Interesting Research on Movement and Learning

For decades, the educational and scientific communities seemed to believe that thinking was thinking and movement was movement, and each was as separate as could be. Today scientists know better and have hard evidence of strong connections between physical education, movement, energizing activities, and improved cognition. Movement can be an effective cognitive strategy to strengthen learning, improve memory and retrieval, and enhance learner motivation and morale.

Physically Fit Children Perform Better in School
The Ready Steady Move! motto is, "An active body is a learning body." It sums up our belief that good physical health and fitness promote learning. An article from the BBC summarizes the results of 14 international studies, all of which show that physically active children perform better in their academic courses.

For the full article, click here.

Middle Childhood – An Important Transition
In The Hormone Surge of Middle Childhood, New York Times science writer Natalie Angier gives details on new research into middle childhood – the time between toddlerhood and adolescence – and its importance in child development.

For the full article, click here.

Physical Fitness Is Associated with Higher Academic Achievement
Physically fit students tend to outscore their peers who are less-fit on academic tests, according to a report from New York City’s Health Department and Department of Education (DOE).

Linking Literacy and Movement
Why and how early childhood professionals should use movement as a tool in the promotion of children’s emerging literacy.

Movement and Learning
Neuroscientists at the University of California at Irvine discovered that exercise triggers the release of a natural substance that enhances cognition by boosting the ability of neurons to communicate with one another.

More Movement, Smarter Kids
As Einstein so succinctly pointed out, “Learning is experience. Everything else is just information.

Developmental Movement Play Theory
Sensory motor activity supports the development of functioning necessary to be able to learn.

Movement as Inclusive Pedagogy in the Early Years
Active learning contexts through movement experiences have been shown to enhance basic cognitive concepts in typically developing young children.

Learn ESL Through Movement
While the left-brain puts up a fight against the memorization of new languages that occurs in so many classrooms, the right brain is completely open to responding to new commands, immediately.