, which you can still enter! 217 people registered for the fabulous event, from all around the world entering the important conversation about yoga and wellbeing for

How do you take a successful face-to-face yoga teacher training course online? This a question that has posed a challenge to all kinds of educators since the COVID pandemic began and schools and universities closed. From the perspective of yoga teachers, it is particularly challenging given the importance “presence” in successful yoga training courses. At

Australia Exam Time - How Yoga Can Help... As we come into exam season in Australia, many students, teachers and parents will be asking themselves how they can stave off anxiety and manage their stress. This is often a time when schools turn to yoga or mindfulness. Strictly speaking, it is always optimal to bring

Benefits of Yoga for SEND Pupils With 3.3% of students in England having EHCP (Education, Health and Care Plans) or statements of SEN[1] and 12.1% in England receiving specialist SEN support without an EHCP[2], and with needs ranging from ASD[3] to Social, Emotional and Mental Health[4], hearing impairments[5] and Physical Disabilities[6] schools are often looking

10am every day, we broadcast live from Facebook (reaching 3k followers) on our TeenYoga Mindfulness page.

The offering includes

1/  simple yoga for everyone to do at home.

2/ wellbeing tip (gargle with salt water, drink a little apple cider vinegar, self-massage, planting seeds…

HOW TO TAKE YOUR CLASSES ONLINE WITH LESSON PLAN

Below I have written an outline for how to bring a class online and also a suggestion for a teen class – I am no expert but I thought it might be useful.

Currently, yoga is more popular in Australia than pilates or aerobics, with 2.18 million practitioners. Accompanying this steady increase it has started to be introduced as a health toolkit for all

Enter ‘Discount10’ on check out or for Bath 2020 email info@teenyoga.com. You’re welcome!

Last week, I asked Jim (17) what the bravest thing he’d ever done was and he said, “tell someone I was sad”. Nick (19) said something very similar, “to let someone know I wasn’t coping”.

Nick and Charlotta recently reported the encouraging results from the 2 year study involving schools in 5 different countries at this year’s Instill. These can be accessed here in PowerPoint format for you to use

As climate strikes pepper the land, it strikes me how one little person from Sweden has inspired millions to speak up about what they are passionate about – Mother Earth.

I had the privilege of spending Monday evening with 8 hand-picked young yogis in London.

What does inclusivity mean within yoga?
How does language influence your teaching and therapy practice?
How do you approach students and clients dealing with chronic conditions?
How can prisoners benefit from yoga?
Charlotta has been invited to contribute to Singing Dragon’s first-ever Virtual Yoga Summit, exploring the theme of Inclusive Yoga across a host of virtual channels throughout two content-packed, educational and interactive days.

Support the work of the Teen Yoga Foundation on World Peace Day, 21st September 2019. Here’s how:

Talk to a school about a taster day for World Peace day
Mention the evidence that yoga increases social cohesion within a school and in a community.
Send out a press release to your local press and let your local MP know.

Gloomy cool holiday Saturday morning, I feel drawn to some Krishna Das as I practise on the mat. Soon I experience the increased space within the body, in the muscles, in the chest, around the heart, between the bones.

Teen Yoga graduate Niki Moss Simpson recently launched her first book as co-author of the best selling Pay It Forward series: Notes to My Younger Self. Here, in an excerpt from her blog, Niki talks about teens and their needs. No One ever said parenting was going to be easy, right? And the teenage years are

We wanted to share with you an exchange that happened at the House of Lords recently. We hope you enjoy this.   “Question 11.22 am   Asked by Lord Brooke of Alverthorpe   To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will draw up a strategy and campaign for the expansion, particularly in the National Health

His Royal Highness Prince Charles said yesterday, “By its very nature, yoga builds discipline, self-reliance and supports self-care – all of which contribute to improved health. Indeed practised within a group, it has tremendous social benefits as well”. These words were spoken at the first national conference on yoga in healthcare that occurred last weekend

This weekend was the inaugural conference on yoga in healthcare. It had me thinking. When we say, “Yoga changed my life”, what do we mean? Which aspect was it that actually shifted my state so profoundly? What is it that is so healthful and that works so deeply? Is it the movement? Is it feeling

Today I am celebrating my 53rd birthday with 30 people. This event makes me aware of community, as my friends and family come together to blow up balloons, cook, pick flowers, make coffee and lay the table for 30 guests from near and far. In a world which deifies the individual, the word community has

Here’s the final part to Netia Mayman’s presentation from Instil. Enjoy! “How young people develop I wish, as a newly qualified teacher I had understood that the girl constantly looking behind her was hypervigilant; that a boy’s apparent lack of remorse, cruelty to others and failure to take responsibility of his actions was a symptom

Welcome back! Here’s part 2 of Netia Mayman’s presentation from Instil.  Make sure you’ve read part 1 before continuing… “Understanding where we have come from helps us to know where we are. In order to explore the question I listed the sustained changes (not the ones cancelled wholesale with changes of government) that have taken

Netia Prema Mayman spoke at our recent Instil conference. She has kindly given us her presentation to share. We will break it into sections so you can absorb the most important parts in bits. Be sure to check back every week for the full presentation. Here is the start of it: “The presentation will cover:

The last lot of tips for teaching yoga in schools… Tip Number 7: Sometimes persisting with the pranayama practice can work like magic. It might be worth using some cues to positively reinforce the behaviour you are pleased with as soon as you hear some students begin to chat ‘All we want to hear is

Welcome back for more tips on how to teach yoga in schools. Read on for more… Tip number 4: A good technique to use is to bring people back together just as their conversation peaks, so that they know that they have to discuss the question straight away, otherwise they might not get chance. You

Over the next few days we will be releasing some tips on how to hold the energy in a yoga class of teens. Keep checking back for more strategies to help you teach to your best ability! Tip Number 1: Students really respond well to listening to the singing bowl to help focus. Students often

“Thank you for inviting me to speak. I base my contribution today on 15 years of continued interaction with the diverse community of people involved in yoga in schools across the UK, which includes school leaders, teachers, counsellors and yoga teachers. Last week I was about to teach yoga to my year 7 and 8,

On my way to the second day of the Yoga for Teens training course, I reflect over the common themes that always come up on these days, 28 people from all over Europe, united in one vision to support young people with yoga, have all noticed the same thing – young people are increasingly anxious,

According to one of the most ancient texts, yoga is about avoiding future suffering. It does this in many ways. When we train our body to be fit and healthy we are less likely to fall ill. When we train our mind through meditation and special breathing techniques, it is less likely that we suffer

  Yesterday was the 4th International Yoga Day and all over the world, yoga was being practised and celebrated in various ways. I spent the day at the House of COmmons at the APPG on yoga in society, where i found myself pinching myself again and again at the incredible steps we are taking towards

Many young people are preparing for exams now – whether it is end of year, GCSEs, A Levels, or Uni exams. Yoga is well known to combat stress. In one study we did together with the CBeebies, cortisol (the stress hormone in the body) dropped by 30% at the end of the class, but more

As I was training a group of secondary school teachers, psychologists, social workers and psychiatrists last week to share yoga and mindfulness with teens, it became more apparent than ever that poor mental health of our young adults is not showing any signs of abating. As the group shared the reasons for coming on the

The APPG on yoga in society was inaugurated in the House of Commons on the 22nd March. This a historic moment as it is the only government to introduce this kind of initiative, it follows in the steps of the very successfully APPG on mindfulness and it heralds a new era in acceptance of yoga

When I hear of the students in Bath supporting their lecturers, I reflect on the first principles of yoga. Since the referendum to leave the European Union, the voice of young people has become more succinct. After what feels like decades of silence, it seems that this generation is engaging more in politics and the

Teenagers are rowdy, vital, mischievous and give us a run for our money. Their task is to differentiate themselves from adults in order to belong to a group that defines them. This task needs to be met with respect and support, so that they can learn to become responsible adults. When young people misbehave, we

Hearts come home at Christmas – embroidered delicately on one of my Christmas decorations, made me ponder, made me reflect on belonging.  It has come up a lot for me recently. My father died a few years ago, my sister lives far away as does my mum, my boys are slowly leaving home and I

Last week I was invited to speak at the House of Lords, the European Commission and a Mental Health conference run by young people. There is a shift in people’s understanding and acceptance of yoga. The true meaning of yoga can be elusive, finding union in community, in mind and body, finding peace with our

It has come to our attention that there is a training programme in the UK that uses our logo and our manual but is not accredited by us. To be clear, the only teacher trainers running the accredited full TeenYoga course are Charlotta Martinus, Yvonne Morey, Helen Clare and Sarah O’Connor. If you have received

At the weekend, I had the privilege of hosting and attending the Instill conference about yoga for young people in London. I was struck by the powerful voice of a group of teens who concluded the day.  They ranged from 13 to 18 years old and spoke passionately and eloquently about facing mental health challenges

Yesterday in my village, big red poppies popped up on lamp posts along the pavements. Remembrance day- it is with mixed emotions I gaze at these reminders of bloodied battlefields and realise how lucky we are to live in a time of peace. Every year on the 21st of September we celebrate the World Peace

It has struck me several times that we are holding the Instill conference this year on Remembrance Day (11th November), in remembrance of those who gave their lives in war. The link to me is obvious as it was to the young men in Sierra Leone, where I have been teaching. How does a yogi

If you had a voice, what would you say? Young people were asked this question and answered: We need to learn independence in a good way, we need to learn how to say “no!” and make a good choice for ourselves, despite our parents or other influences. The young people are looking for guidance in

Yoga is a science of wellbeing. It is designed to take the student from a place of lethargy and disengagement to a place of optimal wellbeing through 8 steps: Ethics/ civic attunement Mindset/positive thinking Exercise Breathing practise Inward reflection Focus Stillness Balanced and sustained joy

Last week I had the privilege of spending time with 23 students and 7 teenagers in the South of Spain. There was no Wi-Fi, TV or other distractions. It was a good 20-minute uphill hike to the nearest village. We all found the daily meditation and yoga practise a beautiful reminder of how to slow

After some reflection, we have decided to postpone the Instill conference to the autumn. A key reason for this is that since setting our dates, we have noticed that the conference dates clash with one of the largest yoga festivals in the UK in Reading, which many of our potential participants would like to go

..said no one ever… well you may be surprised that we were recently approached by a parent who was worried that yoga may be harmful to young bodies. So I thought it would be a good opportunity to put the record straight.

“Yoga cannot open people’s hearts to God” says Pope Francis. There seems to be some confusion, which cannot be ignored. Is yoga a religion? Is it contrary to my Christian faith? Does the word God even feature in yoga classes? Lets be clear! Yoga is a philosophy, a science of well-being, pre-dating Hinduism, Jainism and

Arriving in Charles de Gaulle Paris airport, the cool, clean floor, the manicured hostesses and the orderly queues were a sight that should feel reassuring, comforting and familiar, but after just 8 days – I feel alienated. The body aches for constant touch, senses ache for comforting sounds, smells, connection, in this sterile environment. I

The bashed up Nissan appears on time – nods of approval and respect from the onlookers. This doesn’t happen often! Bumping along on sandy tracks into the centre of town, we pass women with massive plastic buckets balanced firmly on heads, filled with more plastic – shoes, flip flops and kitchen rolls. Her vibrant dress

Sport England have funded 1 in 7 active graduates of Teenyoga, either by paying for the course or by grants for teaching yoga classes to young people. However, this is changing. Sportivate was a fund set up after the Olympic Games running for 6 years, to support more interest in sport among young people in

Can any two people have the same perception of God? Can anybody perceive the whole of God? God comes to us in all shapes and forms and means. But, do we notice?  How do we hear God speaking to us?  What is in our minds when we pray?  How can we stay

This time of year, it can feel like we are working against our own bodies, pushing ourselves up out of bed when its dark, taking vitamins, supplements, coffee, chocolate or pro-plus to keep going until the mid-winter feast which pushes us even further into activity and consumption.   I have had the benefit of slowing

Hearing God through Peace (a course of small workshops) [Story “The blind men and the elephant”] Can any two people have the same perception of God? Can anybody perceive the whole of God? God comes to us in all shapes and forms and means. But, do we notice?

If, with your religion, your aim is to deepen your relationship with God, then this will unfold  in a pace with you getting to know yourself. The way I see yoga, other than making your body feel more soft and flexible, is that it will also soften up the tensions between the body and the

[:en]Report on the conference of professors of psychology and medicine from Harvard, Bombay, Haridwar, Trondheim, Bologna and the UK TeenYoga.[:]

Relaxing your feet, relaxing your legs, relaxing your SELF! Young people spend an inordinate amount of time taking care of their image. The grooming, the hair, the make up or body products – all to create a persona. That persona often becomes the mask that we carry throughout adulthood until, for some, it becomes to

In the latest article by the Weekend Telegraph, Ms Pindoria was interviewed about her yoga intervention at Haberdashers Aske’s school. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/2016/09/17/yoga-should-be-on-the-curriculum/ This is a conversation that the yoga community would do well to continue, what are the pitfalls and demands of bringing yoga in to schools?

In our accelerated society, it has become the norm to be activated through sensationalist shocks. When we do this, we immediately feel the need to “fix” something that is broken. When we are told how many teens are depressed, in states of anxiety or suicidal, it grabs our interest and we listen. We feel good,

That quiet awkwardness at the beginning of something new. People milling in, some familiar, some not. Faces travelled from India, US, Norway, northern UK to be together celebrating the majesty of yoga. Often being a teacher can be a lonely job, travelling from school to school, teaching yoga because on some subtle level we feel

It has been an extraordinary week but maybe for me personally, what was most extraordinary was on Monday evening, where everything happened in slow motion. The exiting on to Parliament square, Big Ben towering over hundreds of people with Corbyn placards and a fervent, excited energy quivering over the entire area, which reminded me of

At a time when the focus of education in the UK seems to be all about exams, outcomes and results, it might be healthy and almost revolutionary to quote Aristotle, who famously introduced the idea of educating the heart. What do we mean by this? The Dalai Lama has been outspoken about education in the

Exam practise Things to do before exams 1. Sleep well (follow steps below) 2. switch off any screens at least an hour before bed 3. don’t drink coffee or alcohol or eat sugar after supper ( even better, avoid them altogether if you can) 4. have a hot bath with lavender or chamomile essential oils

On our Teenyoga courses, the students often ask me, “how come you are so passionate about yoga for young people?” The answer is simple, “ When we observe such suffering and we have a solution, why would we not offer it?” In Book 2:16 of Patanjalis Sutras, it is written ” Heyam DUhkham anagatam” “The

 “Until we make the unconscious conscious, it will steer our life and we will call it fate “ Carl Jung. Many teachers and parents sigh and roll their eyes when the teenager grunts and stomps. Bad behaviour! Bad attitude! Disengaged! The desire to manage behaviour and create an optimal learning environment is every teacher’s first

I heard a story – an anthropologist went to study the songs of the Huichol Indians and found that they were almost all about rain. She asked the chief, “why is this?” The chief responded, “We sing about what we long for, what we miss and what we need. That is our yearning and our

What would a conference about yoga, education and welllbeing among young people be, without their voice? We would like anyone working with young people to encourage them to send in a one minute video answering three simple questions: How does yoga affect your life? How could it affect your life more? Would you like more

  This week I asked my boys why they do yoga, #broga! My year 8 yoga class (12 yr old boys) is entirely made up of boys, more and more each week. Noisy, rambunctious and lippy, they take about 10 minutes to calm down. I am used the crazy chat by now, the giggling, the

Teaching young people yoga, sometimes I am aware of a clash between my values and the values of the school or the establishment I am teaching in. I suggest to my students the ideas of collaboration vs competition, love vs fear, self care vs pushing the boundaries. Sometimes I have to be careful how I

As practitioners ourselves, we know only all to well, how yoga can assuage feelings of anxiety, calm our nerves and generally uplift us. Why would it be any different for young people? This was my thought as I calmly and confidently strode into my first yoga class for teens ten years ago and was met

Better than, more gifted, more flexible, less able, more friendly, less sociable, ADHD< Aspergers, dyspraxic, dyslexic……. On and on these labels, “help” teachers and parents to differentiate in a class, categorising and measuring outcomes, people, products. As OfSted looks at “inclusion”, and we take side glances at Finlands’ non-streaming, all inclusive successful and happy school

“Better than…”, “More gifted…”, “More flexible…”, “More friendly…”… do these terms sound like advertising? There are worse labels though: “Less able…”, “Less sociable…”, ADHD, Aspergers, dyspraxic, dyslexic……. Apparently these endless labels “help” teachers and parents to differentiate learners in a class, categorising and measuring outcomes, people, products. They may however just oversimplify the diversity. As

When we find our dharma, life flows. It doesn’t always flow, so its nice when we fall into our dharma. Dharma in yoga means the path you are meant to walk, the one you find easy and fulfilling, the effortless path which gives so many people joy. Recently, running the Universal Yoga Teacher Training Course

Expectation overload, online quantitative identity, our teens need to relax deeper and more than ever before. Some of them are constantly anxious or stressed and depending on the level of stress, you may need to start with some movement to release tension, before you can move into stillness effectively. I believe, as the Dalai Lama

What is a value based education? If we want our children to access yoga in schools, they need to be inspired by shining yogis who embody the reasons to follow them and not simply fed yet another faddish piece of information, which is out of context. It is my experience that a congruent practitioner who

What is the secret ingredient of an inspiring teacher? There are teachers who impart information and there are teachers who inspire. Maybe a bit of both is necessary. Information encourages us to live in our form and inspiration brings us into our spirit.  Socrates said “To teach is to ignite a flame, not fill a

Stressed? Breathe! Stressed? Watch your thoughts! Stressed? Relax! These directives do not work for most people in highly stressed states! Mostly because the body is in fight or flight mode, and when we try to direct it toward relaxation, it has not got rid of the adrenaline that is coursing through the body.  In short,

Increasingly, schoolteachers come on the TeenYoga course. I was told by a teacher trainer once that a good teacher can teach anything.  I believe this is true. Getting school teachers excited about yoga and practising themselves is the best way to inspire children to practise as a form of self care. (see Ingunn Hagen’s Review

Who does yoga suit? Yoga can be an excellent physical activity for  1. The super sporty, helping them with their sport, recovery and release 2. For the obese, moving the body slowly and carefully, starting a physical practise 3. For disengaged girls (using Yoga Nidra and Partner work, it becomes a fun, non-competitive way of

Here are five easy steps towards decreasing stress during exams: 1. Breathe! As you sti down to study, make sure you take 5 minutes to notice your breathing If you need stimulation, breathe deep and fast and if you ned calming down, make sure your outbreath is longer than your in breath. 2. Stretch!  Your

What makes you feel truly loved? A loving present awareness. When my son was little and grouchy, it took me a while to realise that all he needed was my loving presence. By that I mean, utterly present, not thinking about anything else, but completely there for him. Its not easy, when they are two

Better than, more gifted, more flexible, less able, more friendly, less sociable, ADHD< Aspergers, dyspraxic, dyslexic…….  On and on these labels,  “help” teachers and parents to differentiate in a class, categorising and measuring outcomes, people, products.  As OfSted looks at “inclusion” , and we take side glances at Finlands’ non-streaming, all inclusive successful and happy

I asked my group of boys at the local Catholic 6th Form, why they come to yoga, week after week, why they encourage their mates to come along and these are their top five answers: Its like the gym, but more fun, building muscle and upper body strength Its really challenging, particularly the arm balances

For 10 years I have been teaching teen boys yoga and always felt the need to go in full guns creating fun and funky classes, full of arm balances and fun. I have shared my insights about this in my trainings, where I share what works and what doesn’t with each gender, age and social

I think there must be a lesson in this? How do I look at this well, to inform and help me to become a better yogi, a more engaged human being, in the service of others?  Because, as yogis and yoga teacher trainers, it seems to me this is the goal, as Simon Haas so

A deep yogi friend of mine recently decided to divorce her husband after years of affairs and betrayal. She had obliterated herself down the ahimsa path. Now I feel Kali in her, the suppressed rage of ages, percolate into action. In the Bhagavad Gita, Krisna (the god of love!!!) encourages Arjuna to do his duty

əˈhɪmsɑː/ noun 1. (in the Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain tradition) respect for all living things and avoidance of violence towards others.  Ahimsa  – this beautiful word, at the back of our minds, as yogis, what does it mean, in practical terms? Doing, thinking no harm, love in action.  Working with people is not always easy.

Today, for the first time, three (of the 12) 14 year olds spontaneously and seriously burst into a unified Om, so loud and so surprising, I felt it in my whole body. I felt the stones and mortar of the venerable Catholic College tremor with surprise and judgment, but the kids were full of yoga

The website started its journey five years ago in a Somerset garden inspired by two yoga teachers working with adolescents. A few years in the making, a teaching manual, a teaching programme and many hundreds of teenagers later, the yoga site is up and running. The aim of this website is to bring teens together

“Be yourself! Everyone else is taken” Oscar Wilde

“That is part of the beauty of all literature. You discover that your longings are universal longings, that you’re not lonely and isolated from anyone. You belong.” – F. Scott Fitzgerald

When we are ourselves completely and we follow our inner, quiet voice, the net always appears, we are always safe. You are safe. The story of The Rope tells about a mountain climber who wanted to climb the highest mountain. He begins his adventure after many years of preparation but since he wanted the glory

Express yourself with your body, however that feels good for you and it will be beautiful. Be free!

Being focused and relaxed is the summit of human experience, it is Zen.

“Music was my refuge. I could crawl into the space between the notes and curl my back to loneliness.” Maya Angelou

Notice how your worries float away when you focus on the moment right now, right here! Feel the sun on your face, the wind in your back, the rain on your skin and just BE!