S.M.A.R.T. Newsletter - Apr. '18

​S.M.A.R.T. Spaces
"I love this new game!" exclaimed one pre-k student as she moved through the S.M.A.R.T. course. What new Hopscotch "game" is she excited about? Heart Hopscotch!

We want our students to be jumping and hopping throughout the day to intensify the amount of proprioceptive input* their brain and body receive.

You may have been using a Hopscotch mat in your rotation of S.M.A.R.T. activities. We have a fun new idea for you to try that gets students hopping and motor planning in an exciting way!

Classrooms at Bright Beginnings in Owatonna, MN experimented with hopping on hearts.  Teachers lined up hearts turned at various angles. Students had to hop on the hearts, getting their feet to face the same direction as the top of the heart.  It was great fun for students to have to hop and maneuver their bodies to match the direction of hearts.
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Watch a short video clip of one student modeling how to do the activity.

We think this activity can be done with a variety of animal tracks too!  You can first teach the activity using footprints, allowing students to have an exact visual representation of where their feet should go.  Move on to using animal tracks to keep the fun going. Here are a few different footprints for you to print and try out!

Download:
Feet (PDF)
Duck Print (PDF)
Bear Track (PDF)

Older students will love to try our Stick Scotch activity in the Time Saving Tips section of this newsletter!  

*What is proprioceptive input?
The proprioceptive system enables the brain to know where each part of the body is and how it is moving.  Information sent to the brain from our muscles, joints, bones, ligaments, and tendons is called proprioceptive input.  Our proprioceptive system works to help us in developing good motor planning and motor control as well as understanding the force and timing of movement.

References:
S.M.A.R.T. Pre-K CORE guide page 42
S.M.A.R.T. Curriculum Guide page 61

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S.M.A.R.T. at Home
Boost brain power by taking your kids to the park! Not only is the playground a favorite place for children to play, it is extremely beneficial for brain development. The opportunities for different kinds of movement and sensory exploration make the playground highly stimulating for the brain. Here are some playground activities that the brain loves:

Swings!
Close your eyes and remember the feeling of swinging on a warm day during summer vacation.  Do you feel calm?  Do you feel free? Swinging brings balance to the brain. It produces a sense of calm. Swings provide sensory information to the brain through the vestibular and proprioceptive system. When on a swing, children can move front to back, side-to-side, and even around in a circle.  That is a lot of vestibular stimulation!

These sensations help both systems mature and build our body awareness. Body awareness is the ability to understand where we are in space and how to move about through it. Having a good understanding of body awareness will help your child be able to sit comfortably while learning, stay focused on the lesson, and move about in a more coordinated way.
PS: They are gaining the ability to sit still during dinner too!

Slides!
Do you ever find how repetitious children get with slides? They keep climbing up and sliding down, over and over and over. Why?
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Slides give our vestibular system great sensory input. When we are going down a slide we are feeling acceleration. This fast sensation helps to mature the vestibular system. When children have a well-developed vestibular system they have a greater sense of safety and confidence while doing other kinds of movements.

Monkey Bars!
Did you know that this exciting piece of playground equipment is great for handwriting skills?!

When children hang from the monkey bars, they are building strength and dexterity in the muscles found in their hands. Building strength in their upper body leads to more refined fine motor skills like handwriting.

When playing on the monkey bars, make sure your child is holding the bar with a motorcycle grip shown here. This grip builds the foundation for holding a pencil properly, which means moving across the monkey bars is helping your child with writing skills!

So the next time you find yourself playing in the park with your children, know that you are making your child a S.M.A.R.T. child! Want more information? Check out the article "M is for Monkey Bars" written by child development expert Gill Connell.

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​Time Saving Tips
Hey elementary teachers...do you have students this spring with ants in their pants? Perhaps they have wiggle bottoms during desk work?

They need a movement break! Try a student favorite called Stick Scotch!

This activity has a host of benefits for your students:

• Movement will help them re-focus and attend to your next lesson
• Jumping and hopping are great ways to get kids breathing deeply, forcing more oxygen to the brain
• Proprioceptive input from this activity aids in developing motor planning and motor control

Download the activity guide below and start this fun activity today! 

Note: We like to use paint sticks with Velcro attached when setting up Stick Scotch in a classroom. You could also use painter's tape or rulers to make the lines on the floor. If you are heading outside, try chalk lines on the sidewalk! Watch Stick Scotch in action!

Attachments:
Stick Scotch (PDF)

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That's One S.M.A.R.T. Teacher!
"S.M.A.R.T. activities truly do make a difference!"

One S.M.A.R.T teacher, Beth from Marshall, MN, a reading specialist who works with elementary students shared the above statement with us when writing in about a recent 4th grade success story.

After attending S.M.A.R.T. training in February, Beth has actively used S.M.A.R.T. activities and principles with her students.  Recently, Beth shared an experience where she incorporated two specific S.M.A.R.T. activities with a 4th grade academic concept. 

4th graders are working on memorizing states and capitals and learning United States geography.  
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Breaking down the Midwest region in three sections, Beth first used a Learning Ladder (see photo) for a student to begin memorizing the state and capital combination.  When pairing a movement with academic learning, you solidify the content in the brain. Once the student could recite the states and capitals by memory, she introduced an eye movement activity (Wagon Wheels) to help memorize the location of the state.  While tracing the state, the student would say the name of both the state and capital.  Beth repeated this strategy for all 12 states in the region.

Was this successful? 
“Today, she was able to come in and point to the map and tell me the states and capitals without being prompted at all. That is huge!! She said she hasn't known any of the states and capitals up until this point. It is just astounding to see how far she has come along, how her confidence has grown and how her reading is improving so much. The only thing we have changed is incorporating the SMART activities that she completes with me for 30 minutes each day. They truly do make a difference!” writes Beth. ​

Can you see yourself incorporating academics in this way? Just remember, when using movements and activities that promote brain stimulation at a foundational level, you support the strong foundation upon which academic learning rests.
 
Thank you Beth for writing in and sharing your S.M.A.R.T. success story!

References:
S.M.A.R.T. Curriculum Guide pages 148 and 246