Allow Your Students to Close Class
COVID-19 and the physical distancing measures in effect in many places around the world mean that many, if not all, of our yoga classes are being conducted virtually. At this time, many of our students (and even us teachers!) are lonely, and craving social connections and community. One teacher, Caroline Holmes, shared that she uses the close of her class as a time to build and strengthen the relationship with and between her students by allowing the students to close the class.
At the end of every virtual class, Caroline unmutes all her students and invites one person to “walk them out” and end the class. The student then closes the class with any words they like, sharing their own thoughts and words in the spur of the moment and speaking from the heart. Caroline has shared that this is a very humbling experience for her as a teacher, and that the students’ words have, on occasion, moved her to tears. For Caroline and her students, closing the class has become a joint effort that helps to bring her students together.
Whether you choose to close your class by expressing words of gratitude, sharing affirmations, returning to the breath, or even letting your students take the wheel, the important thing is that it comes from the heart, and is comfortable for you.
Do you have a favorite phrase to close your yoga class, or have you found a new favorite that really resonates? Share it in the comments below!
