South Portland High School: Program Spotlight August 2023

By Hale Linnet, SCY Teacher at SPHS

For the past three semesters, I’ve been teaching new Mainer teens at South Portland High School. Many of my students come from eastern or central Africa, particularly Angola, and a handful of kids from Central America. When I entered the classroom, I often heard Spanish, Portuguese and French as kids socialized across language barriers, translating for each other. 

Teens new to Maine are dealing with the aftermath of difficult journeys, uncertain housing situations, while navigating a new culture, school, and language, and their journeys arriving here were not easy. Our time together was focused on choice and rest in a safe setting that is otherwise focused on structure and attentive study. 

Overcoming language differences, we were able to connect, on a variety of levels, with our shared practice of yoga. The students engaged in conversation talked about how our bodies and minds are connected, how  movement  can have a positive impact in our  minds. We put this into practice by darting our eyes around the room to demonstrate how that made the body feel, then tried slow movements with closing the eyes and taking some neck rolls. We meditated at the end of class, which they all are seeming to like! Even the kids who choose not to meditate sit quietly until it's done, which I think there is still lots of benefit to, since they aren't on any devices. Some kids shared they were excited about yoga because they saw on TikTok that meditation and yoga can help them improve their basketball game. Others felt uncertain about the potential conflict between spiritual roots of yoga and their own religious beliefs. We had open discussions, and made space for students to opt out of class if they were uncomfortable.

Many of the movements and shapes that we make in yoga can feel strange or silly to bodies who have never encountered them before, and we embraced giggles and laughter in new shapes. It was lovely to watch kids become familiar with the flow of class, and move from hesitancy into comfort with closed eyes and deep breaths.

I was often impressed with their wise perspectives. In one class, we discussed “What would you transform into?”, as a way to envision yoga as an opportunity for shape-shifting. The students interpreted the question in imaginative ways, saying “I would be a leaf gently floating in the breeze”, or “I would transform into a version of myself with more self-esteem and confidence”. 

The SPHS teacher who opened her classroom to Sea Change, Devon Robbie, observed this of her students: “The students who participated really got a lot out of it! There are many remarks that they made like, “I feel better after yoga,” and “now I feel more relaxed,” etc. that showed me they were feeling the benefits. They also were excited for class and would ask when it was coming again!”

My students showed me how lucky we are that they’ve landed in our community, and how we need to do more to ensure they feel celebrated for arriving in Maine. I hope we can conduct ourselves as a community in such a way that makes them feel supported and want to stay.

Photo by Molly Haley.