11 December 2006
Yoga Taught In Schools To Help Reduce Stress
CORAL GABLES, Fla. -- Visit Coral Gables Elementary School and you might see kindergarteners striking a pose for balance and first-graders taking time to meditate and relax.
The activities are part of YogaKids Tools for Schools, a program to reduce stress and increase success for students.
"I feel good when I do the one where we focus," student Sam White said.
"When I get relaxed, I get in a good mood," said student Sebastian Arana.
Coral Gables Elementary School started using YogaKids Tools for Schools this year in several classes.
"Tools For Schools was developed to give teachers and students in the classroom ways to help them focus, concentrate, improve their test scores and performance," said trainer Valeria DeWitt.
Some of the yoga poses have actual health benefits, according to DeWitt.
"The Tarzan thymus tap in particular, where they're tapping their chest and tapping the glands in their bodies, that helps stimulate and helps the immune system function better," she said.
And there's a positive mantra.
"The light of me sees the light of you," student Frasecsa Caldwell said.
Teachers at Coral Gables primarily use yoga as a transition tool between subjects and activities.
"When I can tell the children are tired because we've been working really hard, I can give them some energizing poses to try, and they enjoy getting energized again, and then we get back to work," teacher Heather Torres said. "At times when I feel like maybe we are a little bit too revved up over some other activity we've been doing, we can try some breathing poses to refocus and concentrate and then concentrate our energies on our work."
"It helps me get healthy, strong and delightful," student Cecelia Rodriguez said.
NBC 6's Diana Gonzalez reported that YogaKids Tools For Schools was started in the spring in about two-dozen schools across the country, and the program is expected to grow.
For more information, visit www.yogakids.com/toolsforschools.
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