Week 5

Surveys and Experiments

A class I took last semester involved gathering data on how students felt about breaks and recess. The results weren't that surprising. A quick break down of the survey showed that majority of the students enjoy breaks and recess and believe class times are too long and breaks are too short. Like I said, not surprising to find that kids want more time to play and less time to work. Me too 🤣 but that's not something I have control over. I can only control what goes in my class and did an experiment to test the effectiveness of brain breaks.

I did a series of 3 types of brain breaks: academic games, breathing, and physical. The physical brain breaks were considered the most fun while the academic games proved to be most effective with content retention and applying that knowledge on a test. The breathing exercises just reinforced my opinion of yoga and meditation. It can be useful when students need to clear their minds and relieve their stress, but I can't prove that relaxing improves their performance. It can definitely improve their mood though. Taking a breather has always helped cool a hothead. The experiments of brain breaks encourages me to implement these throughout the year when they're most advantageous. Can't wait to throw brain breaks in between lessons and throw some students off guard 😃

The video below is a fun dance/exercise break for kids to get motivated and energized to learn.