Mini-Breaks Keep the Day on Track

 Everyone using a screen to work should take a break from looking at the screen every fifteen minutes and stand and move at least once an hour. Most of us have heard this advice for years, but how do you practically integrate it into distance learning. We all know having a child get up can easily lead to them going way off task. It can often lead to adults going off task, so many of us ignore this advice. But, science has shown that mini-breaks during learning and practice can help cement our memory of the material.

Realizing that breaks play a crucial part in the learning process instead of seeing them as an interruption can help make sure that children don’t burn out during the school day. A few simple strategies can help integrate more movement into using digital learning devices and avoiding staring too long at the screen. Some of these tips are student-specific, but others can be used by adults to ensure we stay healthy. They also allow us to model habits for children. 

The first one involves some counterintuitive organization for the workspace. Usually, we think we should have everything we use as close to at hand as possible, but this enables us to remain seated too long. I like to have on hand paper, pencil, and electronic interaction devices (I have a mouse and a writing pad), so children don’t have to interrupt instructional flow to gather their ideas or take notes. However, when switching from instruction to practice standing to gather materials gives kids a chance to look away from the screen. You can put specialty paper, math manipulatives, crayons, markers, and colored pencils in a visible location, but just far enough away that a student needs to stand and take a step or two to retrieve them. 

If you post your weekly schedule or daily to-do list, have your child mark each item as they complete it. I often post my to-do list on the other side of the room, so I can get up to cross off each hour what I’ve accomplished. It helps keep me motivated and moving. If you have a reusable list or need to be able to read what you wrote after it has been completed, don’t cross off the item, use a small dot or cover with a post-it or something else removable. I’ve even seen someone use a highlighter on laminated schedules. Everyone gets satisfaction from filling the list color as they finish work.

You can also put the materials for different subjects on a separate table or shelf from the work area, so I child must physically get up and swap out notebooks, books, or manipulatives. I know one family that did a two-minute check-in meeting in the hall every hour to make sure everyone stayed on task and treated it like changing rooms for class. What you do during a break doesn’t matter, as long as you give the brain a chance to focus on something other than absorbing new material. Ultimately, find what works for you and your child, so that the brain can get a break to process and store information.

Check out this Edutopia video showing a productive break for students: https://www.edutopia.org/video/science-behind-brain-breaks