“The biggest factor [contributing to emotional challenges] that we see right now with all of my kids has been one or more forms of trauma in their lives.” ~ Rick Yoder Join The OHMazing® Way podcast creator, producer and host, Beth Reese, PhD, E-RYT, RCYT, YACEP, and guest Rick Yoder, a Special Education Teacher in San Antonio, Texas, who works with youth who have been diagnosed as being emotionally challenged or with “Emotional Disturbance” disorder. In this podcast they discuss integrating and adapting mindfulness and yoga into the emotionally challenged classroom—which can also be used in a general classroom, home, gym, and studio. “I am trying to insure that I establish a learning environment where my kids will feel that they are the most successful and are able to work around their challenges.” ~ Rick Yoder Rick Yoder is an educator with 16 years of experience in elementary and secondary school settings. His experience includes School Administration, Special Education, Math, and English Language Arts. During his tenure as an educator, he has always worked with high risk, high need student populations, especially those with severe emotional challenges. Connect with Rick: Email: richard.yoder@nisd.net; ryoder2@satx.rr.co Cell: 210-363-6043 Facebook: www.facebook.com/rick.yoder.18 Twitter: twitter.com/rickfromsa (@rickfromsa) LinkedIn: Rick Yoder Connect with Beth: Email: elizabeth@yoginos.com Web: www.yoginos.com Cell: +1 361 563 7448 Facebook: personal: www.facebook.com/elizreese Facebook: Yogiños: Yoga for Youth®: www.facebook.com/yoginos/ Instagram: yoginosyogaforyouth: www.instagram.com/yoginosyogaforyouth Twitter: @yoginos: twitter.com/Yoginos LinkedIn: Beth Reese, PhD
“The biggest factor [contributing to emotional challenges] that we see right now with all of my kids has been one or more forms of trauma in their lives.” ~ Rick Yoder
Join The OHMazing® Way podcast creator, producer and host, Beth Reese, PhD, E-RYT, RCYT, YACEP, and guest Rick Yoder, a Special Education Teacher in San Antonio, Texas, who works with youth who have been diagnosed as being emotionally challenged or with “Emotional Disturbance” disorder. In this podcast they discuss integrating and adapting mindfulness and yoga into the emotionally challenged classroom—which can also be used in a general classroom, home, gym, and studio.
“I am trying to insure that I establish a learning environment where my kids will feel that they are the most successful and are able to work around their challenges.” ~ Rick Yoder
In the first half they explore the difference between big emotions and someone who is diagnosed with an “ED” or emotional disturbance, plus why Rick dislikes the term, emotional disturbance, and labels in general. In the second half Rick shares several mindfulness and yoga adaptations he uses in his classroom as Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), to teach self-regulation, and social emotional learning (SEL).
“Shanti hug—like a bear hug—is a good way to start and end the day.”
~ Rick Yoder
Some of the specific mindfulness and mindful movement tools he integrates into his classroom include (FMI see yoginos.com):
Shanti hug
Flower power breath
Peace place with a bean bag and a couple of yoga mats
Starting day with a sun salutation
Glitter bottles and jars: https://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-Calming-Glitter-Jars/
Rick asked us to share these links as well:
Association for Children's Mental Health
http://www.acmh-mi.org/get-help/navigating/problems-at-school/
National Alliance on Mental Illness
https://www.nami.org/Learn-More/Public-Policy/Mental-Health-in-Schools
MentalHealth.gov
https://www.mentalhealth.gov/talk/educators
National Association of School Psychologists
https://www.nasponline.org/resources-and-publications/resources-and-podcasts/mental-health/school-psychology-and-mental-health/school-based-mental-health-services
Child Mind Institute (includes resources in Spanish)
https://childmind.org/blog/anxiety-in-schools-nasp-2018-childrens-mental-health-report/
Rick is an educator with 16 years of experience in elementary and secondary school settings. His experience includes School Administration, Special Education, Math, and English Language Arts. During his tenure as an educator, he has always worked with high risk, high need student populations. especially those with severe emotional challenges. He is also in the dissertation phase of his PhD in Educational Leadership from The University of Texas San Antonio. His qualitative research focuses on exploring student voice for marginalized student groups. Rick is on his third personal journey with yoga with the most recent beginning in October 2018. He practices yoga for therapeutic purposes: as an ongoing means to continue healing a cervical disc injury as well as an outlet for channeling the related stressors from working with high-risk, high need student populations. As a result, Rick sees the therapeutic benefit he has derived from his yoga practice as one that can be of great value for his students. He has chosen to pursue his RYT-200 Yoga Teacher certification as well as the completion of the RCYT through Yogiños: Yoga for Youth®. His goal through this training is to bring yoga into his classroom as a means for his emotionally challenged students to learn self-regulating behaviors so that they can positively channel their emotional energy in order to more readily focus on their individual academic needs.
Connect with Rick:
Email: richard.yoder@nisd.net; ryoder2@satx.rr.co
Cell: 210-363-6043
Facebook: www.facebook.com/rick.yoder.18
Twitter: twitter.com/rickfromsa (@rickfromsa)
LinkedIn: Rick Yoder
Connect with Beth:
Email: elizabeth@yoginos.com
Web: www.yoginos.com
Cell: +1 361 563 7448
Facebook: personal: www.facebook.com/elizreese
Facebook: Yogiños: Yoga for Youth®: www.facebook.com/yoginos/
Instagram: yoginosyogaforyouth: www.instagram.com/yoginosyogaforyouth
Twitter: @yoginos: twitter.com/Yoginos
LinkedIn: Beth Reese, PhD