How Brain Breaks Help You Learn

11 Ways to Reboot Focus for Kids in E-Learning

You know what it’s like.  You’ve sat through countless zoom meetings over the course of the last week. You think you’re bored.  It could be worse.  You could be taking Geometry remotely. As adults, we can take a break when we need to, but many students sit and stare at a computer all day.This is an extremely difficult task to expect of our students in hybrid or at-home learning. 

Luckily, there is time in between periods and throughout the course of the day, such as lunch and recess, where students can hit the pause button and take a longer break. 

It is important for students to get away from their screens and move around, not only to energize their brains but also to break up the monotony of sitting in front of their devices all day.  

Benefits of Brain Breaks While Learning

In a great and useful Education Week article, Larry Ferlazzo writes, “Movement throughout the day helps students to re-energize their bodies and their brains, helping them to focus and concentrate better.  Research has shown that movement during the school day benefits academic performance and improves behavior. ”

Specifically, research indicates downtime helps students:

• Reduce stress
• Increase productivity
• Boosts brain function
• Provides opportunities to develop social skills. 

Brain Break Ideas for Kids

Here is a list of the types of breaks I take with the students I tutor.

1. Basketball

We head outside and play a quick game of HORSE.  Getting out of the house is good because it provides separation from the work and also the fresh air and mask breaks invigorate students.  

Recently, I was working on fractions with a student, and we used the game of basketball to practice our fractions.  (“Great job!  You made three out of five shots.  What fraction is that?”)

2. Bounce and Catch

This is a great game I used to play with my grandmother.  The best part about it is that it can be played both outside and inside with a tennis ball.  The goal is to bounce the ball to the other player and see how many times in a row you can catch the ball without dropping it.

3. Cat or Dog Breaks

My student runs upstairs, finds her cat, gives him a quick pat and returns to her chair.  Doing so not only provides her with the opportunity for some much needed movement but also calms her.

4. Find It Fast

Mention a color or other trait (“something made of plastic” or “something square”) and students must find the object that fits the category and move to it quickly.

5. Music

One of my students loves bluegrass and is learning how to play the harmonica.  So we pull out our harmonicas and play a quick song.  The songs are simple and our playing is not great but we have fun playing together.  You can find note charts for how to play the songs online.

6. Rock-Paper-Scissors

This is a great game that I play standing up.  Sometimes, I let the winner decide the next activity to raise the stakes and make it more fun.

7. Sign Language

Begin by teaching your student the letters (printing off a copy of the Sign Language alphabet really helps make this task more about fun and less about memory) and then take turns signing each other’s words.  The other player then tries to guess the word and you can score points if you want to.

8. Simon Says

A classic. 

9. Take a Walk

 If the weather is good, take your student on a short walk of their neighborhood. I will often use these “breaks” as a chance to touch base on topics we have learned about in class or are reviewing and use the world around us to provide real world examples.  

For example, last week we were learning about the difference between an observation and an inference. My student was able to observe things in nature which made the concept more tangible for her, so she understood the concept better as a result.

10. Trivia

To ensure that some movement is involved, I play it standing up.  It’s a perfect game because it can last 10 seconds or 5 minutes. Plus, it provides culturally relevant information, which can be important for students to know.

11. Would You Rather

Ask students “Would you Rather questions (Would you rather eat chocolate or vanilla ice cream?) and have them answer the question by walking over to one side of the room or the other. To work on verbal skills, you can ask students additional questions about their choice.

Conclusion

So this is my list. What activities work for you? Please leave a comment.  I’d love to hear your thoughts.

If you’d like to talk about tutoring help, either in-person or online, please email me or call (508) 667-5104 for a free consultation.