Insanity: doing the
same thing over and over again and expecting different results. -Albert Einstein
One way to transform the education system in Taiwan is through
exercise. If parents and educators really want their children’s grades,
cognitive functions, motivation and memory to improve, is by valuing fitness and
exercise. Not to mention the added benefits of physical longevity and quality
of life. What’s the point of studying hard at the expense of your health, to
get into the right University to get the right job to make a lot of money, and
end up flat on your back?
Being a teacher in Taiwan for over six years and having a
child in this system, I have a vested interest in education issues in Taiwan.
There are positives to the system here, as well as drawbacks. Having grown up
as a student in the US, I of course have my opinions based on my background.
Many recent academic studies support my belief: the more fit
the child is, the better the learner. Exercise optimizes the brain’s ability to
learn. Exercise also positively affects emotional and behavioral problems.
Physical activity
should have a place in the curriculum of every school that’s serious about
teaching its kids. In America, the
National Association for Sport and Physical Education recommends 60 minutes a
day for children and adolescents. They recommend schools provide 150 minutes
per week of instructional physical education for elementary school children,
and 225 minutes per week for middle and high school students throughout the
school year. Adequate PE curriculum can help children achieve these numbers, in
turn creating healthy bodies and eager-to-learn minds. When I was a kid, PE was three times a week, plus a morning and afternoon 20 minute recess.
We need to get our kids out of their seats and learning. Maybe
in a public school your voice as a parent or student doesn’t have so much
weight, but at a private school, parents can pressure the school to adapt and
progress their methods from a more traditional style, sit and be fed style to
one that is more progressive and holistic. Short recess breaks are better than
nothing, and I am thankful my daughter is learning Tai Chi once a week, but a substantial PE curriculum isn’t so much to ask.
Sources:
Ideas for teachers: This is what I am trying to implement in my classroom (emphasis on trying).
1.
5-4-3-2-1. In this simple
game, students stand up and the teacher (or leader) has them do five different
movements in descending order. For example the teacher would say:
"Do five jumping jacks, spin around four times,
hop on one foot three times, walk all the way around the
classroom two times, give your neighbor one high-five
(pausing in between each task for students to do it).
- Trading Places Have students stand behind
their pushed-in chairs. Call out a trait and everyone who has that trait
must change places with someone else (students who do not have the trait
stay where they are). Examples: "Everyone with curly hair."
"Everyone who ate cereal for breakfast." Everyone who is wearing
stripes."
- Six Spots Number six spots around your room
from 1-6. Have students each go to a spot of their choice. Choose a
student to roll a die (if you can make a big one out of foam, it adds to
the fun). All the students at the number rolled must go back to their
seats. Students that are left go to a new spot and the die is rolled
again. Continue until only a few students are left.
- Mingle, Mingle,
Group! In
this game students mill about the classroom saying, "mingle, mingle,
mingle" in soft voices until the teacher says "Groups of
5," at which point the students must quickly group themselves into
groups with the correct number of people. Students who are left over must
do three jumping jacks before the next round starts. The teacher can call
out any number for the group size. You can also add rules such as: as soon
as a group is complete, all members must sit down in a line.
- Dance Party! Put on some rockin' music
and dance! If you can make the room semi-dark and have a black light or
other special effect, your kids will love it!
- Freeze Dance! Similar to Dance Party
except that every so often the music stops and students must freeze and
hold the position they are in until the music begins again.
- Name Moves Students stand behind their
chairs. In turn, each student says his or her name accompanied by a
special movement. For example a student might say, "Kayla!"
while dramatically dropping to one knee and doing Jazz Hands. After the
student does his or her move, the rest of the class says the students name
in unison and imitates the move. Then it is the next student's turn.
- Keep it Up: Students must keep a beach ball
from hitting the ground. Add two or three balls to make it even more fun.
- Simon Says An oldie but a goody!
- Movement Songs Sing a song with whole-body
movements such as, Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes, Father Abraham,
Toe-Knee Chest-Nut, Shake Your Sillies Out (Raffie), Grand Old Duke of
York, My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean etc.
- Recorded
Movement Songs Older
students might enjoy a simple Zumba routine, YMCA, or the Macarena.
Littler ones will love Sesame
Street's A Very Simple Dance to Do.
- Animal
Pretend Younger
children will enjoy pretending to be various animals (or even objects such
as lawn mowers or airplanes). Call out a few in sequence.
- Would You Rather Ask a would you rather
question and have students show their choice by moving to one end of the
room or the other. Have a few kids share why. Here are 20 free Would You Rather Questions to
get you started.
- Find it
Fast Call out a
color or other trait (something round, something made of wood), and
students must find an object in the room that fits the trait and get to it
quickly.
- Physical
Challenges Challenge
students to do something physically difficult such as standing on one foot
with arms extended or this one: grab your nose with left hand and grab
your left earlobe with your right hand,then quickly switch so that your
right hand is on your nose and your left hand is grabbing your right
earlobe. Yoga poses could also be a good variation.
- Plates Give each student a paper
plate. Students must walk around the room balancing the plates on their
heads. If a student drops his or her plate, the student must freeze until
another student picks it up and places it back on the student's head
(while keep his or her own plate in place, of course).
- Line Up! Have students line up using
a specific criteria such as age (use day and month, not just year),
height, alphabetically by middle name, hair length, etc.
- Limbo All you need is a long stick
and a pair of kids to hold it. Music is nice too.
- Human Knot Divide students into groups of
about eight students. Have students each grab right hands with someone who
is not directly next to them. Then do the same with left hands. The
challenge is to untangle and become a circle without releasing
hands.
- Jump Skip
Counting Have
students count by twos, fives, tens etc. while jumping with each count.
You could also practice spelling words this way.
Please note that I did
not come up with all of these out of my own head. Here are some of the sources
I used:
- Michigan
Department of Education: Brain
Breaks (great resource!)
- Pro
Teacher: Quick Brain Breaks
- I Want to Teach
Forever: Teachers Share Their Best Brain Breaks and Contest
Winners
Sources:
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