Welcome, Pleasant Park School families! Come join us for free virtual Family Yoga! These fun, fantastic family classes are sponsored by Parent Council and open to all Pleasant Park School families! Save a spot for your family. Pick & choose which dates that work for you…
Logistics:
Dates: Begins Tue March 19th, for 10 weeks. Pick & choose which dates suit you.
Time: There are two 20-min time slots: 6:00-6:20 pm OR 6:30-6:50 pm.
Who: All families (kids, parents, grandparents) from Pleasant Park School. Any grade.
Why: Make a memory with your kids, and improve your whole family’s mental health. You’ll interact with your kids with eye contact, breathing, partner poses, and lots of giggling—--all the ingredients for deepening our attachments. Learn to regulate your nervous system, enjoy fun exercise, and de-stress.
What: This is child-oriented (imagery, language, and shortened classes), but grown-ups will participate too. Enjoy healthy movement, imagination, and learn a new yogic “superpower" (meditation & breathing).
About these classes:
Style: Zoe teaches uplifting, accessible, feel-good yoga. Her classes are a safe place where you feel cared for. This is the one time slot that’s just for you and your family's mental well-being.
Where: These classes are virtual in order to make them accessible to families’ busy schedules.
Logging in: The same zoom link is used for both start times (6:00 pm & 6:30 pm) each week, so you’ll see the other families as one class leaves and the next class joins!
Save your spot: There is a different zoom link for each week, and you can sign up your family for as many weeks as you wish. In order to save a zoom spot for the weeks that your family wants to attend, please click on each date below:
STEP 1
Save a spot for your family for any dates:
Step 2
Complete this safety waiver, then press submit:
Bravo! You’re done! Mark those dates in your calendar.
And read below for more details about Pleasant Park Family Yoga…
Make a memory together:
Family Yoga means:
Short 20-min classes due to kids’ attention spans. (Tue 6:00-6:20 pm and/or 6:30-6:50 pm) on zoom, beginning Tue March 19.
You get exercise, too!
We use lots of imagination, animal shapes, and pretend to go on boat, plane, and train trips to incorporate lots of yoga.
We’ll do “partner” poses. We’ll lean against each other, hold hands, touch your backs together, or touch your toes together. This playful contact actually deepens our attachments to each other.
Remember skin-on-skin when they were babies? This is exactly the same, with bigger kids. We keep re-attaching, over and over, our whole lives. When you brush elbows or graze each other’s knee and it makes you both smile and share eye contact, then you’re reinforcing that chemical/hormonal attachment with each other.
We incorporate meditation & breathwork, but in a really easy way for the kids.
Families become aware of their nervous system, thought patterns, emotions, and begin to recognize the sensations of mental health.
Just one good yoga class changes your whole day. But several good yoga classes can change the whole trajectory of your life.
Because of how yoga is conducive to such positive neuroplasticity, several classes actually re-wire your brain patterns. Imagine what an impact this could have on your kids, and the whole school community.
Doing yoga at night can help your family unwind, downregulate your nervous system, and prepare for sleep. You can even do the yoga class in your pajamas!
Meet Zoe:
This is my family. My kids are now in Kindergarten and Grade 2. I teach yoga full-time, but I used to be a high school English teacher, dancer, sculptor, and writer. I can’t wait to meet your families!
Kids will be kids:
Kids will fuss, cry, yell, jump up and down, or refuse to participate. They might just want to do some colouring while you do yoga yourself. That’s okay. Let them do their thing. Even if they don’t do a single yoga pose, I promise you that they are still absorbing so many pro-social skills just by witnessing the other participants.
My hopes:
That you give yourself loving tender attention to every corner of your body.
That you and the kids feel welcome and a sense of belonging. We are a warm, inclusive bunch.
That this is a way for you to connect with, really notice, and mindfully be present with your kiddo(s).
That you and your littles can chat, catch up, have some supportive laughs, and nourish yourselves.
That by trying something new(ish) together, that you create a new memory together.
That your family gets to move, strengthen, stretch and enjoy all those feel-good endorphins releasing into your bloodstream.
That you get to experiment with different meditation techniques, until you find one that feels good.
Investment:
These are free! We’ve received 100% funding for these classes for Pleasant Park School families.
FAQs Answered:
Anyone in your family can join in on your device.
The adults can be a parent, grandparent, or even an auntie, neighbour, or friend! Sometimes friends become family :)
All ages are welcome (age 0 and up!).
Wear comfy cozy clothes with layers in case you're warm/cold.
The physical part of the yoga class (the asanas/postures) are geared towards the kids to keep them interested, but it will still be a safe & refreshing class for the grown-ups.
Location is on Zoom.
This is a great way to bond with kids, laugh, connect, and create a new memory together!
You're keeping kids busy, while also taking care of yourself :)
What do I need?
A blanket (for warmth, for extra padding when kneeling, and to stretch out your chest.
Either a yoga mat OR a rug/carpet to stand on.
A device to follow the link.
Grown-ups might want to stand near a coffee table or a chair to protect your back in some poses. Kids won’t need props.