In carrying on with our theme, “Finding your Rainbow”, we looked at the colour blue in the classes this week. In yoga, blue is associated with the throat which represents our communication. We discussed how communication is not only about talking, but that we can also communicate through our body language and facial expressions. We chatted about how listening is also a form of communication since listening properly to someone helps us to better understand them and improves our communication with them.
We also spoke about how our bodies communicate with us all the time in subtle ways. As we practised breathing with the Hoberman Sphere, we took time to connect with our bodies and notice what was happening inside.
I spoke to the children about honest communication. We discussed how it is important to be honest with others but we also spoke about how it is important to be honest with ourselves. Some of the children didn’t believe me when I said that some people lie to themselves so I had to give some concrete examples! I then shared a lovely mantra with the children which I think resonated well with them. Each child chose one of the lines that stood out the most for him or her. With the older children, I had printed a copy of the mantra for them to add to their journals. The mantra goes like this:
I am truthful
I speak my truth
I speak from my heart
I speak up for myself
I listen with compassion
I listen to others when they speak
I listen to my inner voice
I hear the wisdom of my heart
I hear the sounds of nature
I hear the sounds of life
I express myself clearly
I express myself courageously
I express gratitude towards life
My voice is strong and clear
My voice is my own
I am honest
I am true to myself
The breathing we worked on this week was ocean breath or ujjayi. I thought it fitted in well with the colour blue since the ocean is such a beautiful blue colour. I also had two cowrie shells that we listened to. It was lovely to hear the “ocean” in the shells as well as our own ujjayi breathing.
We learnt a new yoga pose this week – swan pose – which the children felt proud of mastering. In the younger groups, for the guided visualisation, we listened to a wonderful story about a rainbow and breathing in different colours.
In our mindful artwork, we continued to add colour to our mosaic boards – this week adding in the colour blue. Our affirmations bag is also getting fuller. We now have:
• I am important
• I am safe
• I am true to myself
A lovely week of classes with an important message for us all.
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