Background/Purpose Recent literature suggests that using Activity Breaks throughout the school day is an effective way to increase physical activity in children and adolescents (Katz, et al., 2010; Salmon, et al., 2007; Going, et al., 2003). The purpose of this study was to learn about the perceptions of classroom teachers who incorporated Activity Breaks into their classrooms.
Method Participants were seventeen teachers from one Native American school district in the Southwest United States (male [n=6]; female [n=11]). They participated in a year-long curricular change initiative designed to integrate healthy behaviors into their school. The teachers received training through a series of workshops, were provided with some basic physical activity equipment, and had ongoing external mentor teacher support. Each teacher provided a series of reflections documenting their use of, and perceptions of the Activity Breaks that they used in their classroom (i.e., thoughts about activity breaks, student reactions, etc.). Semi-structured interviews were conducted to allow the classroom teachers to elaborate on their experiences. Trustworthiness measures included searches for disconfirming cases, an independent reader, and data triangulation of other data sources.
Analysis/Results Data were analyzed inductively by conducting systematic searches for emerging patterns across data types (Erickson, 1face986). Several common themes emerged including: (a) classroom teachers' discomfort with chaos in the classroom, (b) their affection for simple and easy Activity Breaks, and (c) their reasons for buying into the idea of including Activity Breaks throughout the school day.
Conclusions Teachers believe in the benefits of incorporating Activity Breaks into their classrooms throughout the school day.