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Teaching artist Ashley Laverty demonstrates a series of gentle yoga poses while using guided imagery to lead the audience through meeting all the animals on an imaginary farm.

Vocabulary You Will Learn:

• None in this video

Materials You Will Need:

• A yoga mat, if you have one 

How to Do Yoga on an Imaginary Farm

1. Start by sitting criss-cross-applesauce and taking several deep ocean breaths. This means taking a slow deep breath in through your nose and out through your mouth. When you inhale, lift your arms overhead, and when you exhale, lower your hands in prayer pose. 
2. Next, sit with your legs in a diamond shape, with your knees out to the sides, and the soles of your feet touching. Then stretch and lower your nose to your feet three times. To hear the song that Ashley sings to go along with this movement, scroll to around 1:30 in the video.
3. Stand up and stand in a wide legged pose, with your feet far apart from each other. Bend one knee out to the side and hold your arms out parallel to the floor, as if you’re skateboarding! Repeat on the other side, and then switch back and forth several times. 
4. Now we’ve arrived at our imaginary farm, so we’re going to make the shape of a barn with our bodies. You can do this by planting your hands on the ground and lifting your hips into the air so your body makes a triangle shape or by planting your hands and knees on the ground with a flat back. You can also kneel with your arms up overhead with your hands together. Try whichever way makes your body feel good!
5. Next we’re going to make a tractor using our bodies by planting hands and feet on the mat with our bodies parallel to the floor. Then lower your body to the floor.

6. Imagine now that we’re in the barn, looking at all the animals. Get on your hands and knees and curve your spine, like a barn cat. You can even meow if you like! Then arch your back to become a cow. Switch back and forth between these two positions a few times.
7. Next, walk your hands to the front of your mat and lift your hips high to become a puppy dog, wagging your tail back and forth.
8. For the next poses, you’re going to become a duck! To become a flying duck, choose one leg to balance on and kick the other foot behind you into the hand on the same side. Extend the other arm out in front of you and lean forward while lifting your leg up behind you. Repeat on the other side. Then, stand back up and extend your arms overhead, and then lower your hands to your feet, like you’re diving. Now you’re a swimming duck! Walk your hands out until you’re in a push-up position, then lower yourself to your stomach and turn over so that you’re on your back.
9. Finally, we’re going to pretend to roll in the mud like a pig. Bend your knees and lift your feet so that your soles face the ceiling. Grab the bottom of your feet and rock back and forth like a pig in the mud. Then hug your knees to your chest, and lower your arms and legs to the mat and relax your body. 

In this video, Ashley takes us through an imaginary farm, where we use our bodies and imaginations to become different objects and animals. If you want to go even further, think about these questions: 

• What other animals do you think you can use your body to become? What might a yoga pose that resembles a horse  or a chicken look like?
• What other objects on the farm can you become with your body? We became a barn and a tractor, but can you become a hay bale? A fence? A pitchfork?
• Ashley shows us how to make a few animal sounds as she goes through the yoga poses. What other sounds can you make to bring the farm to life? Can you make a tractor noise,  the sound of a farmer whistling while they work, or the sound of mud being shoveled? 
• How does your mind and your body feel after doing yoga? Do you feel quieter or more peaceful? Why do you think that is?

Accessibility

Don't forget that you can turn on "Closed Captioning" to view the YouTube video with English captions.

More about the Teaching Artist

Ashley Laverty specializes in drama in the early childhood classroom and drama integration in elementary schools. She is the founding Artistic Director of Kerfuffle, a company devoted to creating performances with and for children under 6, and has served as the Director of Early Childhood and Resident Teaching Artist at the Rose Theater in Omaha, NE. She now lives in Chicago and teaches with Lifeline Theatre, Paramount School of the Arts, the Stage School, and Mission Propelle. Explore more of her work at . 

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Gifts and grants to educational programs at the Kennedy Center are provided by The Paul M. Angell Family Foundation; Bank of America; Capital One; The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation; Carnegie Corporation of New York; The Ednah Root Foundation; Harman Family Foundation; William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust; the Kimsey Endowment; The Kiplinger Foundation; Laird Norton Family Foundation; Lois and Richard England Family Foundation; Dr. Gary Mather and Ms. Christina Co Mather; The Markow Totevy Foundation; Dr. Gerald and Paula McNichols Foundation; The Morningstar Foundation; Myra and Leura Younker Endowment Fund; The Irene Pollin Audience Development and Community Engagement Initiatives;

Prince Charitable Trusts; Dr. Deborah Rose and Dr. Jan A. J. Stolwijk; Rosemary Kennedy Education Fund; The Embassy of the United Arab Emirates; The Victory Foundation; The Volgenau Foundation; Volkswagen Group of America; Jackie Washington; GRoW @ Annenberg and Gregory Annenberg Weingarten and Family; Wells Fargo; and generous contributors to the Abe Fortas Memorial Fund and by a major gift to the fund from the late Carolyn E. Agger, widow of Abe Fortas. Additional support is provided by the National Committee for the Performing Arts..

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