On day one of Wellness Mind and Body—Spanish, students appear surprised when teacher Jacob Smeraglio offers them the option of taking off their shoes and socks. Their surprise turns to shock when he demonstrates this by removing his own.
The new Wilsonville High School class schedule has allotted room for additional class periods. This schedule freedom allows for new, nontraditional classes and gives students the opportunity to explore their interests better without worrying about completing their core credit. Among these new classes is Wellness Mind and Body—Spanish.
This course, commonly called Spanish Yoga or Spanish Mind and Body, is a semester yoga class taught in Spanish by Jacob Smeraglio, a 14-year Spanish teacher. This new class was created as more Dual Language classes advanced from middle school and sought to complete their required Spanish credits.
“We were looking for electives for students to take outside of core classes, and it kind of grew from that idea. It’s also a class that’s taught at West Linn in English, so I thought it’d be an easy class to convert into the Dual Program,” explains Smeraglio.
This class is mainly attended by juniors and seniors, though freshmen also take it. Dual Language students need 5-6 Spanish credits to graduate in the program, and to accommodate these requirements, more electives taught in Spanish, including Wellness Mind and Body, have been added at Wilsonville.
The goal of this course, described by the Wilsonville Curriculum Guide, is to “enable students to gain the awareness and skills around the mind/body connection.” It accomplishes this by helping students “build conscious awareness to the present moment, learn stress reduction techniques, and gain greater body awareness through posture and breathing.”
“We learned lots of different coping mechanisms for when you’re feeling stressed, and we also learned lots of yoga skills,” reports Brenna Collier, a freshman in the Dual Language program who took the class last semester.
Class begins in the dance room, with students journaling about what they feel at that moment. Next, they do a 20-minute yoga routine, led by Smeraglio or a video. Afterward, the class moves to the Pointe to do various activities, from coloring to puzzles to walks outside.
When asked if she would like to see more classes for Dual Language students like this one, Collier answered, “I think I would. It was a really fun class and really relaxing at the end of the day, and it also counted as Spanish and PE credit, which was nice.”
Makena Wellman, another freshman in the Dual Language program, agrees. “I think it’s nice to be able to learn in Spanish, and learn something really relaxing, and have a class that isn’t overwhelming with work,” she says. “I really liked this class.”
Wellness Mind and Body has garnered mainly positive feedback, and many takers of the class seem grateful for the opportunity to fulfill their Spanish credits through this unorthodox course. Dual Language program members specifically are excited to see what classes come next!