Brain breaks are short movement activities that help children focus and give them a positive outlet for energy and wiggles. Young children need brain breaks every 15-20 minutes to energize their brains and activate their senses. However, children tell you things by their behavior and they’ll let you know when it’s time to get up and move!
It’s important for the teacher to model brain breaks and participate with the students. These activities have an additional benefit by reducing stress and boredom – in adults and children!
Here are three pages of brain breaks that are quick, easy, and fun.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1SnEagA4jljNWNWalMwQjh5UnM/view?usp=sharing
My suggestion would be to choose one at a time and practice it for several days. (Not all of these are going to work, so just throw the ones your students don’t like in the trash and move on to another one.) Glue popular activities to an index card or jumbo craft stick and save them in a bag. After a few weeks you’ll have a bag full of brain breaks.
*Older students will enjoy choosing a brain break and leading their classmates.
I know many of you keep hearing “rigor” and “instructional time” shouted in your ear, so come back tomorrow and I’ll focus on brain breaks that reinforce skills.
P.S. Aren't you glad I've learned how to download patterns to google so I can share them with you? Gotta love Mr. Google!!!