After taking “The Kinesthetic Classroom II”, I have two ultimate goals I would like to implement into my classroom. The first ultimate goal is preparing the students’ brain for class at least twice a week in the beginning of class. My second ultimate goal is to incorporate one brain break everyday on lecture days. I believe these two goals are a perfect spot to begin my journey with adding movement into my classroom. Currently in my classroom, I may provide brain breaks once in a while but not as often as I should. Also I will admit, I definitely do not prepare my students’ brain for lecture. I tend to say my hellos’, ask how their day is going, and then jump right into lecture. “Movement in the classroom provides both teacher and student with …show more content…
Just this past year she has be using stretches in the beginning of class to have her students’ prepare for the classroom learning. I personally believe that collaborating with her I can gain new ideas and see what works well for her students and what does not work well. Also a strategy I would like to incorporate is to make sure the stretches I have the students do cross the midline of their body. “These integrative movements help students prepare for learning by forcing the hemispheres to work together, assisting in energy and blood flow, decreasing muscle tension, and stimulating and focusing the brain to improve concentration” (Lengel & Kuczala, The Kinesthetic Classroom: Teaching and Learning Through Movement, 2010). Here are some movement activities I would like to do in the beginning of the class at least twice of …show more content…
My other course I teach, F.C.S. Connections (requirement for our juniors in the high school) I personally believe I provide brain breaks for them. The content within this course provides students information on temperament, personalities, family and dating relationships, communication and conflict management skills, personal financial management, and empathy training. This course meets the framework for movement from brain breaks to teaching content. However, the foods course does not even come close to comparing. I personally feel comfortable with starting at providing brain breaks in my Foods 1 course. The reason behind having brain breaks is for the students to take a break from the content. During lab days, I have no problem having my students up and moving around but during lecture days, I need to improve. My goal is to have one brain break during each lecture day, my course takes place during an 80 minute block. My strategy to accomplish this goal is that after learning one concept or completing a worksheet/activity, I would have my students do a brain break before moving onto the next content. By taking a few minutes to take a break, my students will be able “to refocus the brain, lessen the feelings of being overwhelmed by the content, reenergize the body and the brain, and provides an opportunity for laughter and fun” (Lengel & Kuczala,
As I wearily sat in my seat, writing an essay on the importance of electricity in the modern world, I caught myself glancing repeatedly at the clock that was so carefully perched above the teacher’s desk. “Ten minutes, only ten more minutes left until school is over and I get to go home!” I told myself. In most schools, the average school day is about eight hours long. Eight hours of continuously sitting in a chair taking notes during lectures, doing classwork, projects, etc. During these eight hours of school, students deserve a short, outdoor break in which they can isolate themselves from the stress of working all day and just relax. Studies have shown that people who take short breaks throughout the day to do light, outdoor breaks are more productive than those who do not. A short, outdoor break will benefit students due to the fact that students will have time to relax; students will be able to focus more, concentrate, and be more productive; and teachers will have more time to prepare for the next class coming.
In this common adapted physical education (APE) class there are paraeducators who work on every student individually, so they are the ones that spend more time with each student. Although, they are defined as a related service that includes support the student movement and focus, keep the student focus and provide verbal cues. A pyramid going from less supportive to more supportive can be used to determine how to use a paraeducator in a class. The first level of the pyramid is based on a direct support to the student with disabilities. Other studies have shown that direct support decreases social interaction when paraeducators are always too close helping the student. The second level is similar to the first, but the paraeducator helps the student with extra equipment and may be paired with the student for safety. In the level number three the support by the paraeducator is at the top because video modeling is used as an instructional method. In video modeling the paraeducator works in an individual setting watching a video of the skill and helping the child at the same time. In order to complete this process three steps are followed. The first step declares that separating the class according to learner needs and level of support is an important part of modeling. The second step states that media has to be created for the lesson to target the student needs. The third step says paraeducators have to be able to use video modeling, so a designed training is obligatory. This process is enabled by having a well-developed communication between the physical education teacher and the paraeducator. The benefits of video modeling are interesting for the paraeducator. One of the benefits would be keeping the paraeducator busy during the in...
Griss, Susan. Minds in Motion: A Kinesthetic Approach to Teaching Elementary Curriculum. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann, 1998.
Today’s classrooms are designed after a few key theories. One of which is behaviorism. Behaviorism is the idea that we can control others through intervention as a higher order of animals. One of the guiding principles of behaviorism is scheduling, which helps initiate behaviorism strategies of learning. One of those strategies is contracting in which a teacher and a student negotiate to create a desirable outcome. Another is a token economy which uses contracting and scheduling to produce systematic results. In addition, prompting is the idea that a student will know what to do if a certain activity occurs. Modeling is simply the idea that your behavior will determine that of your students. Finally, Rote learning is the concept of use it
During cognitive development it is important that teachers allow time for students to have breaks in between classroom tasks such as recess and other extracurricular activities. Learning large amounts of material is easier for children to understand when it is taken in as chunks. Assign children with short tasks and switch from demanding activities to less demanding activities (Biehler & Snowman, 2000).
Even if we forget about the environment we still have to consider biology as the unique feature in each of us. We usually don 't take into account the fact that all our learning abilities, our concentration and focus abilities are intricately tied into the chemical processes of our body. Cognitive science tells that our consciousness and mind is not localized but an extension of the higher thinking processes, also known as Embodied cognition (Eleanor Rosch et al., 1991) . So, we need to recognize what process or strategy makes it easier for our mind-body to process information. So, it is important to include the body into any learning strategy we apply. Hence the need to include kinaesthetic or active experience based learning into our teaching
This topic paper discusses the book Teaching the Nuts and Bolts of Physical Education, which was published in 2008. The accompanying CD-ROM with sample lesson plans was not provided with the book. This book is really a guide to teaching 17 manipulative and 8 locomotor skills that children ages 5 to 12 will learn in physical education class. I will briefly discuss a couple of these skills with a suggested activity. This is a handy guide for a future physical education teacher. There are drawings and steps for each skill and key words or “cues” are also given. Finally, there are “troubleshooting” tips provided to use when a child is not performing the skill correctly and suggestions for practice activities to help children learn the skill. Truly this is a “nuts and bolts” book. It is really more of an instruction manual. I will begin with the skills taught in the book.
One objective of the yoga class was for all students to learn each yoga move as the class progressed. We fulfilled this objective through Skinner’s Operant Conditioning, Observational Learning, Lave’s Situated Learning Theory and the Direct Instruction Approach. Another objective for the class was to hold yoga positions for substantial amounts of time in order to...
Kinesthetic Learning Rationale “I hear and I forget; I see and I remember; I do and I will understand.” -Confucius No matter what it is referred to as - dance, creative movement, kinesthetic learning, creative dance, or dance-based learning - it is beneficial to all students when incorporated into the classroom. Movement is the key.
This conclusion was made because I noticed that when I would try to explain the steps to a particular movement with no visual representation, but just words, then she would have difficulty completing the movement. In comparison, when I showed her the movement by completing it myself and had her mirror my movements, then she would complete the tasks much quicker and learn them much faster. Upon determining she was a visual and kinesthetic learner, I skipped explaining movements without demonstration from then on. Each time I taught her a new portion of the burpee; I would demonstrate and explain the movement part by part, have her mirror my movements while reiterating the same instructions as I had given in the first step, have her complete the movement on her own but give immediate feedback, and lastly, she would continue to practice that movement at least three times thereafter. At the completion of the second visit, I asked if my instructions were helping or if I needed to modify anything to optimize her learning. At this point in time, she told me that the teaching layout did not need to be changed because it was clear and easy to
As we all are fully aware, each student is diverse and has special needs when it comes to learning. There are three types of learners: visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. Visual learners learn best when shown how to do an assignment. They prefer diagrams, pictures, and charts. Simply allowing your class to create flashcards and color coding notes can help these types of learners memorize the information. Our brain organizes information through a process. Creating flow charts will help the brain map out the information from the lesson given. Auditory learners learn best when a teacher presents information by talking to the student. When directions are read aloud, they tend to succeed. Allowing time for students to discuss the material in a group before moving on to the next is beneficial for these types of learners. Kinesthetic learners are learners who excel when engaged in the learning activity. By participating in labs, skits, and presentations, they acquire the information faster. Starting the class with a few warm up activities, next a lecture, then a classroom discussion, and wrapping up with a review will help all types of learning styles. Without the knowledge from psychologists about the different types of learners and their special needs, teachers would not know how to respond to their students who may struggle with the material given.
Movement is one of the most highly debated topics among teachers today, as every individual has his/her own opinions in their teaching philosophy. Teachers must get around barriers caused by the high priorities of standardized testing and low effort to include movement in their classroom; therefore, it puts too much stress on the general education teachers. There are insufficient amounts of space to complete activities requiring movement when in a classroom; therefore, the teachers are incapable of safely navigating students around the room. Some students will refuse to participate in different physical activities, causing frustration when teachers are trying to plan full class activities, and this takes away from academic instruction. It is often that educators exclude these physical activities from the classroom due to stress that is put on the schools to perform higher academically; however, studies show exercise may be a large factor in the student’s performance. There are so many ways to incorporate movement into the lessons that increase the students’ academic achievements while motivating them. As space is limited in the classroom, during the warmer months, teachers can use the outdoors as an engaging experience to refresh the students’ minds and prepare them for new lessons. Physical activities can also be used to reinforce information that was previously taught during lessons to increase the student’s knowledge of the topic. Opinions vary from one person to another, but there is only one way to find the effects that exercise has on the student’s abilities. Physical activity should be incorporated into the classroom because it promotes cognition and academic achievement, improves student behavior and attitud...
Getting children of any age to sit still can be a challenge for teachers. Classrooms are overcrowded in many schools, and the children have more energy than ever. Teaching children of any age can be difficult, especially when they are very active. Children are active beings; their desire to move about freely can interfere with their education when they have a hard time sitting still for long periods of time. It has been widely believed and accepted as common knowledge that children need to sit still and be silent in order to learn and retain information. There have been many studies that suggest that quite the opposite is true. Sitting still is not the best way for children to learn, and forcing children to sit still can have negative effects on their bodies. When we move, our heart rate and our circulation increase. Movement also allows more oxygen to flow to key areas in our brains. Allowing children to move around or fidget while listening and learning is beneficial to their education.
• Lessons should be kinesthetic and experiential. Use a variety of manipulatives. Be aware of ambient temperature—try to keep the boys from warmer areas in the classroom. Males do not hear as well as girls, so move them closer to the instruction.
Body awareness is a key part of Movement Education. Body awareness involves controlling one’s axial movements. This means that a person can control moving their entire body, or isolating one body part and movi...