Classes for Youth
Somatic Awareness + Mindfulness Skills
Students will explore a range of trauma informed somatic practices, nervous system regulation tools and mindfulness techniques crafted to enhance student’s ability to focus, have stronger kinesthetic awareness, and process their emotions.
Practices + techniques will help students to:
cultivate self awareness and social awareness
improve their confidence in self expression and develop communication skills
build their capacity to have empathy for themselves and others
maintain healthier relationships with peers, family and other adult figures
develop healthy problem solving skills and approaches for challenging situations
This class will also help students to foster genuine personal growth and support them with decision making, goal setting and staying organized. During each class we will move and get the blood circulating to give them a break from mental focus and sedentary learning environments. Students will also have the optional opportunity to participate in open discussions, allowing them to share their unique experiences with fellow peers.
Class Length: 40 minutes
Class Cost: $18
Activate Your Creative Expression!
During this class students will play games and participate in creative and somatic awareness exercises to move their pencils, bodies and minds! All activities are aimed at activating their ability to express their creative nature and ideas. During each class students will be given a creative writing prompt and can share their writing if they’d like! This class will help students enjoy expressing themselves and connect with peers while doing it.
Your student will learn:
the power of trusting their creative instincts as a way to build self confidence
to write from an authentic place of self expression that leads to building a better relationship with self
to use their imagination and activate their unique voice
to let creative instincts flow from the whole body creating mind/body balance
to expand their capacity to be vulnerable AND support their peers to be witnessed
Numerous studies have shown a positive correlation between arts education and academic performance and social / emotional development. Students involved in the arts often have higher test scores and better grades in core areas like reading, writing, and mathematics. Creative practices give students the opportunity to deepen their perspectives of their lived experiences and find new ways to see themselves and their role in the world. This class was created with these outcomes in mind!
**Please note: A scene writing class for the stage teaching character develop and playwriting techniques for those interested in learning more about theatre will be available in January 2025.
Class Length: 40 minutes
Class Cost: $16
1-on-1 Guidance + Mentoring
These sessions are catered to meet the individual needs of your child. I support students from grade 3 through 12 with various skills. They provide a learning/educational environment with structured support. Students are encouraged to engage in discussion, but are not expected to share personal experiences beyond their comfort level. These sessions align with the CASEL 5 competencies for social and emotional learning. They do not include counseling or medical advice. We will learn together via slides, movement, games, repetition, guided practices and more! (based on your student’s needs)
Option # 1 - Mindfulness, Somatic Awareness and Emotional Support
These sessions include an integrative approach to help students build social emotional intelligence through and with the body and in particular learn ways to regulate their nervous system and develop spatial awareness. Students will also be supported to develop communication skills, organizational skills and build self confidence. They will learn strategies to take self responsibility and communicate needs and struggles while also developing tools to have empathy for perspectives and needs that are different than their own. Sessions can also include support with problem solving and conflict resolution in order to develop healthy ways to navigate relationships with peers, teachers and family.
Option # 2 - Creative Arts Mentoring
These sessions support students to develop performance and theatre skills including acting coaching, scene study, playwriting and other performance arts. Students will be supported to develop self confidence in their chosen artistic expression through self reflection and embodiment practices.
Option # 3 - Tutoring support
These sessions can include support with language arts, reading comprehension, creative writing and developing study and organizational skills depending on the student’s needs.
Session Rates: 45 min / $40 OR 60 min / $55
Additional Program Information:
The next class series begins November 18th for a 4 week series with one class per week through to the Holiday break.
Winter classes begin the second and third week of January 2025.
These classes are developed to welcome a range of ages. For example: ages 8-11 / 11-14 / 14 -18. Each student is met where they are and they benefit from being exposed to mixed-ages. In some cases classes allow older students to develop a 'leadership' role within the group dynamic. Classes can also support siblings within the same class. Class sections are curated based on an intake process in order to ensure an optimal environment.
instructor introduction
Hello! My name is Lindsay. I am a professional teaching artist and performer alongside spending many years working with positive youth development as a program coordinator for after school programs and as an artist in residence in schools and in online settings.
I am also trained in breathwork, energy healing, guided meditation tools, nervous system regulation and trauma informed somatic awareness practices and bring those tools into my teaching.
I have taught a range of students from ages 8 - 20 including gifted students and students with specific learning and behavioral needs with 20 years of experience.
My classroom is a supportive space where I encourage students to challenge themselves to grow and evolve and to have fun while doing it! When a student struggles with something I encourage them to see it as a learning opportunity helping them to become persistent, resilient and well-rounded individuals. I also encourage students to create a sense of community with their peers in a co-created learning environment.
As an arts educator and youth programs coordinator I’ve worked with: Silk Road Rising Theatre, Center for Community Arts Partnerships (Columbia College), Victory Gardens Theatre Chicago and the Howard Area Community Center. I’ve also facilitated workshops for the theater departments at Smith College and North Park University and several international artist residency programs including: SASSO (Switzerland), AADK (Spain), Le Plongeoir (Lyon, France), Tools for Solidarity (Northern Ireland), and Weave (Brussels, BE).
I look forward to seeing you in my virtual classroom!