Effect of Integrated Physical Activities with Mathematics on Objectively Assessed Physical Activity.

Spyridoula Vazou,Gregory Welk,Pedro Saint-Maurice,Miriam Skrade

doi:10.3390/children5100140

Spyridoula Vazou, Gregory Welk + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/children5100140

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Journal: Children	Publication Date: Oct 11, 2018
Citations: 8	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: Iowa State University

Abstract

Background: One of the promising strategies for increasing physical activity (PA) at school is to integrate it with academic learning. The purposes of this study were: (a) to examine differences in objectively measured PA levels between integrated PA with mathematics and traditional lessons, and (b) to evaluate the PA levels of different integrated PAs. Methods: Seventy-seven 4th grade students (41 males) were included in an intervention (Move for Thought program: M4T) group (n = 46) that utilized PA integrated with mathematics or a control group (n = 31). Accelerometer data from each student were collected during five complete school days. M4T and control classroom sessions were identified using teachers’ logs. Accelerometer data were extracted, processed separately, and aggregated into a single data set. Minutes and percent time at different PA intensities were obtained using accelerometer minute-by-minute predicted METs. Results: One-way ANOVAs on PA levels showed a significant group effect (F = 5.33, p < 0.05) on moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) in favor of the M4T group, but not on sedentary and light PA. The most active integrated PA provided 10.88 min of MVPA (SD = 11.87; 21.38 ± 24.38%) in a 50 min class period. Conclusion: Integrating PA with mathematics in the classroom can contribute to increasing MVPA levels in children.

Highlights

For children to meet the recommended guidelines for daily physical activity (PA), national organizations promote the adoption of a whole-of-school approach by accumulating PA throughout the school day, across different settings [1,2]
It was found that the math lessons with integrated Move 4 Thought (M4T) activities in the elementary classroom accumulated significantly more minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) in the class compared to the traditional lessons
It should be noted that even though the difference in MVPA was significant, the actual average duration that children were in MVPA during the math lesson with integrated PA was 3.45 min, compared to 1.26 min of MVPA that was accumulated in the traditional lesson

Summary

Introduction

For children to meet the recommended guidelines for daily physical activity (PA), national organizations promote the adoption of a whole-of-school approach by accumulating PA throughout the school day, across different settings (e.g., physical education, recess, classroom, before- and after-school) [1,2]. Integrating PA with academic learning may be a more feasible strategy to help children meet the recommended PA guidelines, compared to extended recess or other strategies, because educators do not feel that they are taking time out of academic content during the already busy school day [6,7]. One of the promising strategies for increasing physical activity (PA) at school is to integrate it with academic learning.

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