Making Brain Breaks Amazing & Meaningful

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Have you ever thought about how often your students need brain breaks? How about how often you need one? I can tell you that I probably will stop to look at my phone about 3 times while writing this blog post. Why? Brain break!! We all need them! Brain breaks are very effective management tools in the classroom. The challenge is figuring out when and what kind our students need to help them remain successful and focused with their learning.

brain breaks for elementary students

Types of Brain Breaks

There are a variety of brain break categories that serve different purposes.

  • to relax students- enhance mindfulness
  • to get wiggles/ energy out
  • to let students talk and interact with each other
  • to stretch students bodies from sitting but quietly
  • to have fun after a difficult task
  • to fill a few minutes between subjects with something active & productive

Ideas for Brain Breaks

  • Go Noodle– this website has a video for literally everything on the list above! IT IS AMAZING!
  • Simon Says
  • Yoga Stretches- make alphabet letters, pose like an animal
  • Just Dance Videos on Youtube- That Power is always a favorite of my students (make sure you preview all videos before showing)
  • Hand Up Pair Up Convos- students put up their hand up and high five someone near them, then partner up. You give them a question to talk about or a topic for quick chit chat
  • Make sticks of a variety of ideas to pull out such as
    • facial gymnastics (wiggle eyebrows, move mouth in a circle, etc.)
    • stir a big pot
    • exercises jump on one foot for 20 seconds
    • rock, paper, scissors with a partner
    • hop like a bunny to a wall then back
  • Quick Morning Meeting Activity

Management of Brain Breaks

No matter what you decide to do during your brain break time, you need to set some rules and procedures for how to make sure this time is productive. Here are some questions for you to think about when deciding what your brain break will look like and how you will run it.

  • Will you join in?
    • I suggest that you do, at least in the beginning. Some students have a hard time being vulnerable and participating in something like dancing so seeing you do it and laughing at yourself will help them see it is not so serious and scary.
  • What should students do if they do not want to participate in the chosen activity?
  • Will be brain break be the same time everyday?
    • I always do mine at the same time everyday so students can look forward to them. Depending on schedules some years I do two and some I do one. The impromptu brain break is always a big hit too if you finish an activity early!
  • Will it be the same type of activity everyday?
  • Will students choose the video or activity or will you? If students will choose, will it be a random student or a leadership opportunity?
  • What will you do during it if you are no longer joining in?
    • This can be a great time to check in with students and had a side conversation. I often do a brain break before science, it is also a wonderful few minutes to have to get out the experiment materials!
  • How long will the brain breaks be?
  • Can students use the bathroom during this time?
  • Can students take out a book or coloring page at their desk to do independently?

Brain breaks can be really effective management tools to help your students refocus and be in the right mindset to learn. I hope that these tips helped you think about where to get started with your class brain breaks. If you want to know some of my favorite videos on Go Noodle, send me a message I would love to share our favorites!