Join WCTE’s Get Ready To Learn host Cynthia Putman and Putnam County School System Family Engagement Coordinator Jackie Reynolds as they discuss Action Based Learning. Reynolds, who has been trained in ABL, encourages all teachers and parents to get the kids moving.
Action-Based Learning is a pedagogy of brain-based learning theory which focuses on the structure and workings of the brain with regard to learning. Eighty-five percent of students learn best using kinesthetic learning strategies, which include physical movement found in Action-Based Learning activities.
Brain-based learning, also called educational neuroscience, identifies effective learning strategies based on how the brain retrieves and retains information. The biological side of this theory examines the holistic structure of the brain where learning occurs.
Senses of smell, taste, feeling, touch, and hearing must be used in the teaching process for kinesthetic learners. Motor skills, spatial ability, coordination, and social interaction are developed with physical activities integrated into the learning activities. Movement provides more oxygen into the brain for increased learning. As a result, academic learning is improved as a result of increasing the neural connectors in the brain.
These concepts are supported by research showing there is an increase in learning when students participate in physical activities. Brain scans demonstrate a growth in brain cells and increase in function from exercise. The purpose, then, is to integrate physical activity and movement in the instruction during academic classes. Exercise promotes healthy bodies and minds, and allows for an increased level of socialization in the classroom.
Action-Based Learning activities can be implemented at all age levels, but particularly have learning developmental benefits for young children through age seven. Older students to adults can still benefit from these learning strategies to enrich and remediate their learning, too.
ABL is not just a “Physical Education”thing but something you can add into all classrooms and in all grade levels. Here are three quick ways you can start adding kinesthetics into your classroom today:
Transitions: During transitions, for example from math to reading, have students do something active for one minute such as jump on one foot. Here are some more brain break ideas here!
Furniture: Add some different seating options such as yoga balls, wobble stools or allowing them to stand and work.
Hands-On: Allowing students to show what they know with hands-on activities such as role playing, plays/skits, building models or experiments.
Children’s brains also absorb information better on a time schedule. The 5- to 13-year-old age group learns most effectively when given information in five to 10 minute increments. Teens 14 and older process information in 10 to 20 minute increments.
Teachers may be able to expand these increments by using positive reinforcement with their class. However, giving kids periodic breaks between increments is ideal so their brains can rest and refocus. Simply standing up to walk around or stretch serves as a break. Children and teenagers are then able to comprehend and remember what a teacher is teaching instead of tuning out.
Reynolds advises parents and teachers to learn more about the power of movement and brain growth and development. Action Based Learning is a tool for parents and educators that will expand student learning. Students engaged in Action Based Learning show improved memory retention, increased focus and attention, improved grades, and less behavioral issues.
