Amy Pancake learned to work with preschool age children by working with the director of La Petite Ecole French immersion preschool in Austin. Her experience includes 22 years of teaching yoga, movement, Continuum, kinesiology studies at U.T. Austin, ongoing study of human movement (including developmental movement with Emilie Conrad of Continuum Movement), rhythmic movement and reflex integration therapy, over 10,000 hours of kids movement classes. Her skill and experience are tangible in her relationships with kids of all ages (4 months+). Classes are fun, engaging, incorporate movement in all planes of motion. Activities include various approaches to help support the maturation and refinement of the nervous system by exploring movement patterns that may have been missed (we all have these gaps on some level), affected by illness or injury, or which may simply need more practice through specific types of play and/or assisted movement to allow our inherent strength and coordination (mental, physical and social-emotional) to blossom. This allows us to grow our attention span, mature social skills and refine body/mind coordination. She speaks Spanish and French and teaches in those languages where they are spoken in school. At the heart of her teaching is the commitment to connect in a heartfelt way with each student so they feel safe and free to express themselves in class.  In 2015 Amy co-founded a children's yoga teacher training program in Austin - www.chakrakidsyoga.com. Check out Amy's blog on kids yoga http://kulahalfpints.blogspot.com/

"I was a Pre-K Assistant Teacher in the Emmaus Early Childhood Education Program during the 2022-2023 school year. That was the first year our preschool hired Amy Pancake as a Yoga Instructor. It has been found that children who practice yoga “develop a deeper relationship with themselves and their natural environment.” For 30 minutes, once a week, Ms.Amy introduced breathing exercises and relaxation techniques that helped our preschoolers regulate their emotions and reduced their stress levels, anxiety, and hyperactivity. Our preschoolers also learned how to improve their strength, flexibility and balance while actually reducing their risk of injury through yoga movements. Amy developed a special bond with our preschoolers and they looked forward to their time with her. She participated in every activity and the children were often disappointed when the 30 minutes had passed. Amy Pancake has extensive experience and I would highly recommend her to all who are interested in yoga and movement therapy." -Mary Zahradnik