Preliminary Efficacy and Feasibility of the "Thinking While Moving in English": A Program with Integrated Physical Activity into the Primary School English Lessons

Multi-level meta-analysis of whether fostering creativity during physical activity interventions increases their impact on cognitive and academic outcomes during childhood

Neuroplasticity research supports the idea that varied practice and new environments promote cognitive engagement and enhance learning. Expanding on a meta-analysis of the effect of physical activity interventions on cognition and academic outcomes, we reviewed and quantified the impact of task and environmental factors that foster creative physical activity. Interventions were considered as fostering creative physical activity to a greater extent if (1) they were varied, (2) relied less on technical acquisition, instruction or demonstration, (3) involved open spaces, props, or open-ended instructions, and (4) involved interactions with peers. A wide range of physical activities were considered, from dance to aerobic exercise across 92 studies in 5-12-year-old children. Creativity ratings of physical activity interventions were varied but did not associate with greater beneficial effects on executive functions (k = 45), academic achievement (k = 47), or fluid intelligence (k = 8). Studies assessing on-task behaviour (k = 5) tended not to foster creativity, while reversely studies assessing creativity tended to foster creative physical activities (k = 5). As a group, three studies that fostered more creative PA showed a small significant negative summary effect on cognitive flexibility. Considering qualitative differences in the physical activities performed in schools will improve our understanding of their mechanisms of impact. Future research should consider using more varied measures, including more proximal outcomes that involve body movements (e.g., a Simon Says task to measure inhibitory control).

A cross-sectional study of Canadian children's valuation of literacies across social contexts

Background

Children, on average, do not engage in sufficient physical activity to reap the physical, mental, and social health benefits. Understanding the value that children place on movement across social contexts, and the relative ranking of this valuation, may help us to understand and intervene on activity levels.

Method

This exploratory study examined the valuation of reading/writing, math, and movement across three social contexts (school, home, with friends) among children 6–13 years of age (N = 7,845; 51.3% male). Subjective task values across contexts were assessed with the valuing literacies subscale of the PLAYself. One-way Kruskal-Wallis ANOVAs were performed to test for differences between contexts and between literacies, respectively.

Results

Sex differences and age-related variation were explored. Valuations of reading/writing (d = 1.16) and math (d = 1.33) decreased across context (school > family > friend), while the valuation of movement was relatively stable (d = 0.26). Valuations differed substantially with friends (p < 0.001, d = 1.03). Sex dependent effect sizes were minimal (d = 0.05–0.11).

Conclusions

Movement is highly valued by children across social contexts; thus, programming across contexts should be prioritized to align with their valuation.

Effects of 8 Weeks with Embodied Learning on 5–6-Year-Old Danish Children’s Pre-reading Skills and Word Reading Skills: the PLAYMORE Project, DK

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of embodied learning on children’s pre-reading and word reading skills. We conducted a three-armed randomized controlled trial including two intervention groups and one control group. One hundred forty-nine children from grade 0 (5–6 years old) who had just started school were recruited from 10 different classes from four elementary schools. Within each class, children were randomly assigned to receive teaching of letter-sound couplings and word decoding either with whole-body movements (WM), hand movements (HM), or no movements (CON) over an 8-week period. Children were evaluated on pre-reading, word reading, and motor skills before (T1), immediately after (T2), and after 17–22 weeks of retention period (T3) following the intervention. Between-group analysis showed a significant improvement in children’s ability to name letter-sounds correctly from T1 to T2 (p < 0.001) and from T1 to T3 (p < 0.05) for WM compared to CON. HM and WM improved significantly in naming conditional letter-sounds from T1 to T2 (p < 0.01, p < 0.01) compared to CON and from T1 to T3 for the HM group compared to CON (p < 0.05). We did not find an effect on word reading or a correlation between motor skill performance and reading. Results from the present study suggest that there are beneficial effects of using whole-body movements for children. Hand motor movements indeed also had a performance effect on letter-sound knowledge; however, the whole-body movements had longer-lasting effects. We do not see an effect on whole word reading.

A Systematic Review of the Effects of Physical Activity on Specific Academic Skills of School Students

This systematic review examined the effects of distinct physical activity interventions on the academic achievement of school students based on an analysis of four distinct outcomes: mathematics, language, reading, and composite scores. This study was performed in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines and the QUORUM statement. A literature search was conducted using the PubMed-MEDLINE, Scopus, and Web of Science databases. Peer-reviewed studies published in English, Portuguese, and Spanish were considered. A random-effect meta-analysis was employed to determine the effect of interventions on academic performance. The effects between interventions and control groups were expressed as standardized mean differences. Thirty-one studies were included in the meta-analysis based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The exercise programs were not capable of significantly improving language, reading skills, and composite scores. Conversely, performance in math tests increased significantly after the interventions compared with the control groups. Regarding the overall effect, a significant improvement in academic achievement was detected after physical activity programs compared with controls. In conclusion, the positive effects of school-based physical education on academic performance are not uniform and may be higher for math skills. The implementation of evidence-based exercise programs in school settings emerges as a promising strategy to increase overall academic achievement in school-aged students.

Motor-enriched learning for improving pre-reading and word recognition skills in preschool children aged 5-6 years - study protocol for the PLAYMORE randomized controlled trial

Background

Results from previous studies suggest that bodily movements, spanning from gestures to whole-body movements, integrated into academic lessons may benefit academic learning. However, only few studies have investigated the effects of movement integrated into reading practice. The PLAYMORE study aims to investigate the effects of two interventions focusing on a close and meaningful coupling between bodily movement and academic content on early pre-reading and word recognition skills in children. Further, the study aims to compare two interventions involving either hand movements (i.e. using arms and hands) or whole-body movements (i.e. using the whole body). Potential mediating factors underlying the link between bodily movement on early pre-reading and word recognition skills will be explored.

Methods/design

The PLAYMORE study will be conducted as a three-armed randomized controlled trial including children aged five to six years recruited from four schools in the Copenhagen area, Denmark. Stratified by class, children will be randomly allocated to one of three 8-week intervention/control periods: 1) teaching involving whole-body movements, 2) teaching involving hand movements (i.e. arms and hands) or 3) teaching involving minimal motor movements (i.e. seated on a chair using paper and pencil). Outcome measurements, including pre-reading and word recognition skills, will be collected before and after the intervention period to assess the intervention effects. This study protocol follows the SPIRIT guidelines.

Discussion

The PLAYMORE study will add to the current knowledge concerning the link between bodily movement and academic performance with important details about pre-reading and word recognition skills in preschool children. If effective, evaluation of the implementation of the PLAYMORE program should be conducted in order to investigate whether the effects can be transferred into standard school settings. The PLAYMORE study will lay the foundation for future research that have the potential to inform the political and scientific debate and importantly, to provide teachers with detailed information of how to implement movements effectively during teaching in order to support and motivate children in the process of learning to read.

Trial registration

The study was retrospectively registered in ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04618822) the 5th of November 2020.

A systematic review and meta-analysis on the effects of physically active classrooms on educational and enjoyment outcomes in school age children

Objectives

Despite the relationship between physical activity (PA) and learning outcomes, the school system has not been able to support the inclusion of PA throughout the day. A solution to this problem integrates PA into the academic classroom. The objective of this review is to determine the impact of active classrooms compared to traditional sedentary classrooms on educational outcomes of school-aged children.

Design

We searched ERIC, PubMed, PsychINFO, and Web of Science, reference lists of included studies for randomised controlled studies. Independent reviewers screened the texts of potentially eligible studies and assessed the risk of bias. Data were pooled using random-effects models on standardized mean differences.

Results

This review identified 25 studies examining educational outcomes, including approximately 6,181 students. Risk of bias was assessed as either some or high risk of bias for most of the studies and outcomes. Pooled data from 20 studies and 842 participants measuring academic performance shows a small positive effect of active classrooms compared with traditional, sedentary classrooms (SMD = 0.28, 95% CI: 0.09 to 0.47).

Conclusions

Physically active classrooms may slightly improve academic achievement compared to the traditional sedentary lessons. Future research is needed to ensure that studies are adequately powered, employ appropriate methods of randomization, and measure a wide range of important student outcomes across the full spectrum of the school-age.

Integrating physical activity into the primary school curriculum: rationale and study protocol for the "Thinking while Moving in English" cluster randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND

The current and declining physical activity levels of children is a global concern. Integrating physical activity into the school curriculum may be an effective way not only to improve children's physical activity levels but also enhance educational outcomes. Given the recent national focus in Australia on improving the literacy levels of children in primary school, and an increasing proportion of time spent on explicitly teaching these skills, integrating physical activity into English could be a viable strategy to improve literacy levels and physical activity at the same time. The aim of this study is to evaluate the impact of the 'Thinking While Moving in English' (TWM-E) program on children's physical activity, on-task behavior in the classroom, academic achievement, and executive function.

METHODS

Grade 3-4 children from 10 public schools in New South Wales, Australia will be randomly allocated to intervention (n = 5) or control (n = 5) groups. All teachers will receive 1-day workshop of registered professional learning and a TWM-E equipment pack (e.g., chalk, lettered bean bags). Intervention schools will be asked to adapt their English lessons to embed movement-based learning in their daily program for three 40-min lessons per week, over a six-week period. The primary outcome is children's physical activity levels across the school day (measured using accelerometry). Secondary outcomes are children's on-task behavior during English lessons, academic achievement in English, and executive function. A detailed process evaluation will be undertaken including questionnaires, fidelity checks, and teacher and student interviews.

DISCUSSION

The TWM-E program has the potential to improve primary school children's physical activity levels, along with academic outcomes (on-task behavior, cognition, and academic achievement), and provide stakeholders with exemplar lessons and guidelines which illustrate how to teach English to children whilst they are moving.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

Australian and New Zealand Clinical trial Register ACTRN12618001009202 Date registered: 15/06/2018 retrospectively registered.