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When we think of intellectual activity, we always imagine people sitting still, motionless. But mental development must be connected with movement and be dependent on it.
-Maria Montessori, The Absorbent Mind
I BECAME INTERESTED IN USING MOVEMENT IN THE classroom based on my dance background. Dance helps release stress and channel energy in constructive and creative ways, and I felt that the children I teach would benefit from movement. However, it was a teachable moment that occurred during kindergarten circle time that revolutionized the way I use movement in the classroom.
Five-year-old Vincent has difficulty staying still during circle time. One afternoon I rhythmically clap and chant, "Sit down, Mr. V; sit down, Mr. V." Spontaneously, the children join in the chant with bouncy, rhythmic jumping, which has us all laughing and helps the children channel their energy constructively. After several minutes, the children, including Vincent, bounce back to their seats. They are now ready to listen. I learn that I can use movement as a tool for guiding children's behavior. My passion for movement now has a deeper purpose in the classroom.
"Children's future happiness depends on a rich movement life." This profound quotation from movement theorist Rudolf Laban (1963,7) holds true today. Young children move endlessly. They skip, jump, and hop spontaneously to show their feelings. They have a natural tendency to move-what Laban calls flow, or the "normal continuation of movement as that of a flowing stream" (Laban 1971, 55). Movement is a natural, inherent tendency in young children.
Research validates what many such theorists taught long ago-movement matters-and linking movement to teaching practices establishes a mind-body connection that enhances children's learning.
Research and theory
John Ratey, associate clinical professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, believes that the way we think, learn, and remember is directly influenced by our movements. Ratey states, "To keep our brain at peak performance, our bodies need to work hard" (2008,4). Current brain science links physical movement with improved cognition. In a study reported by Scudder et al. (2014), 46 preadolescent children, ages 9 to 10 in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, were tested via neuroelectric measures over a twoday period to record the brain's response during cognitive engagement. Researchers found that children who exhibited higher aerobic fitness had...