Idea: Yoga ensures the correct learning position
Every teacher knows it: one moment students are very busy, the next moment the energy in the classroom is completely gone. Brigitte Zandbergen, group 5 teacher, uses yoga at such moments.
Image: Angeliek de Jonge
The tree, the mountain and the buffalo. Just some yoga exercises that group 5 teacher Brigitte Zandbergen does with her students from the Vloedlijn in Julianadorp. “Of course, school is mainly about learning: language, arithmetic, history. But it is also very valuable for children to learn something about themselves. How can you relax, how do you find peace and quiet and how do you deal with your own thoughts and emotions? ”
It is also very valuable for children to learn something about themselves
Zandbergen would have liked to have become acquainted with yoga as a primary school student, but in her case that did not happen until she was 25. “I was in a tough period at the time. I then started doing a yoga course together with a friend because I hoped that I would find relaxation and peace with it. ”
Discovery
She learned everything about yoga postures (asanas), breathing exercises, concentration and meditation exercises and the yoga philosophy. “I found what I was looking for and more. I am still very happy that I made that discovery. ” Still, Zandbergen did a little bit of yoga as a child. “I remember that I sometimes did the candle on my own (where you put your legs in the air while lying down, ed.), And the child posture (where you bend your upper body forward while sitting on your knees and let it rest, ed.). And the funny thing is that now as a teacher I also see that some children do yoga on their own. That doesn't even have to be an attitude, but can also be done, for example, by daydreaming, fiddling with something or doodling something on paper. ”
For a few years now, Zandbergen has been using yoga very functionally in its classes. “Sometimes I notice that the children are very busy. For example, I leave them on their table and ask them to listen very quietly to the sounds they hear. At such a moment you put your concentration on something else so that the children find peace again and after a few minutes can continue with language or math. The other way around is also common, says Zandbergen. “With the buffalo, where the children stand behind their seats and are allowed to stamp their feet, I try to get a little more spice into it. That exercise then acts like a sort of energiser."
But doesn't that take a lot of time every time? “I understand very well that some people think that, as a teacher you have a lot to do with the students. But the time you spend on it - often such an exercise only takes a few minutes - you win back in no time, because it ensures that children get back to the correct learning position, making your lesson smoother and more efficient. And for the children themselves it often leads to better school results, because thanks to yoga they gain more confidence, get to know their body and thoughts better and feel better about themselves. ”
It ensures that children return to the correct learning position
Happiness hormone
Zandbergen also uses yoga during gym classes, so she can also spend a little more time on it. She says that her students often ask for it themselves. Massage in particular turns out to be very popular. “Contact releases endorphins, a happiness hormone, in humans. And children can really enjoy that too. ” According to Zandbergen, it is also nice for many children that there is no competition element in yoga. “It's not a competition, it's not about a result.
As a result, children quickly have a successful experience which in turn is good for self-confidence. ”
Zandbergen recognizes that not every child is immediately captivated by yoga. “But my experience is that every child does eventually participate. In other places I have also worked with other age groups, also with boys from group 7. Then you see that they do not think it cool and are initially a bit giggly about it, but that often disappears quickly when they notice that it is also nice. "
Not everyone is open to yoga. The prejudice that yoga is fuzzy is well known. “This is often because they don't know it and are taken out of their comfort zone. There are also sometimes parents who think it is a waste of class time, but fortunately there are many more who find it very nice that I do something with it in class. Some children talk about it at home and do exercises with their parents. ”
App
In 2019 Zandbergen did School Lighting, a special training at the New Yoga School in Amsterdam, with which she can now train other teachers. The intention is that she will soon also help colleagues within her school foundation on their way. But do you absolutely need that to start working with yoga in the classroom? “No, not in itself. For example, you can order yoga cards via the internet, on which the exercises are clearly described with a nice illustration. I also sometimes use Super Chill, a free app for teachers who want to use it in the classroom. You can use it to play videos on the IWB. Super cool, and very handy. ”
