Phase Two
Who
In Phase Two, PE and science teacher, Alex Collin, and Caroline Williams, science journalist and author of the book Move! The New Science of Body over Mind (Profile Books, 2021) are seeking partner primary schools to trial a set of in-class movement videos led by year 10 and 11 PE GCSE students.
The design builds on feedback from the successful 2023 ‘Move4Schools’ pilot study, in which 98% of teachers said that they would continue to use movement in the classroom, Teachers reported that “the children loved it” and that “It adds to the overall fun of learning while keeping students engaged.” Several teachers commented that short videos to guide the children would make movement easier to implement, which fed into the design of phase two
Why
After attending the UNESCO 'Fit for Life' and 'Change the Game' conference in Paris on July 23rd and 24th, 2024, Alex felt deeply inspired to encourage young people to embrace a more active lifestyle. The conference highlighted the importance of ensuring that children engage in at least 30 minutes of daily physical activity, which, according to recent data from Sport England, only 45% of pupils achieve.
While researching Move! Caroline was similarly inspired by the increasing evidence for the power of movement to reduce stress, enhance creativity and learning and contribute to healthy brain development.
What
The programme consists of 5 or 10-minute in-class activity videos designed for Key Stage 2 students and led by engaging secondary school students - where possible, by ex-students of the participating primary school.
The 2-week trial, will collect data from wrist-worn accelerometers and pupil / teacher questionnaires and other self-report measures. Week one will provide a baseline measure to compare to week two, when the class trials up to three Move4Schools videos per day. Teachers can choose from ‘Zone In’, ‘Wellbeing Workout’ or ‘Sports Specific’ challenges.