Beaver County’s premier yoga studio has a new name—Sangha Center for Yoga and Wellness! Formerly Three Rivers Yoga, the studio has broadened its mission to incorporate even more wellness classes that promote a healthy and peaceful lifestyle. The owner of this downtown Beaver business, Andrea Kirkham, RYT, welcomes everyone at all levels of fitness! In addition to a regular schedule of classes for teens and adults, Sangha Center also offers two kids’ yoga classes each month:
- Kids’ yoga is for ages 3 to 6. This class introduces kids to concepts of yoga while keeping the lesson kid-appropriate. Yoga poses are connected to stories and games that young children enjoy, creating a fun class experience that lets the little ones learn and do—their favorite things!
- Youth yoga helps kids ages 7-10 learn about healthy movement and how to handle stress by teaching yoga poses and breathing exercises. Andrea also uses visualization and relaxation techniques that kids this age can handle and can concentrate on how to move and relax their bodies.
I took my daughter to the kids’ yoga class recently—she takes dance and gymnastics, but yoga is new to her and after Andrea told me about her teaching style, I thought it would be something that Rachel would love. When you walk in, every child is welcomed and asked to pick out a yoga mat to sit on. Parents sit in chairs or floor pillows, or if a child’s a little shy, they can sit on the yoga mat with or near their child.
Andrea begins the class by welcoming everyone and asking the kids to introduce themselves and say a little something to the class. At the class we attended in January, she asked the kids to name a present they’d received at Christmas—a good ice breaker.
Then, she went over some of the rules of the class, and asked them to try to stay on the yoga mat by pretending that the mat was like your house, and it was surrounded by water. She also taught them how to say “Namaste” and explained that it was a way of telling someone, “You’re my friend.”
The kids stretched out each body part one at a time, and then began to work on some poses, like Sun Salutation. Of course, when you’re teaching younger kids, you have to make the lesson fun and engaging, and Andrea had them pretending to be a mountain, a lion, a turtle, and then flying a kite. The kids ate it up and followed all the directions, with the kind of abandon that only younger children have. In this kind of relaxed atmosphere, even the shy participants took part in all of the poses. Near the end of the class, Andrea taught them the breathing and form of the Lotus pose, and then they did a small craft. Everyone left happy!
These classes are about 45 minutes, and parents must remain at the studio during class time. Each class is only $5 (honestly, when was the last time your child attended a quality class that was only $5?—this is a bargain for you and a good time for your child!) You can pre-register by going to the Sangha Center website or by signing up at the studio.
The next kids’ yoga class for ages 3-6 is coming up on Monday, April 4 at 6 p.m. and the next youth yoga class ages 7-10 is on Monday, April 18 at 6 p.m. If you’re interested, please be sure to pre-register here. For a schedule of classes for kids and adults, click here. The Center is located in downtown Beaver, at 428 3rd Street next to Kathleen’s. Just follow the sidewalk back under the “Sangha Center” sign and walk up the ramp to the studio. MapQuest: http://mapq.st/h/10-jdjO
Be sure to like the Sangha Center Yoga and Wellness Facebook page! And here’s a previous article about Sangha Center’s offerings and the benefits of yoga:
And remember, you can get your first adult class HALF OFF if you mention Beaver Valley Macaroni Kid!
