Teaching yoga at school might help students feel better and improve their grades, new research suggests.
At Edmunds Elementary, a diverse inner-city school in Des Moines, Iowa, yoga is on the daily schedule.
Each morning, every classroom begins the day with a “Be Well” discussion about topics such as gratitude, good citizenship, being a peacemaker, and getting enough sleep. Breathing, yoga-based movement, and a mindful meditation follow, helping students bring their attention to the present moment and preparing them for learning time.
After lunch, the lights are dimmed and soft music plays as students return from recess for 10 minutes of quiet mindfulness and reflection activities, such as journaling, coloring, or listening to a guided relaxation story. Teachers even integrate yoga at other times of the day as needed, and they unanimously agree it’s time well worth taking.
One teacher shared, “Practicing yoga and taking these mindful pauses throughout the day is like hitting the reset button, for all of us. I was going to leave teaching I was so overwhelmed. Not anymore.”
Thanks to that reset button, the school is seeing results: Test scores increased more than 18 percent and the number of students being sent to the office decreased by more than two-thirds over two years. The school’s principal notes that everyone is feeling a greater sense of community, connectedness, and engagement in school.
Edmunds Elementary, which uses a program we developed called Yoga 4 Classrooms, is not alone. Schools around the country, from San Francisco to D.C., are implementing yoga in classrooms and beyond, with students, teachers, and parents reporting tremendously positive effects. But does research back up their experiences? And what kind of results can we hope to see from yoga programs in schools?
While the science behind school-based yoga is relatively new, the initial evidence from a growing number of studies is promising. Here are seven ways that integrating yoga in schools can support students and teachers, while helping schools address many of the challenges common in education today.
1. Emotion regulation
2. Academic performance
3. Reduced anxiety and tension
4. Resilience to stress
5. Fewer problem behaviors
6. Physical well-being
7. Teacher well-being and classroom climate
For the full story please clink of this link: https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/seven_ways_that_yoga_is_good_for_schools
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