One of the things I worry about most with young people is how early we start defining them. Clever, academic, difficult, anxious, high achieving, not reaching potential, good at maths, bad at English, university material, not university material. And then come the results, the grades, the comparisons and the inevitable question of what you are
You Are Good Enough Continue »
This informal CPD article ‘Evidence-Informed Practice in Yoga for Children and Young People’ was provided by Teen Yoga Foundation, a charity promoting the well-being of young people through the practice of yoga in schools & beyond through trainings, events & classes. Interest in yoga as a supportive approach for children and young people’s wellbeing has grown
CPD ARTICLE – Evidence-Informed Practice in Yoga for Children and Young People Continue »
There is a strange contradiction at the heart of modern life. We are more connected than ever, more visible than ever, more able to perform ourselves to the world than any generation in history, and yet so many young people feel unseen in the ways that matter most. Beneath the endless stream of content, branding,
The Quiet Measure of a Life: Dignity, Grace and the Return to Real Connection Continue »
We live in a time that is deeply committed to the reduction of suffering. This is, in many ways, a moral achievement. We have language for mental health, access to support, increasing compassion in systems that once ignored distress. And yet, alongside this, there is a quiet risk: that all suffering becomes something to be
The Intelligence of Suffering Continue »
Functional Neurological Disorder (FND) is a medical condition that affects the way the brain and body communicate, leading to a range of physical and neurological symptoms. These can include non-epileptic seizures, motor problems like weakness, paralysis, or involuntary movements, as well as difficulties with balance, coordination, bladder and bowel function, and speech. People with FND
Understanding Functional Neurological Disorder (FND): A Guide for Educators Continue »
There is something slightly uneasy about the word therapy. Not because it is wrong, nor because it has not brought relief and understanding to many, but because it carries with it a particular orientation: one that can, at times, locate the problem within the individual and the solution in an intervention. When we bring this word into the
Cikitsā: a different language for healing Continue »
By Charlotta Martinus There’s a word that’s been making a quiet resurgence among young people: wholesome. On social media, in conversations, and within communities, young people are increasingly drawn to this concept. At first glance, it might seem like a quaint, almost old-fashioned word – something our grandparents might have used to describe a hearty
Wholesome: Rediscovering What It Means to Feel Whole in a Disconnected World5 Continue »
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 the Teen Yoga Foundation our experience in this area actually predates COVID,
How do you take a successful face-to-face yoga teacher training course online? Continue »
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
Yoga for Teenagers in Australia and beyond Continue »
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
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
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
The power of the teens’ voices at Instill Continue »
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
The end of Sportivate? Continue »
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
Christmas lesson for teens Continue »
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?
Yoga in Christianity Continue »
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
Feeling At Home In Yourself Continue »
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
Information or inspiration? Continue »
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
Inclusion in schools (OfSted terminology) Continue »
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.
AHIMSA- what does it mean in the real world? Continue »
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
Adolescence-the essence of life, through yoga Continue »
