Abstract
There is abundant research pointing out the physiological and psychological benefits of physical activity for children (CDC, 2010a), so providing opportunities for children to be active is necessary and beneficial. “Classroom Exercises for the Body and Brain” was developed in the state of Georgia by the HealthMPowers organization to help classroom teachers provide structured physical activity in their classrooms for their students that can be done at their desks as exercise breaks, used as energy boosters, or for rainy day recess. According to the HealthMPowers (2009) organization, exercise interventions or classroom energizers are practical and time-efficient ways to increase student activity time, help focus student’s attention, and provide activity that is moderate to vigorous. Many of these exercise programs are designed with good intentions, but have little data to support their claims. The purpose of this thesis was to investigate the intensity levels of nine to ten year old students participating in a video classroom exercise program in a regular classroom setting. Twenty-five fourth grade students (10 females and 15 males), from one intact class participated in this study. Four DVD video exercise sessions ranging from 1 minute 45 seconds to 2 minutes 30 seconds in length were investigated. Data were collected twice on each of the four video exercise sessions. Data collection occurred on six days over a four week period. On the first day students’ were measured for weight, height, and waist circumference and learned how to properly put on the heart rate monitors. On the second day students practiced using the heart rate monitors, learned how to perform the exercise videos, and practiced the rate of perceived exertion (RPE) scale. During the final four days of data collection, students participated in two video sessions each day. A thirty minute break was given to students in between each video to allow the heart to return to a sitting heart rate level.
Results revealed that the intensity of the exercise videos resulted in almost all students reaching their target heart rate zone. There was no significant relationship found between peak exercise heart rate and responses to the RPE scale, waist circumference, or BMI. The exercise video with the highest mean heart rate was “Pretend Jump Rope” (M=162.4, SD=16.45) and the lowest mean heart rate was from “Chair Aerobics” (M=142.86, SD=23.75). The exercise videos “Air Step Aerobics” (M=148.86, SD=24.76) and “Mind in Motion” (M=148.94, SD=16.20) had similar intensity levels. Students and the teacher reported positive feelings towards the exercise video program.
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