Columbus School 2D students start their school days with a 10 minute yoga routine that helps students focus and concentrate through the day.

The students have been learning yoga poses with the help of their teacher, Trentino Parcells, and after 6 months of daily practice they are now able to lead the sessions on their own, something the 2nd graders really enjoy.

“I like yoga because it gives me more patience to read and for all the subjects. And it relaxes me when I am writing,” Pablo Mejia, 2D student, said.

The yoga routine consist of stretching, followed by several yoga poses. Sometimes the teacher leads, taking ideas from the internet, or students take turns to show their favorite pose. Some of their poses include: the Bakasana, Astavakrasana and Halasana.

“Everyone has an opportunity to show a pose they like and the rest of students follow as if they were the teacher,” Luisa Almeida, 2D student, said.

According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, yoga is “a system of exercises for attaining bodily or mental control and well-being.” Parcells, sees yoga as a tool for kids to improve their patience and concentration and he has seen the positive benefits.

“One day we did not do yoga and we were too crazy, not the way we usually act in class every day,” Sofia Uribe, 2D student, said.

Trentino brought the idea of doing yoga with his students from his previous school. Based on building concentration, he has taught his students the yoga poses he learned from sports and yoga classes.

“When I was at Teacher’s College, about 6 years ago, I taught 1st grade.  The teacher was really into yoga and she started taking me to classes and I started to like it,” Parcells said.

Yoga teaches the students a new activity as well as challenges and motivates the kids. They see how easily and fast they can improve as well as the difficulty of poses they can reach.

“When I saw that Trentino did such difficult poses I started to practice and practice at home in order to reach the difficulty too,” Luisa Almeida, 2D student, said.

Even though 2D students were not sure at the beginning of meditation and yoga they have started to make it part of their routine, like it and improve more in various aspects.

“At the beginning, boys in general were like no I don’t want to do this and then I showed them pictures of like Ronaldo doing yoga and all the kids were like of course I am in now,” Parcells said.