“Experimentation is an active science.” ~ Claude Bernard
The only way anyone can really learn to teach is to practice. No amount of book learning or observation (and I am an enormous fan of both practices!) can really prepare us to stand before a group of willing minds and bodies who want to learn what we know. We have to take our place at the helm of a class and give it a whirl, over and over and over again.
This is especially true when learning to teach yoga. The cadence, tone, and volume of our voices, how we tread the lines of observing our students, adjusting them verbally and physically, demonstrating, and giving them information about a posture’s benefits all take a good deal of practice. To practice we need a laboratory – a place where we can try experiment and play to gauge what works and what doesn’t. My laboratory for teaching is my free class at the New York Public Library on Wednesday nights at 6:00pm.
Tonight we started class with a few postures that I learned over the weekend at my therapeutic yoga training at Integral Yoga. These postures are more based in Traditional Chinese Medicine than yoga, and asked if they’d be willing to give them a go so I could practice teaching them. Gracious as always, they were more than happy to give them a try to help me out. It was a great gift for me to practice receiving help, something that is sometimes difficult for me to request. I’m used to giving all the time; the students were more than happy to be able to give in return.
Labs gives us the chance to try what’s difficult for us, which is often exactly what we need to do, and it promotes the growth of the individual and the participating community. It also opened up the dialogue. The students felt more willing to ask question than they have in other classes. Rebecca, the head librarian at Bloomingdale who makes this class possible, walked me out after the class. “I have to miss next week’s class and I’m not happy about it. This one hour of class makes my whole week manageable.”
And that’s the benefit I didn’t know a lab could provide – the freedom it represents gives all of us permission to check our cares at the door and for a brief time just be.
IN BRIEF
Author, journalist, digital product manager, and licensed New York City tour guide. Creator and host of NYC's Secrets and Lies. Alumna of the University of Pennsylvania (BA), the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA), Arizona State University (Biomimicry), and the University of Cambridge (MSt in Sustainability Leadership).
I build digital media platforms, report on urban climate resilience and biodiversity, and produce live narrative experiences that connect communities to history, nature, and place.
THE DEEP DIVE
My work centers on a single thread: building systems and stories that foster deep connection to our shared world. Across digital streaming, environmental reporting, and live civic storytelling, I design experiences that help people understand complex ideas and the environments around them.
DIGITAL PRODUCT STRATEGY & MEDIA LEADERSHIP
At Carnegie Hall, I serve as Digital Product Manager, leading product strategy, operations, and technical delivery for the video streaming platform Carnegie Hall+. I translate artistic mission into scalable, high-performance streaming architecture that reaches audiences globally. Previously, I led agile product and delivery teams across operations and compliance at American Express, managed Broadway theatrical productions and national tours, and guided strategic initiatives across cultural institutions.
ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISM & AUTHORSHIP
As a freelance journalist, I investigate how living systems, urban infrastructure, and human culture intersect. My reported features on urban decarbonization, biodiversity, coastal resilience, and biomimicry appear in publications including Smithsonian Magazine, The Washington Post, Mongabay, Natural History Magazine, and Foreign Policy Magazine. In fiction, I write the Emerson Page young adult novel series, alongside upcoming historical fiction and nonfiction works on New York history, mythology, and human resilience. I also write Togetherhood, a LinkedIn newsletter focused on urban ecology and community restoration, and co-host the podcast Frameworks in the Wild.
LIVE EXPERIENCE & CIVIC STORYTELLING
As a licensed New York City tour guide and live event producer, I transform urban landscapes into shared narrative encounters. I created, produce, and host NYC's Secrets and Lies, an interactive live storytelling series staged across cultural landmarks including the New York Transit Museum, the South Street Seaport Museum, and the historic tall ship Wavertree. I also design and lead site-specific walking tours exploring coastal ecology, food history, and neighborhood evolution, often with partners at Climate Week NYC and the Natural Areas Conservancy.
DOUBLE OR NOTHING MEDIA
Through my independent production studio, Double or Nothing Media, I develop ventures across media, ecology, and public history:
Digital Products & Strategy: Architecting scalable digital platforms, streaming experiences, and operational models for mission-driven institutions.
Environmental Reporting & Publications: Delivering long-form reporting, books, and newsletters grounded in climate resilience and regenerative design.
Site-Specific Live Storytelling: Producing immersive live shows and educational walking tours that engage public audiences in community history.
CONNECT
Website & Production Hub: doubleornothingmedia.com and christaavampato.com
Newsletter: Togetherhood on LinkedIn - linkedin.com/newsletters/togetherhood-7273771832221089792/
Instagram & Threads: @christarosenyc
Emerson Page Novels: emersonpagebook.wordpress.com/
View all posts by Christa Avampato
2 thoughts on “Beginning: If You’re Going to Experiment, You Need a Laboratory”
Christa,
Thank You.
Good job.
Theory is imporant; so is practice. Your theory is sound, so I think that helps you in the practical aspects of teaching yoga. You are also able to adapt as per the situations. That’s why your students appreciate you. More power to you.
I think the more you teach, the happier you will feel; the more you will be able to make a positive difference to the lives of people you touch. What you are doing here needs to be applauded. You are a value-added person for sure.
Please make it a point to seize more opportunities like this one. Not just with an august institution like the NYPL, but other companies/organizations too.
I look forward to the day when you have an opportunity to start your own business. That day is not far way and you are sure to succeed. Cheers.
Christa,
Thank You.
Good job.
Theory is imporant; so is practice. Your theory is sound, so I think that helps you in the practical aspects of teaching yoga. You are also able to adapt as per the situations. That’s why your students appreciate you. More power to you.
I think the more you teach, the happier you will feel; the more you will be able to make a positive difference to the lives of people you touch. What you are doing here needs to be applauded. You are a value-added person for sure.
Please make it a point to seize more opportunities like this one. Not just with an august institution like the NYPL, but other companies/organizations too.
I look forward to the day when you have an opportunity to start your own business. That day is not far way and you are sure to succeed. Cheers.
LikeLike
Thanks, Archan! I am looking forward to that day, too. When it happens, you’ll be the first to know 🙂
LikeLike