3 Ways to Supercharge the Body and Brain for Back to School

The last days of summer are slipping away and school is about to start!

Any change in schedule is challenging, particularly for kids. The first few weeks of school are a difficult time for parents and teachers to capture and channel kids’ energies effectively. The good news is that the back-to-school wellness tips presented below can help clear mental and physical cobwebs brought on by a summer of “slacking.”

The body and brain have a reciprocal relationship. The brain tells the body what to do, and then the body gives information back to the brain, helping it decide what to tell the body to do next. When the brain and body work together frequently to overcome challenges, they both continue to develop for a lifetime. 

Additionally, more and more research on children is finding that when they move more, they not only make their brains better at guiding movement, they actually improve their ability to learn. In fact, a recent study demonstrated an association between levels of cardiorespiratory endurance, muscular strength, flexibility, and coordination and adolescent cognitive performance. Other research suggests that physical activity is positively associated with academic performance. 

Below are three ways movement can help focus and even expand kids’ (and adults’) physical and mental energy this back-to-school season, along with some activities that groups of kids can do at home or in the classroom to help build stronger brains and bodies.  

Increase the Heart Rate

The brain needs oxygen and glucose to function effectively. Assuming we are healthy and thriving, this “good stuff” gets to our brain when our blood circulates. More circulation means more good stuff to the brain. What’s the easiest way to increase blood circulation? Move! 

Any activity that increases our heart rate helps get more oxygen and glucose to the brain. Research suggests that aerobic exercise, in particular, may increase development of the hippocampus—the area of the brain largely responsible for memory and learning. Additionally, aerobic exercise appears to increase the amount of brain-derived neurotropic factor, which is type of protein that aids in the growth of brain cells. 

Have your kids try this quick, simple and fun aerobic activity to boost brainpower: 

ABC Adventures

• Children begin in a standing position. 

• Begin telling or reading a simple story. Instruct the children to run in place as fast as they can when they hear a word that begins with the letter G. 

• Children continue to run in place until they hear a word that begins with the letter S, at which point they must freeze on one leg and stay balanced until they hear the next word that begins with G. 

• If they are unable to stay balanced for the appropriate amount of time, they must do five jumping jacks, and then they can rejoin the game. 

• Continue for two to three minutes. 

• Consider adding other movements designated by letters, (e.g., sit, hop in place or turn in a circle). 

Cross the Midline

The brain is made up of the left and right hemispheres, each with important and distinct functions. An important “bridge,” called the corpus collosum, connects the two sides of the brain and allows information to pass from one side to the other.

Imagine a line running from the top of the head to between the feet that cuts the body into equal right and left halves. When we perform an action that requires us to cross this midline (e.g., reach our right hand to our left hip), it requires a large amount of information to pass through the corpus collosum quickly in order to coordinate the two hemispheres of the brain. The result is better physical coordination and mental cognition.