Implications and Exploring Links to Practice

My inquiry project is about the benefits of student and teacher brain breaks throughout the teaching day. I have observed that the common school day incorporates one short outdoor recess break in the morning and a short time outside after lunch, this conventional practice left me questioning why isn’t there a similar break in the afternoon. This is where my idea of incorporating short, focused brain breaks throughout the school day enters my teaching practice.

During my Thursday school visits and my two-week practicum, I have noticed that the need for class management increased in the afternoons and the students were increasingly having behavioral issues and were unfocused. There is no practice of brain breaks in my grade 3/4 combined class and I think that incorporating these activities would be beneficial and a welcomed activity for both my class and me as the teacher.

The types of brain break I plan on implementing into my classroom routine would depend on my students’ overall mood and would be at my discretion as I assess the classroom; in other words, it would be the students that set the mood for what kind of breaks to take. I plan on incorporating and encouraging three types of brain breaks:

·         Physical spurts of fun, positive energetic activities

·         Mindful and calming activities

·         Physical breaks that include learning content

The lengths of the first two breaks are intended to be short and get the students to prepped and refocused for learning. The third break can run a little longer because it incorporates content from the topic that we are about to cover.

Personally, I try to live a healthy, active, holistic life and being physically active helps me concentrate and focus on tasks that are presented to me; I took this self-reflection and thought that my students could also benefit from activities that can help them identify when they need a brain break in order to refocus and have fun while learning. I sincerely believe that these breaks not only benefits the students but the teacher as well and I believe that when you and your students have something fun or calming to redirect the energy or lack of energy, the need for classroom management can be decreased. I also bring my specific Indigenous knowledge into my teaching practice. The belief of the healthy balance of the mental, physical, spiritual and emotional aspects of an individual is a new motivating factor that I have not mentioned previously in my inquiry process.

During my own academic journey at UBC, I have documented the brain breaks that my instructors have used in their classes and I observed that these activities resets the atmosphere and allows us to keep engaged in our learning throughout the three hour classes. From January to March 2017, I completed a Music Methods course that I enjoyed very much and I have learned that teachers that bring the element of music into their classrooms can use this as a calming or uplifting brain break. In fact, I have observed during my Social Studies Methods class at a local elementary school, that classical music is played over the intercom after lunch every day to initiate a calming atmosphere. The teacher that I worked with at this school practiced a mindfulness activity with her students before they begin their school day. She used chimes to signal the transition into and the completion of the mindfulness activity and a calming voice to facilitate their breathing exercise.        

My next move in the inquiry process is to research and gather ideas of how to incorporate Indigenous knowledge into my inquiry and continue to compile resources to use in my classroom. I am in the process of purchasing books and other technology to help me become an active teacher in the classroom. Here are some of the books and resources that I anticipate would be extremely beneficial to incorporate this initiative:  

·         ‘Brain Break 1’ by Mike Smith. Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7jWtL7XLAk&t=105s

·         ‘Brain Break 2’ by Mike Smith. Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AFkVjzKoqLA

·         ‘Energizing Brain Breaks’ by David Sladkey. https://us.corwin.com/en-us/nam/energizing-brain-breaks/book237344

·         ‘Brain Breaks Blogspot’ Website: http://brainbreaks.blogspot.ca/

·         ‘The Happy Teacher’ Website: http://www.thehappyteacher.co/2012/08/brain-breaks.html

·         ‘Take a Break! Teacher Toolbox: Physical Activity Breaks in the Secondary Classroom’ by The Colorado Education Initiative. Pdf: http://www.coloradoedinitiative.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/CEI-Take-a-Break-Teacher-Toolbox.pdf

·         ‘Candle of Concentration’ by Cosmic Kids. Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yx_8bnRYL08&list=PLwFeauXd-qBoXHstQNZ0ca_Ksuj-z-Njx

Questions:

• When implementing a mindfulness activity, is it recommended to discuss the intentions with parents/guardians to be respectful of diverse cultures and beliefs?
• Would the teacher have to get the mindfulness activity that includes chimes and other tools that carry a religious connotation approved by the school administration before being implemented into teaching practice?
• How will I incorporate Indigenous knowledge into the brain break activities that will meet the First Peoples Principles of Learning?