Tag: learn

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Teaching

Teacher Tip: Encourage Exercise Throughout the Day

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Encouraging students to move and exercise during the school day is of extreme importance. In this blog post, I will share a few ways that I help my students move intentionally during the school day.

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Why Is This Important?

Students need to move throughout the day in order to help keep them engaged in learning. Movement during the school day is also necessary to help focus on physical and mental health with exercise. Movement activities can be woven into the school day during lesson planning as well as done spontaneously. Either way, it’s another way for students to have fun.

Some Ways I Get My Students Moving

Move to Music

I give students some instructions to follow while moving to music. When the music is playing, students choose how to move and exercise. Some simply walk around the classroom, while others do repeated exercises such as Jumping Jacks or running on the spot. Others choose to dance! When the music stops however, they need to complete a task and then freeze. Here is a sample task: “When the music stops, use movement to create an A-B-B pattern. Repeat it three times, then freeze.” Some students may do “clap-snap-snap” three times to complete the task, then freeze on the spot. We continue this for 3 – 5 times.

I usually use the music feature at www.classdojo.com when we do “Move to Music” each day.

Relay Races Outdoors

Nothing gets my students going like having relay races on the field outside of our school! For those who are competitive, it’s a great way to engage them with something they enjoy. I put my class into two groups and form two lines. Two students at a time run to a designated location and back. Those waiting to run eagerly cheer on both students. Before all of this even starts, we discuss how this is a way we can exercise in a fun way outdoors. It is not about finding the fastest runner, or about winning. It’s about moving around and helping to stay healthy. For most, it’s just seen as having fun.

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Go Noodle

Have you ever used the exercise videos and brain breaks at www.gonoodle.com? If you haven’t, please check it out! Teachers can sign up for a free account and have access to many videos that promote movement in the classroom. Exercises can be as short as 1 – 2 minutes or even 20 minutes. My students enjoy using several of these exercises throughout the day. I personally enjoy joining them, too.

Obstacle Challenges

Students love a challenge! Creating short and simple obstacles outdoors surely helps my class exercise and build their stamina. A sample obstacle course can include the following:

  1. Run to the tree (or designated spot).
  2. Use a Hula Hoop for ten seconds.
  3. Run to another designated spot.
  4. Toss a bean bag into a bucket.
  5. Return to the starting point.

Obstacle courses are great for my Grade 1 or 2 students because I can change the courses easily to help make challenges different and engaging.

Gym Equipment Bin

Each recess break, students can choose to take out an item from our gym equipment bin. Examples of what is kept in the bin are listed below:

  1. skipping ropes
  2. basketball
  3. soccer ball
  4. hula hoops
  5. scoop and ball

PREVIOUS TEACHER TIP: Celebrate Our Names

Questions to Consider

  1. How do you keep your students moving during the school day?
  2. What particular movement activities do your students enjoy the most?
  3. Does your class prefer opportunities to exercise indoors or outdoors?

Stay Connected!

Let’s chat on social media! Stay connected with Minds to Grow on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest. You can also keep in touch with linktr.ee/mindstogrow.

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Professional Growth for Teachers, Self-Care and Wellbeing for Teachers

Encouraging Words: Keep Going. Keep Growing.

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Keep going. Keep growing.

Some days may feel tougher than others, but be encouraged to keep going.

This past year has surely been and continues to be challenging, yet we have been gifted with being here now.

To the teacher who feels frustrated by all of the changes that need to be made in order to create learning experiences for students during this time: keep going.

To the parents who feel more exhausted than ever, trying to balance their own work at home along with remote learning for their children: keep going.

To the students who may feel confused about the times we live in and feel isolated because they cannot connect with their friends as before: keep going.

It’s harder to think so on some days, but it will get better.

It’s my hope (today or one day) that we can see the experiences we have gone through (and continue to go through) as ones where we grew because we kept going.

One step at a time. One day at a time.

Let’s keep encouraging one another.

Keep going. Keep growing.

#grow #growthmindset #keepgoing #keepgrowing #pandemic #pandemiclife #teachers #teaching #learningathome #betterdays #encouragement #thoughts #youmatter #blessed #grateful #mindstogrow

Personal Growth for Teachers, Professional Growth for Teachers

How Will I Grow My Mind Today?

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Every year when teachers get their class list for the following school year, we start planning in our minds about how we can reach this future group of students. We think about what worked well (and what didn’t work well) in the past year. We think about new strategies, lessons, and activities that we can use to help facilitate learning with our next class. 

A few years ago, as I was preparing to teach Grade 2, I looked at my new class list and recognized some familiar names. One name in particular got me thinking about how I would be able to help that learner. You see, that student had some difficulties with learning and as a result, was also struggling with low self-esteem. It’s not easy seeing your peers learn new concepts that you consistently have a hard time understanding. When I saw the name, I knew that I had to focus on building self-esteem and to help shift their thinking in order to help create a space for learning and growing. 

Enter Growth Mindset. I was determined to find a way to help that particular student from the very beginning of the school year. Once I learned more about Growth Mindset, I knew that it would not only (hopefully) encourage that student in question, but also benefit all of my students. In my mind, it was worth the effort to teach lessons on Growth Mindset and just watch what happens.

Well, I’m happy to say that it not only helped that child’s self-esteem, but it also strengthened the self-esteem of my other students! Growth Mindset revolutionized my classroom and helped me become a better teacher, too. It’s something that has also been a blessing to me personally as well. I am truly looking forward to exploring and sharing more about Growth Mindset through my Minds to Grow blog, website, and other social media. 

A question I like to ask myself each day is, “How will I grow my mind today?” Sometimes it’s just a small task (e.g., learning a Life Hack) and other times, a larger one. I love learning new things and for that reason, it’s exciting to challenge myself to do things that I may have thought were too difficult to do in the past.   

So I ask you today, too: How will you grow your mind today? What do you have in mind to try out that you’ve wanted to try, but perhaps felt too afraid to try in the past? 

Let’s encourage each other and watch each other grow!

How will I grow my mind today?

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What is Minds to Grow?

Introducing Minds to Grow: Here We Grow

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Thanks for visiting my blog on Minds to Grow! I’m so glad that you’re here!

My name is Kris. Since I was a little girl, I always dreamed of becoming a teacher. I feel so blessed to be able to live out that dream and be an educator to primary-aged students.

Through Minds to Grow, I help primary teachers save time with tips and resources for the classroom so they can also focus on personal and professional growth.