206 • Part III: YOGa FOr EDUCatING FOr SELF-rEGULatION aND ENGaGEMENt CHaPtEr 9: YOGa aS EMBODIED SELF-rEGULatION aND ENGaGEMENt • 207
strong need for supervision as yoga teachers work to navigate the nuances of working within
a school system and within the context of diversity of students and student needs.
Childress and Harper (2015) caution that school-based programs should be develop-
mentally and school appropriate. In order to do this, yoga instruction should include specific
training that addresses the nuances of the school system and how the classroom teachers,
administration, and other school personnel work together to deliver the curriculum. The
training should include developmental principles in all domains of child development: cog-
nitive, emotional, physical, and social (Childress & Harper, 2015). To ensure that the pro-
gram continues to be delivered with effectiveness, integrity, and fidelity, school-based yoga
teachers should be offered routine supervision.
School-based yoga teachers need skills in classroom management (Childress & Harper,
2015). Over the 15 years that we studied our yoga prevention program for middle school
girls, the most challenging aspect of the program delivery had nothing to do with yoga
poses, the psycho-educational content, the relaxation techniques, or the journal reflec-
tions. The most difficult aspect was behavior management. No matter how wonderful your
program is and how compelling it is to you, delivering it to students and getting them
excited about it, while following directions and managing all the feelings and challenges
that present during a yoga practice, takes some doing. As you can imagine, my research
team meetings were filled with coaching for behavior management. For a great book on
overall classroom management in schools read Wong, Wong, Jondahl, and Ferguson (2014),
The Classroom Management Book. See also Childress and Harper (2015) and their thoughts
on classroom management (pp. 36–37), Jennings (2015; pp. 40–50), and Herrington’s (2012)
yoga star chart (pp. 53–54).
Use the Principles of Embodied Growth and Learning (see Chapter 3) to help students
make good behavioral choices (e.g., principle 7, I choose my focus and my actions). These
principles provide a framework for embodiment, self-regulation, compassion, and kind-
ness. On the yoga mat and in the classroom, if you reinforce the 12 principles, the students
will be well on their way to self-regulation. Post the principles on your wall and refer to
them as children struggle. For example, you can remind them to work toward awareness
and presence in their bodies (principles 2 and 3). Remind them that in yoga and in life
we allow feelings and use them carefully to make choices (principles 5 and 7). One of my
favorites is self-determination (i.e., principle 8, I do the work). As all of the principles are
written in the first person, the ownership is placed within the student to choose his or her
actions. It is from that perspective (self-management from within) that behavioral manage-
ment should stem. Over the years of the Girls Growing in Wellness and Balance Program,
we came up with many tools (Cook-Cottone, Kane, Keddie, & Haugli, 2013):
- Prioritize personal responsibility and learning.
- Work with the group to develop ground rules (for discussion, yoga, and the sequence of
the session). - Present guiding principles (see Chapter 3); for example, respect for others, kindness,
honoring confidentiality, keeping each other safe, and support. - Use the borders of the mat to create personal boundaries.
- Prioritize safety first.
- Give students control and chances to lead.
- Place an assistant or teacher between challenging students (use proximity).