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I
magine a school where children begin
the day with yoga and meditation
to develop healthy minds and
bodies. Imagine awareness and
calm developing and young minds
becoming more receptive to learning.
Imagine students experiencing their
connection to nature and all beings through
developing consciousness. Imagine studying
subjects through themes that integrate
science, history, English and other subjects
so children can think interconnectedly and
see the big picture.
Imagine still the school being
democratically run by the teachers and
students so everybody has a voice and
recognises that strength is our ability to
listen to others and be true to ourselves.
Imagine all this in a small school of no more
than 100 students where everybody has the
chance to grow, and discover what it means
to ‘be yourself’ in a warm, nurturing, human
scale environment.Imagine...
Well such a school exists in a small town in
the north of England called Hebden Bridge.
It is housed in a beautiful 19th century
building that was formerly a church and
a cultural centre.
Our teachers are all professionals who
have worked in mainstream education
but have grown tired of schools that stunt
development instead of enriching it. We
have created an integrated curriculum
stepping outside the confines of our own
subjects to become genuinely holistic.
Yoga and meditation are integrated into
this curriculum to support and develop
mental, physical and emotional wellbeing.
This enables each child and member of
staff to expand and deepen self-awareness,
learning about themselves and learning to
connect with their reason, sensitivity and
instincts. Since both teachers and students
practice together it creates a common
area of endeavour and discovery. It also
enhances the teacher-student relationship
as both parties are sensitive to each others’
time and space to think, reflect and express
themselves. It allows both parties to conductHigher
education
“The yoga can include any teaching from any school
or style as the focus is on the principles of awareness,
breathing and movement and on integrating
children’s minds with their bodies, something which
most education these days, consciously or not, seeks
to separate”teaching and learning in the present, their
minds meeting in the here and now.
We practice yoga in the mornings before
lessons in order to prepare us for learning.
The yoga can include any teaching from
any school or style as the focus is on the
principles of awareness, breathing and
movement and on integrating children’s
minds with their bodies, something which
most education these days, consciously
or not, seeks to separate. We apply these
principles to other integrated practices such
as Tai chi, martial arts, as well as sports. If
students want to follow a particular style of
yoga they are supported by the teachers
and they are encouraged to find exercises
that work well for themselves. We also do
meditation every morning, then before
lunch, after lunch and at the end of the
school day. These moments of pranyama,
visualisations, dharana and dhayana allow
the children to breathe and get back in
touch with themselves at key moments. As
students develop their practice they may
focus on specific techniques that work well
for them. Meditation is also used inside the
classroom to facilitate specific learning and
we call this ‘applied meditation’. Students get
into relaxed states of alertness to help them
better understand concepts being studied.
They relate what is being learnt to images
or ideas from their own imagination or
experience. They are free to make their own
connections and the techniques also allow
them to memorise key information. A short
meditation before artistic work significantly
foments creativity, heightening the capacity
to express complex ideas and emotions. All
this embodiment of study allows learning
to become more soulful, more child-centred,
more intuitive and more successful.How did all this begin?
I am a teacher with 30 years of experience
principally in English and foreign languages.
I am also a yoga and meditation teacher
and a shiatsu therapist. Most of my yoga
and shiatsu study took place in Italy. I could
not speak Italian to begin with, and although
movements and postures were easy to
follow, it was hard to understand students’