Level 1 250 hour teacher training in Cornwall
Our next level 1 250/300hr course will begin in October 2021 at our Falmouth studio in Cornwall
Our 2021 level 1 course in Falmouth will run From October 2021. Please see below for more information and dates. Applications are now open, please contact us for more information.
Primarily taught by Keren Cooksey with Amanda Brown (both SYT Yoga Alliance and with combined teacher experience of over 45 years), our 250-300 hour vinyasa course is devoted to excellence, exploration, creativity and community.
We have designed this course for those who want to embark on the journey of becoming a teacher or for existing teachers who want to enhance their skills and delve deeper into the rich world of tantric vinyasa yoga. In addition, each year we evolve the course and you will see below that new components include – social justice, body image and yoga, trauma informed classrooms and teaching online.
Our teacher training program asks you to come on a life changing journey with us into yogic philosophy, to throw yourself passionately into learning sequencing and alignment and to have a whole lot of fun on the way. We promise you that if you put in the effort, we will equip you with a comprehensive set of tools so that you flourish as both an informed practitioner and creative teacher of yoga. This of course takes time, effort, and commitment.
Our training takes place over the course of a year from our Falmouth yoga studio in Cornwall. The full Teacher Training Program comprises 10 weekends, and meets Yoga Alliance’s requirement for certification at their 300 hour level. The course is suitable for people with at least 2 years regular yoga practice and a proven commitment to further developing their understanding of yoga.
UPDATE – with current situation regarding Covoid-19 and the uncertainty surrounding how social distancing measures will continue, we are preparing for any part of the curriculum to be taught online via zoom should this be required. If you have any specific questions relating to this please do not hesitate to contact us
WHAT DO WE COVER?
- What is yoga? the history and science behind this practice
- Asana – correct alignment and how to effectively verbally cue postures
- Sequencing – safe and creative vinyasa sequencing
- Anatomy and embodied yoga
- Restorative yoga and yin yoga – looking at stillness practices and how they compliment our more yang practices
- Yoga for common injuries
- Prenatal – learn how to adapt to allow a pregnant woman into your classes
- Creating a trauma informed classroom
- Social justice and yoga
- Teaching online via zoom
- Philosophy – the chakra system, the Bhagavhad Gita, the Yoga Sutras and tantric philosophy
- Bhakti yoga – learn how to sing, play and lead chants
- Ayurveda for health and happiness – Keren is a qualified ayurvedic practitioner
- Meditation – finding the way that works for you
- Pranayama – the yoga of the breath
- Practice teaching- voicing, cueing, confident teaching skills
- The business of yoga – ethics and creating community
BEYOND GRADUATION
Above all else one of our main aims at FYS has been to create a yoga community here in Cornwall and we are so proud of the friendships and support network we see forming during and after the teacher training.
Keren and Amanda will continue to be on hand to offer advise and guidance at any step of your teaching journey. Keren is still in regular contact with her trainees over in Australia to offer small fry advice on sequencing and playlists or big decision advice on what further training to do or how to open a studio in their home town!
At FYS Keren and Amanda also offer a variety of level 2 training modules allowing you to work your way to becoming a 500 FYS teacher or just to delve deeper for the fun and love of it as they both continue to do themselves.
And beyond graduation you will become part of a private online forum of past trainees with a monthly essay delivered by Keren on the theme for the month which then births discussion, questions, sharing of sequences, playlists and harmonium lessons.
ABOUT YOUR TEACHERS
Keren has been teaching for 17 years and has been running teacher training courses for over 8 years both here and in her Brisbane studio, in total she has trained over a 100 teachers and she LOVES IT. Keren feels very fortunate in her own yoga journey to have trained with some of the most inspiring teachers the world over. Keren is a perpetual student and her trainings include:
- 2004 200hr Hatha Yoga training with My Health Yoga in Brisbane
- 2011 200hr Jivamukti and vinyasa with Essence of Living on the Gold Coast
- 2012 200hr Lotus Flow in San Francisco
- 2012 Kundalini with Guru Das in Byron Bay
- 2013 Level 2 100hr Lotus Flow in Bali
- 2017 50hr Ayurveda for Women’s Health in New York
- 2018 50hr Trauma Sensitive Yoga in Boston
- 2018 30hr Yin yoga training in Dublin
- 2018 750hr Ayurvedic practitoner course with Ayurvedic Institute, Croydon
- 2020 30hr yin level 2 training in Belfast
- 2020 40hr Yoga Nidra training
- 2020 25hr Lotus Flow ‘learn to fly’ training
- 2021 Bhakti yoga and harmonium with Sacred Sounds in Colorado
To read more about Keren and here own style/training/journey please click here.
And please note, while this course is predominately a vinyasa teacher training, Keren will share with you the depth of her teaching from a variety of style including Hatha, Kundalini, Jivamukti and Anusara to ensure you leave the course able to teach any body
About Amanda
Amanda has been studying yoga and meditation for over 30 years and she continues to study at every opportunity! After her initial training as a sculptor she taught within the Iyengar tradition for 20 years and also qualified in yoga for healthy lower backs, tibetan yoga and with the British Wheel. 
Her experience as a biodynamic CranioSacral practitioner has deeply informed her current practice. She is particularly interested in offering students the opportunity to come home to their bodies, adapting practices to individual needs and facilitating an intuitive understanding of anatomy, function, energetics and basic sanity.
GUEST TEACHERS
Your guest teachers in 2021 will include:
Jacq St Pierre from Austin Texas – CLICK HERE for more info on Jacq – Teaching creatively and effectively via Zoom
Camille Moses-Allen – CLICK HERE for more information on Camille – Inversions, arm balances and advanced asana
Dia Penning from San Francisco – SEE BELOW – Social Justice and equality in the yoga world
Dia Penning (she, her) is an Inclusion Facilitator, Yin Yoga Instructor, and founder of the Equity Collective. With a Master’s Degree in Interdisciplinary Arts from Columbia College, she is able to work in a number of different spaces. She has supported a diverse array of clients, from the National Parks Service to various yoga teacher training programs, arts organizations to tech executive coaching. Dia assists clients in investigating limiting assumptions and expanding their ideas of what is possible. Working one on one or in large groups, clients examine blockages in their bodies and minds, parallel them to external structures in interpersonal relationships, accumulated history and policy. They then investigate new possibilities, use the breath and mindful attention to challenge long held habits and create change.
Dia has published three volumes of curricula on structural racism as well as an at home study guide for parents interested in talking to their children about race. Dia is a fellowship graduate of the Network Learning Leadership Lab (Management Assistance Group) and collaborates on a Yoga and Social Justice trainings with Love Light Yoga out of Vancouver, BC and in Jamaica. She has held leadership positions at the City of San Francisco, the City of Chicago, Columbia College and California College of the Arts.
TEACHING ASSISTANT
Our course is assisted by Jo Mary Longman – CLICK HERE to read more about Jo
WHY CHOOSE THIS TRAINING?
What you can expect from this teacher training is a rich, varied, fun, challenging year that will encourage you to look at yoga and yourself in new ways and hopefully will be the start of a journey into yoga that will last a lifetime.
There are a number of wonderful training courses out there both in Cornwall/Devon and beyond and we would be happy to direct you to them should this course not meet your needs.
However, why do we love the course we have developed, why do we think it rocks? Here’s why…
- Proven methodology that has resulted in many well trained, passionate teachers that continue to come back and undertake further studies with us
- Senior teachers with a combined experience of over 45 years and a great love of all things yoga
- 15 students per intake to ensure a close knit supportive group with individual attention
- YA registered both here in the UK and in Australia
- Access to a strong and supportive community of previous trainees providing ongoing mentorship and inspiration
- and so much more…but we don’t like to blow our own trumpets too much…watch this space for a video previous students saying why THEY love the course
THE APPLICATION PROCESS
The first thing we always ask interested students to do is come along to a class with Keren or to do a few classes on her podcast (yogawithkeren) to ensure the style of vinyasa she teaches resonates with you. We want you to love this course as much as we do! From there we ask you to complete the application form. Once received Keren will be in touch to arrange a short interview to complete your application and also to put you in touch with past trainees so you can interview them and get an honest overview of the course from a graduates point of view.
THE NITTY GRITTY STUFF
- The course will be run one weekend per month over 10 months, Fri-Sun
- Weekend hours Friday 7-9pm, Saturday 10.30am-6pm and Sunday 9am-5pm
- As well as study modules, you will need to complete a certain amount of classes, as well as class observations, class assists and towards the end of the course and practice teaching classes
- In 2021 Keren will be joined by senior yoga teacher Amanda Brown , assisted by Jo Mary Longman and supported by guest teachers Jacq St Pierre (teaching creatively via zoom), Dia Penning (social justice and yoga) and Camille Moses-Allen (advanced asana)
- There is monthly homework which needs to be handed in on time as part of the accreditation criteria
- The course will include two final exams, one practical and one theory
- The course is accredited with Yoga Alliance UK and will enable you to register as a level 1 yoga teacher
- Keren and Amanda are registered as a Senior Yoga Teachers with Yoga Alliance having studied over 1000 hours of training each
- The course costs £2100 early bird (payable by 1st May 2021 in full) or £2300 after that or if choosing a monthly payment plan (£500 non refundable deposit and ten monthly payments)
- The 250/300 hour course is meant to serve as an introduction to your path as a teacher- continuous study is essential and Keren can recommend further trainings in the UK or overseas as well as offering CPD and level 2 courses in Falmouth
- Successful applicants should be in good health and have stable personal circumstances to complete this course with the focus and dedication it requires. This is not a tick and flick course. Please think seriously about the commitment involved in undertaking this course and ensure you can attend all modules and allow the time required for classes and homework. Paying for the course does not result in accreditation as a yoga teacher, meeting the course requirements (classes, homework, exam, practice) and showing passion and commitment will result in certification.
Please review the Frequently asked questions and liability-and-grievance-TT-form-1 for further information.
See below for module dates and outline for our 2021 intake:
Modules:
Week 1 – 8-10 October
Friday evening SATSANG (class at 6pm optional)
Saturday morning – What is yoga, meaning of yoga, 8 limbs of yoga, different types of yoga, what is vinyasa yoga
Saturday afternoon – surya namaskar – alignment, breath and how to teach the flow in three different formats. Includes practice teaching.
Sunday morning – pranayama – what is pranayama, looking closely at ujjai, nadi shodana, brahmari, sitali, dirga pranayama and kapalabhati –the benefits, the contraindications, when to use them and how to teach them.
Sunday afternoon – the subtle body – the koshas, introduction to the chakras
Week 2 – 12-14 Nov
Friday evening class, mantra, satsang
Saturday morning – muladhara, exploring a basic warm-up sequence, including pranayama and asana.
Saturday afternoon – class and practice teaching
Sunday morning – the Bhagavad Gita – it’s teachings, how we can incorporate into our teachings
Sunday afternoon– standing poses, alignment, anatomy of standing poses, verbal adjustments and practice teaching with Amanda
Week 3 – 10-12 Dec
Friday evening– class, mantra, satsang
Saturday morning – Chakra’s in detail – svadisthana and manipura (theory session)
Saturday afternoon – postures for the lower chakras.
Sunday morning – sequencing for first three chakras. Practice teaching.
Sunday afternoon – balance poses – alignment, anatomy, verbal adjustments and practice teaching with Amanda
Week 4 – 7-9 Jan
Friday evening– class, mantra, satsang
Saturday morning – chakra’s in detail – anahata, visshuda, ajna and sahahara
Saturday afternoon – postures for higher chakras
Sunday morning – sequencing for higher chakras
Sunday afternoon – revolved poses – alignment, anatomy, verbal adjustments and practice teaching with Amanda
Week 5 – 18-20 Feb
Friday evening – satsang with Dia Penning
Saturday morning – Bhakti Yoga
Saturday afternoon and eve – Social justice with Dia
Sunday morning – Yoga sutras book 1
Sunday afternoon – social justice with Dia
Week 6 – 11-13 March
Friday evening– class, mantra, satsang
Saturday morning – anatomy and alignment with Amanda Brown
Saturday afternoon – anatomy and alignment
Sunday morning – anatomy and alignment
Sunday afternoon – anatomy and alignment
Week 7 – 7-10 April
Saturday morning – Myths, mantra, mudra and theming
Saturday afternoon – ayurveda and nutrition including practical assessment on prescribing a food and yoga program for a specific ayurvedic type
Sunday morning – backbending – alignment, anatomy, verbal adjustments and practice teaching with Amanda
Sunday afternoon – forward folds and hip openers – alignment, anatomy, verbal adjustments and practice teaching with Amanda
Week 8 – 6-8 May
Friday evening– class, mantra, satsang
Saturday morning – yoga sutra’s book 2, theory and discussion
Saturday afternoon – teaching via zoom with Jacq St Pierre
Sunday morning – Special populations – how to include those with illness/injury into your general class, yoga as a form of therapy, teaching a private session – theory, lesson planning and practice teaching with Amanda
Sunday afternoon – restorative yoga with Amanda
Week 9 – 10-12 June
Friday evening– the art of teaching with confidence, business planning, yoga teacher ethics, question and answer time with Keren
Saturday morning – practice teaching and recap time
Saturday afternoon – zoom class with Camille Moses-Allen
Sunday morning – Ensuring a trauma informed classroom
Sunday afternoon – inversions and arm balances with Camille
Week 10 – 9-10 July
Friday evening– class, mantra, satsang
Saturday morning – physical exam – students to teach a twenty minute segment of a sequenced class
Saturday afternoon – physical exam – students to teach a twenty minute segment of a sequenced class
Sunday morning – theory exam – four hour written exam revising each key module
Sunday afternoon – celebrate
Suggested reading List (further homework will be given from this reading list)
Light on Yoga – Iyengar
Jivamukti Yoga – Sharon Gannon and David Life
The Heart of Yoga – Desikachar
Bhagavad Gita – Eknath Easwaran edition
Yoga Sutras – Satchidananda edition
Healing Mantras – Thomas Ashley-Farrand