A Teacher's Guide To

BRAIN BREAKS

Kaley Cochrane, Maggie

Rebalski, Lisa Dumoulin
 WHAT?
Distraction is inevitable in modern society. Focus
and self-regulation seem to be more and more
difficult for students in our classrooms. Our
answer to this current issue? A fine-tuned list of
purposeful brain breaks that are efficient, easy
to perform and implement in any classroom, and
contribute towards the cognitive and emotional
health of our students.

OUR PHILOSOPHY
 1) Sustaining Focus
WHEN?
2) Switching Gears
5 Reasons
3) Energizing

4) Calming Down

5) Using Extra Time Efficiently

 Many classrooms have
WHY? substandard lighting, acoustics,
ergonomic and social conditions
to help students stay engaged
The Research (Jensen 2005, 36).

The brain needs time for

processing and rest after
learning(Jensen 2005, 37).
Primary students need a break
every 5-10 minutes, and
intermediate and middle years
every 10 -15 minutes (e.g. Jensen
2005; Willis 2016).

Children often have weak spines

and trunks. When the brain is
occupied trying to stay upright, it
c a n t f o c u s ( S h l a e s n d b ) .

To learn something and remember

it, new information needs to go
through our emotional filter: the
amygdala. If students are
anxious, overwhelmed or even
confused, the filter shuts down
(Willis 2016).
Physical activity stimulate blood circulation and the
production of dopamine. Both help to increase
student attention(e.g. Jensen 2008 and Ratey 2008
in Weslake and Christian 2015).

The vestibular nerve in our ear helps our bodies stay

a l e r t a n d u p r i g h t . W h e n i t s f i r i n g , o u r b o d i e s a r e
r e a d y t o f o c u s . I t s s t i m u l a t e d b y m o v e m e n t a n d
stops firing after period of inactivity (Shlaes nd a).

When we are stressed, our brains shut down because

of high heart rates, cortisol levels and the
overproduction of dopamine. Short, calming exercises
- like deep breathing and mindfulness practices -
actively reverse these effects and restore students
ability to focus and learn (Tennant 2005).

Brain breaks are fun and/or relaxing. If used

effectively, brain-breaks can increase student
motivation and engagement, which in turn increase
student investment and accountability in their
learning (Stephens 2015).
 SWITCHING SHORT ENGAGING
GEARS VIDEOS
Veritasium channel on YouTube
Ted Ed: Ted in 3 Minutes
PICTURE THIS:
*Disclaimer: ensure the video is
A student teacher just loaded and ready to play on the
gave an incredible lesson projector beforehand
that had students
excited, engaged, and
working hard. Energy is
high and you are coming
in to teach a completely
STRETCHES
different lesson. Lunch
1) Hula Hips
i s n t f o r a n o t h e r h o u r
2) Side Stretch
and a half, and the class
3) Elbow Circles
needs to switch gears
4) Chair Ballet Plis
and refocus...
5) Neck Flexes
WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
SUSTAIN FOCUS CHARACTER WALK
Signal for students attention
When I say go, take a stroll around
PICTURE THIS: the class and back to your seat.
Walk like one of the characters in
Your students are working the story.
on a task that requires Go.
them to focus for an
extended period of time,
like reading response,
math practice, or a
provincial exam. But you
THINK + PAIR
know that the brain's After 10 minutes of focused work,
neural pathways need to have students think and pair.
be refreshed every 10
minutes or so... Prompt with an intriguing question:
Would you be friends with this
character? Why or why not?
WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
 CALMING BREATH OF JOY
1) Stand up and raise arms in
front of you as you breathe in.
2) Raise arms to the side as you
breathe in a second time.
PICTURE THIS:
3) Raise arms overhead as you
I t s b e e n a b u s y d a y a n d breathe in a third time.
your students have just 4) Fold upper body down
come in from recess. andbreathe out.

They are wound up and
distracted... FULL BODY
SCAN
WHAT WOULD YOU DO? Students close eyes. Teacher leads
visualization, inviting students to
notice tension in face, to squeeze
and then release.
Then to notice tension in neck,
squeeze and release.
Continue to toes.
 HUMAN KNOT
USE EXTRA TIME
In groups of 8-10, students
EFFICIENTLY stand in a circle. Each hold hands
with someone who is not directly
next to them (a different person
PICTURE THIS:
for each hand).
Your class has just The challenge is to untangle and
finished a great lesson become a circle without
and has cleaned up all releasing hands.
their work. You have an
extra 15 minutes until
the lunch bell, and you WOULD YOU
want to make good use
of this extra time with RATHER...?
something interesting Ask a would you rather question
and intellectually and have students show their
stimulating for your choice by moving to one end of the
students room or the other. Have a few kids
share why.
WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
 ENERGIZING
PICTURE THIS:
Your students have been
working diligently for the
p a s t 1 5 m i n u t e s , b u t i t s
the afternoon and you
can see them losing
energy and focus.
You need something to
bring them back to it...
WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
STEP UPS
Everyone stands up and turns
their chair to the side.
Students step up and down 20
times alternating legs.
ONE AFTER
Start an action. Kids only do the
action after you do a second one.
Eg.
Teacher snaps fingers, students
stand still.
Teacher does jumping jacks,
students snap fingers.
etc.
 T

IS THERE VALUE
IN TAILORING
INDIVIDUAL
BRAIN BREAKS
FOR SPECIFIC
STUDENTS, OR
ARE THEY MEANT
TO BE DONE AS A
GROUP?

We have focused our project on brain breaks that teachers can

use with their entire class. We can also empower our students to
self-regulate their mental, physical, and emotional needs by
teaching them a few brain breaks that are appropriate for them
to self-initiate (e.g. breathing exercises or stretches).

As for fidgets, not all students will need or benefit from this
practice. As a teacher, you can support individual students
requiring additional or different breaks to practice them quietly
and independently when needed.

This idea underpins popular mental health programs practiced in

BC schools, such as Zones of Regulation individual toolbox (used
by the Nanaimo-Ladysmith School District) and the Calm Down and
Release the Amygdala initiative in the Delta School District
(Dumoulin, pers. observations).
T

ARE BRAIN
BREAKS PROVEN
TO IMPROVE
ACADEMIC
PERFORMANCE?

While much research and observation has been done on the

topic of brain breaks, we did not find any conclusive
studies that directly correlate the use of brain breaks with
improved academic performance. However, this lack of
conclusive evidence does not mean that brain breaks are
unproductive. Brain breaks prove to be valuable for
emotional wellbeing, focus, self-regulation, and purposeful
use of class time. In addition, there is research behind the
use of brain breaks in contributing to sustained focus and
increase in student motivation, both factors that
contribute to strong academic performance.
 T

SHOULD BRAIN
BREAKS BE
TECHNOLOGY
FREE?

We recommend teachers have a handful of brain breaks that require no

preparation, extra materials, or setting up of technology. That way,
those quick breaks can be used at any point during the day and only
take a few minutes to execute.

That being said, there are some great online resources that can be of
value in the classroom. We have all been in that class where time is
w a s t e d w h e n t e c h n o l o g y d o e s n t w o r k - n o s o u n d , n o c o n n e c t i o n , y o u
name it. So if you do choose to use technology for brain breaks, we
h a v e a f e w t i p s t o m a k e s u r e t h a t t h e b r a i n b r e a k d o e s n t e n d u p b e i n g
a bigger distraction:
- Have your technology all set up and ready to go beforehand
- Make sure there are no ads or that you have played through them
before the video starts (ads not only waste time, but can be
inappropriate for the classroom)
- Have a backup plan! If the technology needs troubleshooting, choose
a different brain break
- Make sure that the video is educational or purposeful