Taylor Johnson noticed a challenging time for her fourth grade students was after lunch and recess. Students were coming in from the playground still in conversations, and she struggled to help them focus on learning again. “Breathing exercises get them back on track,” she says. She decided to try teaching her students controlled breathing techniques and now uses a breathing … Read
Teacher Perspectives|Take a Break
Mychele adores her job and especially the joy on her students’ faces when they learn something new. She is an experienced kindergarten and reading lab teacher. She’s seen it all. And even with years of experience behind her it’s still hard, “I have 25 kiddos. I just feel like, as a teacher, I have to help all of them – … Read
Glitter Jar
Glitter is not my favorite. I try to keep it out of our home, but it’s getting more difficult. Not only do my kids bring it home on art projects, but I didn’t realize how glittery it would be to have a daughter! Glitter on shoes, shirts, pants, backpacks, notebooks, and toys. Glitter that finds its way into every corner … Read
New Year Priority
Time and again I’ve started a New Year’s Resolution and by the end of January my enthusiasm to keep the resolution has all but fizzled out. Maybe some of you have experienced this tiresome cycle. This year I’m trying to combat the cycle by hitching my resolution to my yoga practice. Since I do yoga as often as I can, … Read
There’s Always More
So many reasons to be excited about yoga. I teach it. I practice it. I study it. There truly is always more! Excited–check out this article about some preliminary research on how yoga may help with recovery from stroke and lessening the impact of diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. I teach at Shakti Yoga Shop and we have some … Read
Retreat to Akumal
Akumal is a sleepy little resort just about an hour south of Cancun, Mexico. It’s the perfect place to relax, do some yoga, go snorkeling and explore the underground–the cenotes. I fell in love with Akumal last February. It’s kind of an old hippie village, friendly to those of us who have un piquito Espanol. Or none at all. The … Read
Become an Embodied Being
“Your body is a temple of the holy spirit,” I think that’s one of the few catechism teachings that made a real impact on my life. It’s made me hesitate to get tattoos, though I do have some “nasty piercings” as my daughter calls them. Since I started practicing yoga about four years ago, that catechism passage has become more … Read
Just Sit There
Next Step Adventure is offering “Be the Change,” a loosely connected series of Thursday evening dinner discussions at Christopher’s Restaurant beginning January 2, 2014 with “Be the Change in Your Body.” Register here for one event at $30 or register and prepay for all five events for just $125 ($25 discount). Our February 27 session will focus on mindfulness. The … Read
Mind the Gap
“Mind the gap” was the theme of the John Friend yoga workshop I attended a couple weeks ago. The message is that what happens between, is what’s important. Between inhaling and exhaling. Between the busy-ness and the being-ness. Between the effort and the letting go. The subways in London warn you to “Mind the Gap.” In NYC, you are to … Read
Salute the Sun
Yesterday I did 108 Sun Salutations with about a dozen other women at Shakti Yoga Shop. It was challenging, but went by surprisingly fast. One of the first things we asked was the significance of 108. The answer took up about 3 pages, and included– the number of beads on a Japa Mala, the beads used to count mantra repetitions … Read
