Movement - Liesl McConchie

Increase students' cognitive, physical, & emotional health.

Students who regularly engage in physical activity have improved cognition, physical health, and self-regulation. It’s like the trifecta of what we want for our students these days.

Add movement to your classroom.

When we think of physical activity we often think of PE class or after-school sports. However, students benefit from more physical activity throughout the day. Sitting in a classroom for 7 hours a day can lead to many undesired consequences. Students need to be engaged in physical activity throughout the day!

I’ve been partnering with schools across the globe for over 25 years to improve the learning experience of their students. When leading these large-scale reforms, one of the first adjustments we make is to ensure ample time for students to engage in physical activity. The payoffs are tremendous. You can read all about the research in the two volumes of movement activities, or watch the video clip of a news story below highlighting results one school I’ve partnered with has seen by increasing physical activity.

Increasing the amount of movement in the school day does not require a whole new schedule, additional staff, special equipment, or eliminating other content. All it requires is a mindset that values movement and a collection of strategies to keep your students active while learning.

What’s the difference between the two volumes?

Volume 1 has 50 brain-energizing activities to incorporate in your lessons. The movement activity can be embedded into your lesson, and supports the content. It’s a total win-win.

Volume 2 has 50 classroom activities to activate the brain through movement, sometimes called “brain breaks”. They will boost brain function, and are done separate from a content learning goal.

In short, you’ll want both. Volume 1 will maximize your instructional time, and Volume 2 is for those times when you wonder if anyone in your classroom is awake.

Move Your Body, Boost Your Brain is a two volume book series. Each includes:

a brief 5-page summary of the leading research connecting physical activity to increased cognition, health, and emotional regulation
50 quick, fresh strategies to get students moving during classroom time
a guide to manage transitions to maximize classroom minutes while still getting students moving
the ability to use these at any grade level (K-12). I created them knowing that middle and high school students tend to move less, and thus have the greatest need. Many activities can be easily adaptable for younger students.

Price: $4.99 for each volume; $7.99 if you buy them together.

Watch this news story to learn how Liesl is working with schools to incorporate more movement into students’ days.

Want a sample of what's inside these two massive volumes of movement strategies and research? Enter your information below and download a FREE sample that includes 5 movement strategies you can use today!

As a bonus, you’ll receive weekly emails from me with new tools to teach with the brain in mind.

Liesl McConchie bases her teacher training on a deep understanding of the underlying, research-based principles of really good teaching.

Teachers in her course will learn about them, and they will at the same time experience hands on an extended catalogue of strategies, ready to implement directly into their own classrooms – tightly related to and aiming to achieve those overarching principles.

As a teacher, I have been in Liesl’s teacher training several times and in my current position as a leader of pedagogy, I am working with Liesl to accomplish 3 weeks of training each year for all the teachers at the school as a platform for pedagogical development.

Gitte Glöde, Administrator