ART Excel (Ages 8-13)
The ART Excel supports the overall well-being of children by teaching them a variety of empowering techniques that foster peace of mind, mental clarity and focus, physical relaxation and emotional stability.
The curriculum includes breathing techniques, yoga, meditations, games and activities for physical, mental, emotional and social well-being.
This course is taught through games and activities where students learn valuable lessons in sharing with others, working and playing in harmony and developing a sense of belonging with others. Children become more self-expressive, comfortable and natural with diverse groups of people. Activities such as making a new friend each day and random acts of kindness help students to become aware of the needs of others and encourage the integration of human values into their daily lives.
The Youth Empowerment Seminar - YES! (Ages 14-17)
The Youth Empowerment Seminar (YES!) for Schools from ages 14-17 is dedicated to providing youth with a healthy body, a healthy mind and a healthy lifestyle. We do this by offering youth practical tools and life skills to manage stress and emotions. When students learn how to manage their stress in a healthy way, they exhibit greater confidence and motivation to succeed in school and make healthy choices when faced with life's challenges.
Young people face emotional issues such as low self-esteem, depression and anxiety that are a source of great stress, which inhibits learning. Without a healthy alternative, students often turn to unhealthy strategies to cope with these problems including: smoking, alcohol or drugs, aggression and violence, and withdrawal from social interaction. As students learn to reduce stress and manage emotions they gain the ability to focus and perform well academically at school, as well as the ability to build more positive relationships with their peers, parents and teachers.
The curriculum includes breathing techniques, yoga, meditations, fun games and activities, to develop physical, mental, emotional and social well-being.
Know Your Child and Know Your Teen
Know Your Child (KYC) and Know Your Teen (KYT) are 2-hour workshops for parents to help them better understand their children/teenagers and make parenting a joyful adventure. KYC and KYT examine the root cause of the behavioral patterns that children and teenagers exhibit, and equip parents with the knowledge to help them blossom to their fullest potential. The two workshops give parents an insight into how children/teenagers think
- ART Excel - Testimonials
- YES! - Testimonials
"They all say this practice helps them relax anywhere. I strongly recommend that students have access to the ART Excel because it enables them to take control of their lives, even in the most desperate circumstances."
-- Marie Diamond, Student Services, Wilson Middle School"ART Excel is the best thing that has happened for kids all over the world. The structure and contents of the program allows children to connect with each other and work with people of all ages and diverse backgrounds. They leave the program feeling happy, confident and with a desire to help others."
-- Ramola Prabhu, M.D., Parent"Before I came here I was really stressed out. Little things made me angry. I learned to get rid of the anger and free my mind from all the clutter. If I get angry I just do the breathing and it makes me feel better."
Matt, middle school student-
"My experience with the YES! program was revolutionary. The things that I learned here taught me not only how to become a better person, but how to not let others stop me from being a better person…I greatly appreciated and enjoyed this experience."
-- Tameika, McKinley Technology High School"YES! has helped to create that culture of calm we really want our school to have. The [stress management] strategies taught on YES! are not just used in the classroom, they are life-skills that the students and staff can use outside of the classroom as well."
-- Ms. Tamara Littlejohn, Walt Disney Magnet School, Chicago"Getting YES! in school at this grade level treats it like curriculum, which is what it should be. It tells a kid it is as important for you to learn life management and stress management skills, as it is to learn math."
-- Susan Bertucci, Parent, Chicago
