New year, new you, right? Seems like a common theme for people to want a fresh start in the new year. Interestingly, I read that less than 10% of Americans make resolutions that they actually keep (van Bavel & Packer, 2022). Almost a quarter drop theirs by the end of January. I’m guilty. I’ve tried [...]
As winter break approaches and students get more and more excited about the holiday season, incorporating some common festive songs into your daily movement breaks is easy! Using the movement bank concept, draw stationary activities out of a hat (or simply preselect these movements). These may include squats, neck rolls, marching in place, touching toes, [...]
As Thanksgiving approaches, gratitude and thankfulness trickle to the forefront. We know that gratitude can improve physical and mental health through better sleep, higher immunity rates, lowered depression and anxiety and reduced risk of disease (UCLA Health, 2023). Following are some ideas for how we can integrate gratitude with movement for our students: Complimentary Post-Its [...]
In anticipation of holiday events with your students, it’s always a good idea to plan out some movement ideas to go along with the food and more stationary activities during parties and celebrations. Most schools celebrate Halloween. The day is typically associated with candy and sweets, so it can be a great opportunity to educate [...]
Now that the school year is underway, your protocols and procedures are probably established, and there’s room to add some movement breaks for the students to get their wiggles out! Allowing children to move and be active helps facilitate learning with memory retention and increased concentration. Below I share some of Moving Minds’ top products [...]
Back to School Night (aka Meet the Teacher or Open House) may be approaching soon for you, and one effective way to engage your students, family members, and parents/guardians is to grab their attention with movement breaks during their visit to your classroom. Depending on how the event is organized, there are various ways to [...]
So, you’re an elementary teacher and you wonder why I’m suggesting including juggling, right? Well, one, it can be done in small spaces like your classroom, two, plastic grocery bags make for good scarves, and three, it can be good for the brain! From your experience with children, I’m sure you know avoiding sedentary behavior [...]
Summer break is here! Enjoy a little time away from the classroom. But… as you mentally prepare for the coming year, the most sound advice I can give is to spend ample time in behavior management and organization. The more effectively this is done at the beginning of the year, the more time that can [...]
Having a plan to organize my email inbox helps reduce my stress levels so I can be more productive and present in other ways. I was reading about it and came across a helpful blog on “Inbox Zero” that has helped me over the past several years (Davies, 2022). I hope you’ll join me in [...]
Having a sensory space in your classroom provides students with a quiet and calm area to re-focus. Sometimes all a student needs is something to distract them from the current environment/situation in order to reset the brain for the task at hand. As a teacher, if you notice a student needs to have a break [...]
