Get 1 hour or more of physical activity each day. Today we will be discussing why it is important to “Get 1 hour or more of physical activity each day”.

Name your favorite physical activity Ask students to “think, pair, share” by asking “What are your favorite physical activities? How do you feel after participating in these activities? How often do you do these activities? This will provide the opportunity to activate prior knowledge in how students feel getting physical activity and inform instruction on the activities your students enjoy.

Learning Objective Today you will understand the importance of getting 1 or more hours of physical activity each day. Review learning objective - Students understand the importance of getting at least 1 hour of physical activity.

Why do you think it is important to get at least 1 hour of physical activity each day? Ask students, “Why do you think it is important to get at least 1 hour of physical exercise each day?” Let students share their answers. They will have many excellent reasons. Share with students that today we will discuss two main reasons why physical activity is so important.

Physical activity strengthens your heart. There are many reasons why getting at least 1 hour of physical activity each day is important.   The first important reason is physical activity strengthens the heart. Ask students “Have you ever gone under water and held your breath?” “What happened?” Students will probably tell you at some point they had to come up for air or they could not breathe. Ask them “Why?” “The heart is responsible for pumping blood throughout your entire body. Something very important to our bodies is contained in the blood; do you know what it is?” Oxygen! “Oxygen is carried through the blood. Without it, we cannot survive, so a healthy heart that pumps blood and oxygen well is critically important to our health. There are several things we can do to keep our heart healthy and one very important thing we can do is to get at least 1 hour of physical activity each day. Ask students to share types of activities they like to do that really get their hearts pumping. Getting at least 1 hour of exercise each day is very important to keeping the heart strong and healthy. Ask students “Did you know you can prevent many future health problems by getting regular exercise every day?” Not being active can lead to many health problems such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure and ultimately heart disease. The best thing you can do is to get 1 hour of exercise per day to prevent future health problems. The earlier you adopt healthy habits such as exercise, the more likely you will live a long, healthy life. Teacher Note: An aerobic activity uses the major muscles and is the type of activity which will strengthen the heart by giving it a prolonged workout. The term aerobic means “with oxygen.” Examples of aerobic activities are dancing, running, cycling, swimming, soccer or football, etc.

Physical activity increases your brain power! Exercise helps: • Sleep • Learning • Mood • Attention • Energy • Memory The second important reason getting 1 hour or more of physical activity each day is important is because it helps your brain. It will make you feel better and boost your energy levels. It also will help you focus, learn, sleep better and remember things more.   Chemicals released by your brain during physical activity are called endorphins and they help improve your mood and help you feel less stressed and more confident about yourself. Research also shows that getting regular physical activity can help you do better in school! Students who get at least 1 hour of vigorous physically exercise each day tend to do better on tests and are able to concentrate better in class.

Make time for physical activity – at least 1 hour per day for your heart and brain and lifelong health! Let’s start right now! There is no better time to start than right now so let students know that today as a class; they will spend 10 minutes getting physical activity. Before giving directions for the physical activity, let students know that the objective is to keep the heart rate elevated for a prolonged period of time. This takes pacing. Instruct students to slow down if they start to feel their heart beating too fast or if they get too short of breath and to listen to their bodies and take breaks as needed. Set up physical activity stations in the classroom for students to rotate through or take them outside for a vigorous game of tag. (See lesson plan for physical activity ideas and instructions) Remember to ask students after engaging in exercise, “How do you feel after exercise? Could you feel your heart pumping blood or beating faster? Did you notice yourself breathing harder and taking in more oxygen?”

Create a Health Goal My health goal is ___________________________. The steps I will take to reach my goal are: Have students write down a specific and measurable health goal related to getting at least 1 hour of physical activity each day and use the Walk On! Challenge tracking tools to measure their success throughout the week.

Three things I learned today 1. 2. 3. Ask students to share in their group or with a neighbor what they feel is the most important thing they learned today. Or, as a classroom group, ask students to identify three things that they learned that they felt was most important to them today. Challenge students to get at least 1 hour of physical activity each day for the month and chart their progress. Review each week to reinforce the Walk On! Challenge to ensure students are making progress toward the goal.