yoga teaching

Why there’s way more to teaching online in 2022 than setting up a zoom class

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Written by Jade Beckett

Rewind to March 2020 and it’s fair to say we all thought teaching yoga online was a temporary thing. It was passable to have a thrown together space with the sofa as the backdrop, sit your laptop on a pile of blocks on a chair, not have a microphone, get interrupted by your cat during class… here in Summer 2022 that really isn’t the case anymore.

Online yoga has had a heck of a glow up over the past two years and is constantly evolving. The landscape for yoga teachers has changed forever, with this sector of the industry predicted to boom even further by 2027. Yet again, it is time for us to step up our game so we can keep developing top-tier online offerings that are slick, student-friendly and deliver expert transformation to our students and we’re ready to capitalise on that growth.

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Allie Middleton, JD LCSW E-RYT C-IAYT on Moving From Me to We

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In an old and favorite verse from thousands of years ago, the author of the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad IV.4.5, considers this:

You are what your deep, driving desire is.
As your desire is, so is your will.
As your will is, so is your deed.
As your deed is, so is your destiny.

And yet, as we all wonder about the future now, shall we ask each other this next question, “What is OUR collective desire and what shall OUR collective deeds create now?”

In my experience over decades as a systems change catalyst and leadership coach, I’ve had the privilege of helping many individuals and teams develop new strategies for high level impact. Whether in business, healthcare or communities, one of my initial questions is, “Who are we really, and what is our work?”

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Shawnee Thornton Hardy: Making Yoga Accessible – Head to our Facebook Page Now!

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Shawnee is a C-IAYT-certified yoga therapist, M.Ed., 500 E-RYT and RCYT (Registered Children’s Yoga Teacher). She is the founder of Asanas for Autism and Special Needs and the founder/director of Yoga Therapy for Youth Teacher Training Program. Shawnee has worked with children and adults with autism and special needs for over 20 years, specializing in working with children and adults with significant cognitive and language delays, sensory processing deficits, as well as severe behavior challenges. She wrote and published a book, Asanas for Autism and Special Needs – Yoga to Help Children with Their Emotions, Self-Regulation and Body Awareness (Singing Dragon, 2014), is the creator of the C.A.L.M.M Yoga Toolkit and is currently working on her new book Yoga Therapy for Children and Teens with Complex Needs, to be published by Singing Dragon in 2021. She has a yoga school through Yoga Alliance in order to train others in yoga approaches to support children and adults with complex needs and travels globally to share her teachings.

CLICK HERE TO JOIN SHAWNEE’S LIVE WEBINAR NOW

 Asanas for Autism and Special Needs
Yoga to Help Children with their Emotions, Self-Regulation and Body Awareness
Shawnee Thornton Hardy

Teaching yoga to children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and other special needs is easy using this visual how-to handbook. Breaking down yoga instruction pose by pose, body part by body part, breath by breath, this book uses easy-to-understand language and clear photographs to show parents, teachers, yoga instructors, and other professionals how to introduce the life-long benefits of yoga to a child with special needs. Read more

Matthew J. Taylor: Inclusive Yoga – It Ought to Be a Touchy Subject

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These remarks are based on my 17 years as an expert witness in yoga injury cases and yoga safety advocate. This is not legal advice nor counsel because I’m not an attorney, but reflects my understanding from working with attorneys as to what they look for and utilize in either defending or prosecuting a matter. These remarks also reveal my deep biases as a “recovering manual physio” and how yoga differs, at least philosophically, from other practices.

 

The Hot Topic of Touch and Consent in Yoga

If there ever was a veneer of “purity” around yoga teachers and gurus in yoga’s reemergence in the 20th century, it’s now long gone in the first part of the 21st century… and “good riddance”!

So much so, that touch and consent are now very popular topics in the yoga world. I won’t be covering the sordid details here. You can easily find them online. Rather, I want to spotlight the importance of both students and yoga professionals being clear how important having high standards around touch and consent are to making yoga inclusive.

Let’s briefly look at how they influence yoga inclusivity, some points to consider in developing your own standards/boundaries, and a few take-away action steps to consider. May this fuel many deeper conversations… Continue reading →

Wendy Teasdill: A Pregnancy-Safe Yoga Sequence

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Wendy Teasdill has been practising yoga for over forty years and teaching since 1987.

Here, she walks viewers through a safe and simple routine that can be practised during pregnancy.

 

Please note that while our summit is open to absolutely everyone from all corners of the world, despite our best efforts we won’t be able to ensure safe, comfortable practice for every attendee nor take responsibility for your own practice. If you have any injuries or are dealing with any conditions that you would normally flag to your yoga teacher or therapist, please seek advice before taking part or following along with any of our classes or sequences.

Lizzie Lasater: Tips on Keeping up Your Yoga Practice During Pregnancy

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We’re lucky to have had the chance to talk with Lizzie Lasater, yoga teacher trainer in both the digital and physical sense. Lizzie studied art history and architecture at Columbia University and now translates her training into digital courses, global Restorative yoga teacher training workshops, and her awesomely creative jewelry collection.

Lizzie wrote a chapter for Yoga Teaching Handbook, published by Singing Dragon in 2017, and she wrote the foreword for the brand new Yoga Student Handbook, which is in shops now.

In our podcast, we talked about all things pregnancy and yoga, connecting with the body and the baby during pregnancy, mental health issues in the first trimester, as well as social prescribing.

Top 10 Tips for New Yoga Teachers

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In Yoga Teaching Handbook, a new release for November, you can read expert advice on teaching yoga and managing a successful yoga business. One of the contributors of the book, Alison Purchase, has put together ten top tips for new yoga teachers, which you can read below. 

1: Keep your class plan flexible.

Plan the general structure of a class rather than each pose. That way you can adapt the class based on the students’ needs and you won’t feel stressed if you forget what pose you had planned next.

2: Take an interest in your students.

If you arrive early and stay late, you have the opportunity to chat with your students and find out more about them. Students often have questions or are looking for advice to develop their practice. Continue reading →