BOOK Yoga 4 Teens: An Instructors' Guide to Teaching Yoga To Teenagers

Encompassing ten years of combined experience teaching yoga to teenagers, this three-part book is an important resource for anyone currently teaching or desiring to teach yoga to teenagers.

Yoga 4 Teens is designed as a hardback spiral-bound binder, easy for classroom reference. Hundreds of pictures of typical teens are included illustrating the poses, techniques, and sample classes.

Part I discusses what it takes to lead a classroom of teenagers, including specifics for setting up a teen yoga class. Twelve teaching principles and fifteen teaching practicalities are fully explained, providing the reader with confidence and teaching skills.

Part II gives guidelines, body actions, teaching ideas, and suitable partner work for each of the major categories of yoga poses. Explicit guidelines for teaching the poses are given to ensure a safe classroom. Specific exercises for learning in the classroom are also detailed along with partner exercises that will make your classes interesting and engaging.

Part III lays out eight sample classes, including sequences for getting students into Handstand (Urdvha Mukha Vrksasana), Full Backbend (Urdvha Dhanurasana), and Shoulderstand (Sarvangasana) .

A bounty of additional information including quotes for the classroom, charts summarizing yoga philosophy in teen terms, and a summary of the benefits of yoga for teens are also included. The organization and design of this book make it a must-have for anyone who teaches teens or is interested in teaching yoga to teenagers. It is a model for teaching effectiveness.

Your order will promote the important outreach effort of teaching yoga to the next generation! We greatly appreciate every order and referral.

International Purchasers: An additional charge for Global Priority shipping (between $12 and $22 depending on the country) will apply. It may take up to 30 days to receive the book due to customs clearance.

Product Review

I have bought many (MANY!) yoga books in my time.ﾠ Some are read and placed on a shelf forever more; others are dipped into every now and again; and one or two are forever on my coffee table, ready to be thumbed, read and digested whenever I'm getting ready for a yoga class.ﾠ

Yoga 4 Teens is one of these books.ﾠ After reading the information on Christy Brock's website, I knew it would be good, but nothing could have prepared me for just how wonderful it really is.

The book is described as spiral bound, which brings to mind a flimsy, paper-backed manual which will soon start to curl at the edges.ﾠ However, that is NOT the case with this book; it is spiral-bound with a difference.ﾠ If you have David Swenson's Ashtanga book, you'll know what I mean when I say it is spiral-bound, but then covered with a hardwearing board cover.ﾠ This ensures that the book can be carried around without getting damaged, which is good news for a teacher's manual.

The book is divided into three parts: "What to know"; "Poses and teaching them"; and "Sample classes".ﾠ It is followed by an Appendix which includes charts, lists of postures, resources, quotes and more.

The three parts of this book are everything you could ever wish to know about teaching yoga to teenagers. (And incidentally while it is aimed at the teenage market, it is also a wonderful resource if you teach younger children too).ﾠ Chapters in Part one include: Establishing a teaching position; Classroom space and props; Principles of teaching teens; Yoga philosophy in the teen classroom; Practicalities; and Class planning.ﾠ

This part of the book is a fantastic resource for preparing yourself to teach teens, while part two is everything you need to teach the postures themselves, from standing postures to relaxation and everything in between.ﾠ This part of the book takes up over 100 pages and is illustrated throughout with hundreds of photographs demonstrating all of the postures.ﾠ There are even extra sections on menstruation, breath awareness and special cases.

Part three includes five sample classes and three objective-specific classes, all of which are illustrated and described with both the English name and the Sanskrit.

After spending an afternoon in the company of Yoga4Teens, I can truly say that I have never come across a teacher training manual like this one.ﾠ It is concise, informative and hugely descriptive.ﾠ As a yoga teacher I have spent many years teaching either young children or older adults, but I have always shied away from the teenage market, fearing I might not be cool enough for them! However, now that I have this book by my side, I really do feel as though I am now equipped with the answers to every question I could possibly have, and I'm now looking forward to teaching teenagers in the future.

As for the authors - Christy Brock and Jennifer Lightsey, their enthusiasm and love for teenagers comes shining through. Many, many hours must have gone into writing this guide and this really shows in the text. I think it is their passion for teaching (and for teaching teenagers in particular) that really makes this book so worthwhile.

And talking of passion for teaching, Christy has also compiled an e-book for those interested in teaching teenagers, entitled Teaching Teenagers Yoga. It is a combination of practical advice and inspirational guidance from many yoga teachers, all recalling their experiences of teaching teenagers and what has worked (and hasn't worked) for them.ﾠ At 19.95 US dollars, it is a great addition to your bookshelves, particularly because it is an e-book so you don't have to wait days or weeks for it to be delivered.

I'd recommend Christy's books to anyone not only interested in teaching teenagers, but also anyone who actually has a teenager at home.ﾠ The information contained in both books is tremendous and I for one am very proud to have both manuals in my collection.