Paul Zientarski, in his TED talk “Want Smarter, Healthier Kids? Try Physical Education” discusses the links between exercise and learning. Do you think your students get enough exercise? If so, how much and how often are they getting it? If not, what could you do to get your students moving more often?
Do you think your students get enough exercise? If so, how much and how often are they getting it? If not, what could you do to get your students moving more often?
ReplyDeleteMy first grade students get two recesses a day, one recess is 15 minutes and the second recess is 20 minutes a day. They have gym one to two times a week. I don't think they get enough exercise, but I do a lot of brain breaks in the classroom to get them up and moving to get some of their energy out. Also, I try to get students up and moving during learning time whether that be strategically get their supplies or to find some movement that correlates with what students are learning.
Cultural patterns in the US have created a more sedentary and obese society. This inactivity has its negative affects on students. I think my middle/high school does a good job with physical education. The emphasis is on individualized weight and fitness programs that focus on health and wellness with game days dispersed throughout. Critically, I think two to three periods of this a week is not enough. Paul Zientarski's Ted Talk makes sense stating how inactivity is now America's greatest cause of death. "Exercise is the fertilizer of the brain." Neuroscience explains how exercise builds brain cells. He states that activity prior (like a 20 minute walk) can stimulate and have great benefits on the minds abilities. Movement in the learning process is essential. As Zientarki states, developing engaging and strategically placed physical education is what is difficult. My principal does a nice job encouraging kinetic movement and learning activities that get students (even for a short time) out of their desks and moving. I see how well it works and yet I still do not do it enough. It seems hard to develop, but it is not and it is easy to execute. Interactive activities like role play and movement breaks aid in refreshing focus and stimulating the mind.
ReplyDeletePaul Zientarski, in his TED talk “Want Smarter, Healthier Kids? Try Physical Education” discusses the links between exercise and learning. Do you think your students get enough exercise? If so, how much and how often are they getting it? If not, what could you do to get your students moving more often?
ReplyDeleteI wish all of my students got the exercise they needed. It is harder the older they get because they no longer have recess or have to take P.E all year. I think it would help them out so much in the classroom. I believe they would be able to focus more in class and stay engaged for a longer period of time. One thing I could do would be getting them up and moving more during the lesson rather than staying in their seats.
Again, I work with students across the state, but I see so many active and healthy students! I think our state has a lot of great opportunities for athletics and fitness.
ReplyDeleteOne of the things I’ve seen on a personal level is that my kids have a lifting program that starts after fifth grade in their school. Two men who came back after participating in college sports help run a summer lifting program that helps students learn to lift safely and for their body structure. It’s been so good for my daughters!
Paul Zientarski, in his TED talk “Want Smarter, Healthier Kids? Try Physical Education” discusses the links between exercise and learning. Do you think your students get enough exercise? If so, how much and how often are they getting it? If not, what could you do to get your students moving more often?
ReplyDeleteI do NOT think my students are getting enough exercise. My athletes, and those concerned about aesthetics - absolutely; but the rest of them are quite sedentary. You can tell it from their posture, their wardrobe (old ratty pajama pants), diet (endless energy drinks, sugary sodas and takis), hygiene (dirty hair, teeth, nails, smelly), and lack of boundaries with their digital devices. This may sound like a stereotype, but it's just what I observe in the classroom, day after day. The students that aren't caring for their bodies are also not caring for their minds. Of course, some of these outward observations can be indicative of other things going on at home (low income, lack of parental supervision, etc.) - but it's all connected to the same result: students have a general lack of care about themselves, their future, the community, their contributions to the world around them.
Some students are getting a bit of exercise from Phys. Ed. class, but that is a short amount of time and when the class ends, so does their regular movement. I get my students up and moving when we go outside for photoshoots or occasional drawing sessions. With larger class sections, it's trickier to just get them up and moving in a small classroom.
I feel like physical movement is very important for students to help them learn. I don't think that my students are currently getting enough physical exercise each day. We are a 4 day school week and have PE twice. My students only get 1 recess at lunch and a lot of times the playground is too muddy for them to spread out and move. They may play catch or shoot hoops, but I don't feel that it is enough. It is 60 kids in a small space.
ReplyDeleteI try to incorporate 30 second dance parties, clap twice if you agree, stomp your feet if you agree, a silent game of catch around the room, or if I am teaching something and a song comes to mind we get up and dance.
My son had a hard time in k-1st because he had terrible number and letter reversals. After testing and trying to figure out what was happening, we finally learned that he had ATNR. he never crawled as a baby and never lost that baby reflex. By doing some simple movements to get his left and right brain connected better he lost the reflex and had no more letter reversals. I now try to incorporate some of those movements incase there are other students who may have the same issue.
I do not believe my students are getting enough exercise. Before school starts they are outside if they are not eating breakfast for about 15 minutes. Then we have a snack and recess for 15 minutes. They receive a 20 minute lunch recess. They do go to P.E. class 2-3 times per week for 30 minutes. In between we spend far too much time teaching, and working in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteI try to incorporate movement breaks, and even breaks from being in the classroom. Sometimes I will take them on a "field trip" to lost and found. We spend a few minutes walking the hallways. It gives our brains a break and our bodies some movement. I have tried "Just Dance" videos in the past but many of the students would just sit, and have no interest in participating. We will also walk from one end of our building to the other when it is too cold to go outside. When it is nice out we walk the playground perimeter when we need a break. I have also started walking my class to Dairy Queen on the first day of spring because they have free ice cream. The Dairy Queen is maybe a mile from our school. The number of 3rd graders who complain on the walk there that it is too far or that they are already tired is very shocking!
Paul Zientarski, in his TED talk “Want Smarter, Healthier Kids? Try Physical Education” discusses the links between exercise and learning. Do you think your students get enough exercise? If so, how much and how often are they getting it? If not, what could you do to get your students moving more often?
ReplyDeleteI do think in the school district i teach in that our students are getting an adequate amount of exercise/physical activity each day. However, the statistics that Paul points out about test scores are quite staggering - and i would also promote even more physical exercise/activity for all of my students.
I do like to implement lots of movement within my own classroom. I often have students "draw" the way the phrase in the music flows. My students move when they are warming up & they move while they are singing. Each elementary class has some sort of rhythm learning within it & that teaching segment also has students moving to the beat or clapping their hands. Sometimes these are just good brain break maneuvers that i use - buy i'm elated to find out it could actually increase their brain activity at the same time.
I definitely do not think kids get enough exercise in a day. P.E. is only about 20 minutes, recess is only about 15 minutes. The part I struggle with in my school is they argue that since the kids are getting older (5th and 6th grade) that they don't get as much recess. I think if anything these students need more time to be active.
ReplyDeleteI try to get my students moving as much as possible. We always did book walks around the school so they would walk in a circle down the halls around the building while reading their books. I set up word work stations around the room and they have to go from one area to another for their assignments. When it is nice enough outside I try to set up as much stuff out there (when possible). I also let my students earn extra recess or a game/activity outside for positive behavior and from assignments. My students always voted to go outside and play games.
Paul Zientarski, in his TED talk “Want Smarter, Healthier Kids? Try Physical Education” discusses the links between exercise and learning. Do you think your students get enough exercise? If so, how much and how often are they getting it? If not, what could you do to get your students moving more often?
ReplyDeleteI believe we have the best of intentions in our school with our physical education, but I don't believe our students (as a whole) get enough exercise. We also have changed to more of the lifetime fitness type classes away from team sports classes. This is helping the kids be active and showing them how to have a lifetime of fitness, but overall I'm not sure it doing as much as we want it to. Participation in sports is falling as well. During the year of Covid-19 we did "mask breaks" and we walked around the building once during the hour. It was amazing the effect it had on attention. We still will occasionally do this (when the weather cooperates). What's stopping us from doing this more often? This pays off. The lost time is more than made up for with higher attention and retention, just like the video said.
I do not think children are getting enough exercise, especially during the school day when academic expectations often limit active time.
ReplyDeleteTo increase movement, I can make lessons more interactive and embed physical activity into learning. For example, students could crawl through tunnels to retrieve items or puzzle pieces, complete obstacle courses that connect to a story we are reading, or move to different stations to practice matching or counting skills. By integrating movement into academic tasks, I can support both physical development and cognitive growth while keeping students engaged and motivated.
Paul Zientarski, in his TED talk “Want Smarter, Healthier Kids? Try Physical Education” discusses the links between exercise and learning. Do you think your students get enough exercise? If so, how much and how often are they getting it? If not, what could you do to get your students moving more often?
ReplyDeleteTK/1st graders get 3 recesses and PE every 3 days for 30 minutes. Second through fifth graders get two recesses a day with PE every 3 days for 45 minutes. I personally do not think that they are getting enough physical education. Our students are expected to have 90 minutes without interruptions of reading and another 90 minutes of math without interruptions. I personally do not agree with that. I truly think that students need to get up and move every 30 minutes for at least 5-10 minutes. I am currently working on implementing a walking/running club that would be offered at the end of the day from 2:30-3:15 everyday; I am not exactly sure what this will look like, but hopefully I can get it all set up for next year. This would allow students to come down and walk or run a few laps. Physical education really does help improve academic performance as well as behaviors.
Paul Zientarski, in his TED talk “Want Smarter, Healthier Kids? Try Physical Education” discusses the links between exercise and learning. Do you think your students get enough exercise? If so, how much and how often are they getting it? If not, what could you do to get your students moving more often?
ReplyDeleteI do not think our students get enough exercise. I like that kids go to pe everyday versus twice a week. I still don't think this is enough. Our students need regular breaks for recess and physical education. Growing up we had a morning recess, after lunch recess, and afternoon recess. My school was small enough that the entire school could go out at the same time. I know that many schools now would not be able to do that. I think we need to accommodate accordingly. Make larger outdoor areas. Have a plan for students to get this exercise.
Lately I have noticed that teachers will keep their students back from either PE or recess if they have missing work or are gone. We need to move away from the idea that this designated time is a reward and not a requirement. Some of these students need this outlet. Teachers are setting themselves up for a rough afternoon if they think keeping the busybody out of PE is going to solve anything.
Paul Zientarski stated in his Ted Talk that physical education everyday increases a student's fitness level, academic performance, attendance and decreases bad behaviors. The students are measured against themselves, and sports skills are no longer taught. Exercise builds new brain cells for the teachers to fill up.
ReplyDeleteNo, our school doesn't have enough exercise for students only the credit they need.
In my room we did a lot of Go Noodle. It was a computer program that we could just do exercises with and then get back to work. The students like this and the one they liked the best was trying to dance. Whatever program we did I always did with them, and they found that extremely funny, but I liked the break also.
The MS school kids at my school get 45 mins. of PE every day. The HS kids only have to take PE one year. I do think our HS kids need more movement in their day.
ReplyDeleteThe good thing about our school is most of the kids play 1 or more sports during the year so they are getting some activity with their sport. I think kids that are not involved in a sport should be taking PE all year.
Most of the students in our school are kids that are used to helping out on the ranch and they definitely want to be moving more. I do let my kids walk around the school after their reading is done if the weather permits. I could change this up and let them walk before the class begins.
I know walking helps me even if I just walk for 15 minutes at lunch. I am positive it will help students.
No, I do not think that, on average, students are getting enough exercise. I believe regular physical activity is critical not only for our students’ physical health but also for their mental and emotional well-being and health. While some students participate consistently through athletics or personal commitments to fitness, I would estimate that most students do not engage in enough movement on a regular basis. I wish our wellness activities courses were incorporated into every year of high school, as I feel these classes are essential for teaching students about physical health, building healthy lifelong routines, and supporting their mental health. Consistent physical activity can help students focus better, manage stress, and develop healthy habits that extend far beyond their high school years. In my role, I don’t have an opportunity to see students in the classroom regularly or incorporate physical activity directly, but I do think our School Counseling team could create a wellness challenge of some kind for students and staff alike that addresses both the physical and mental health of our students and staff. I would hope that would be something that could encourage them to find ways to nurture their mental and physical well-being and to stay active and engaged.
ReplyDeleteOverall, no I don't think students get enough exercise. This is something I've noticed change over the years as now that students learn through Chromebooks in most schools, it can make that desire to want to get up, be active, and go outside that much more challenging for them. I would say students get exercise only when they're either in PE class or in an extracurricular activity. Of course seasons depict the amount of exercise students get with having colder months filled with rain/snow that can decrease those amounts of students getting exercise. However, I do think exercise is such a crucial part in children's overall development and well-being as it can lead to a more balanced and healthier lifestyle. One way that students can get more exercise is having their teachers create moving and engaging activities where the students need to get up and move around. Even taking the chance to go outside if the weather is nice enough. Another way that exercise could be accomplished at the school is making it like a goal for students and setting a reward at the end. This can greatly help motivate students and help them learn positive reinforcement for doing things like exercising that helps teach them that these types of activities and doing things that help them can equal a reward and an internal sense of accomplishment.
ReplyDeleteDo you think your students get enough exercise? If so, how much and how often are they getting it? If not, what could you do to get your students moving more often?
ReplyDeleteAs a high school teacher, most kids are not getting enough exercise in my experience. They are not required to take PE all 4 years of high school, although some choose to do so. Student athletes are getting more than average non-athlete students most of the time, although athlete does not necessarily mean they are doing school athletics. Lots of different avenues for exercise are available outside of school as well. As a teacher, I do try and be aware of my class energy and get them to get up and move around the room. We also have several walking field trips through out the year where we go walk to a stream nearby for outdoor education opportunities with our local land trust.
I am a PE teacher and I whole-heartledy agree that exercise improves academic performance ( I learned about this in my PE masters program). I also tell my students this - "Ask your teacher to have a brain break before/during a test, do a few jumping jacks, your brain will work better"
ReplyDeleteIt is sad to say- but no, kids do not get enough physical activity.
I wish we had recess at my school during lunch, I think this would increase movement. I also think if we banned cell phones from school- students would be more prone to extra curricular activities.
As a middle school physical education teacher - NO, students are not getting enough exercise!!!! Its frustrating to know that we have the fitness testing data to back this up and yet, there is no money to support increasing physical activity for our students throughout the school day. It's frustrating that research shows the benefits and administrators and teachers alike agree they want kids to be active, yet we can’t find the time in the school day to make it happen. I could write a novel with my frustrations on this issue. It is honestly heartbreaking to see many 12, 13, 14 year old kids overweight and obese. Its disappointing to see year after year a decline in students general knowledge of game rules, physical skills, and abilities.
ReplyDeleteIn our building, we focus on controlling what we can control. Our PE staff took the initiative this year to pilot a program combining our health and physical education classes together, rather than having each class every other day for a semester. This has allowed us to teach shorter health lessons, while still getting our kids physical activity throughout the class periods. Overall our students seem to be enjoying switching to this format, but it is still not enough to notice a change in their overall fitness scores. We need our students to have more time intentionally moving their bodies.
I teach high school students (grades 9–12), and after watching Paul Zientarski’s TED Talk, I strongly agree with his message that physical activity and learning are closely connected. It also made me reflect honestly on what I see every day in our school setting.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, our students do not get enough exercise during the school day, especially at the high school level. Outside of PE (which many students only take during the early years of high school), structured movement becomes very limited. After their sophomore year, many students may go through a full school day with almost no built-in physical activity unless they are involved in athletics or extracurricular programs. For a large portion of students, that means very little movement until after school, if at all.
I think it is unfortunate that there is not at least 20 minutes of dedicated movement time built into the school day for older students to get up, reset, and release energy. From my perspective, there are likely several ways schools could create that time without sacrificing academic growth. The challenge is that it can be difficult to convince people to reduce instructional minutes, even when research and experience suggest that a “less is more” approach—where structured movement replaces a small portion of seat time—could actually improve focus, behavior, and overall academic performance.
This hits on and I agree completely with Zientarski’s ideas that highlight that movement is not a break from learning, but a support for it. That shift in mindset is important if schools are going to consider change at a structural level.
Within my own high school history classes, I need to be more intentional and try incorporate small ways to get students moving without losing academic purpose. I can improve in this area by being more intentional with strategies like having students move to different parts of the room for discussions, using gallery walks for review activities, building in quick stand-and-share moments, or even turning some review sessions into movement-based games where students physically respond to prompts or move between stations. Even short, purposeful bursts of movement can help reset attention and improve engagement.
I think that our students have the opportunity to get exercise and movement in our PE classes. We have a good PE teacher and he keeps them active. I do worry that some students do not get exercise. Students who dislike physical activity and suffer from obesity related health issues often get excused from PE or doctor's notes allowing them to take the elevator. They get no exercise at home, and parents seem to pull every lever to make sure they never have to.
ReplyDeleteWhat can be don to get students moving more in class. Gallery Walks can get students moving. Teachers can look for ways to get students moving into groups or stations around the room. Review games in which students can shoot a basket or other physical movements can help as well. Even giving students time to stretch and briefly move around can improve brain function.
ReplyDeletePaul Zientarski, in his TED talk “Want Smarter, Healthier Kids? Try Physical Education” discusses the links between exercise and learning. Do you think your students get enough exercise? If so, how much and how often are they getting it? If not, what could you do to get your students moving more often?
Our students have Physical Education twice a week for 35 minutes. In my Music class when we are preparing for a concert I also have them do movements with each song. I believe it helps them with the words and keeping a steady beat. And clearly helps them with learning other things as well.
I don't think that our kids are getting enough physical education or music education. My dream would be to have both PE and Music everyday and maybe do them together. :)