Writing Workshop is like Iyengar Yoga
The more I practice Donald Graves’ Writing Workshop in my classroom and Iyengar Yoga with my Guru Sri. Abhay Javakhedkar, I can't help noticing how similar these life-changing practices have been for me. Here are 13 ways in which Writing Workshop is exactly like Yoga:
Both have multiple interpretations, many of which are not true to the core ethos of the practice. Unsuspecting people fall prey to money-making interpretations that market themselves better and suffer damages that may be irreparable in the long term.
Teachers who are unqualified, inexperienced, and lack the requisite knowledge can unknowingly taint the practice itself. It can be hard for a student/parent to determine if a teacher is qualified, experienced, and knowledgeable. Those who manage to find such teachers are the lucky ones whose lives are transformed for the better.
The practice inherently creates an inclusive space where all kinds of learners are welcome. You’re not rewarded just because you are flexible (or can come up with beautiful metaphors). You can’t show off if you can touch your toes without bending your knees (or if your writing has very few errors). Each student is on their own path to self-discovery. The learning journey doesn’t end even if you’re better than others in your class. There’s always a next step.
The practice provides a safe space that challenges the learner while simultaneously encouraging risk and embracing frustration and failure as part of the learning process.
There are no benchmark durations within which the learners must master an asana (or a craft move or a grammatical concept). Each learner takes as long as they need while the teacher ensures that the learner is in their proximal zone of development and no learning time is wasted.
Achieving each step is inherently rewarding, exhilarating even. No extrinsic incentives are required. The space promises learning and a teacher who truly sees the learners and delights in their practice. That’s enough for the student to keep coming back.
Regular, consistent practice is the key to learning: day after day, week after week.
One can't move to advanced practice without mastering the basics. Expecting a student struggling with basic sentence structure to vary sentence lengths is as ill-conceived as expecting a beginner to perform shirshasan. A teacher who prematurely expects advanced work doesn't understand Yoga (or writing).
The practice doesn’t treat learners with illnesses (or difficulties in reading and writing) as less than others. In fact, someone who has a long-term difficulty like arthritis (or dyslexia) or a short-term consideration like menstruation (or a bad day at home) may be given an entirely different sequence of asanas (or lesson) for the day, may skip a few asanas in the general sequence, or a couple of asanas may be replaced for the student. The class is never one-size-fits-all.
People who reject competition to prevent comparison with others usually say, “My competition is with myself. I am only concerned about whether I am better than yesterday.” Abhay sir taught me that one may be unable to do an asana that was previously possible because the body is different during different seasons, on different days and even at different times of the day. Similarly, the teacher in Writing Workshop is not shocked when a student’s writing is occasionally “worse” than before. Acceptance of the self and the body (or writing abilities) as it is at all times makes this a pedagogy of self-compassion.
Responsiveness is a core principle of the practice. The practice depends on the teacher’s ability to observe the students (of course, a good teacher knows what to observe), knowing what each student can do, where they can go, and what the exact next step is for them.
The teacher must endeavour to build and expand their knowledge of the subject continually: of the human body, the effect of each asana on the body (or of writing, the development of writing in children), of the difficulties that may arise during the practice, the props (or the scaffolds) one might need, and knowing when a prop is a reasonable accommodation, and when it is an unnecessary crutch.
There may be a prescribed sequence of asanas (or lessons), but a knowledgeable teacher who cares deeply knows that the prescribed sequence is only a guide. Knowledge of the learner, the learning so far, the destination in the long term, urgent needs in the short term, learner readiness, teacher readiness, and a multitude of other factors contribute to a teacher's choice of the asanas (or lesson) for the day.
I am incredibly grateful to my former teacher Nawaz Kamdin Aunty and my current teacher Abhay sir for being my teachers through good times and bad. They are both exceptional Iyengar Yoga teachers and have always had compassion for me especially when I couldn’t find it for myself.
This post is also dedicated to Guruji, Sri BKS Iyengar. It is through this work and blessings that I benefit from yoga practice and take back so much of what I learn to the teaching of reading and writing.