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Physical education is a valuable part of public education. In a time of unprecedented

sedentariness, human beings are suffering the consequences of lives led without adequate

physical activity. Physical education is not the sole purview of specialist P.E. teachers in

elementary and middle schools. The classroom teacher has enormous power over how much

physical activity her students receive every day. This lesson is an example of how a classroom

teacher might incorporate physical activity into a science based, culturally responsive lesson.

Students learn in a variety of different modalities of learning and are best instructed by

teachers who incorporate a variety of learning styles and activities into the everyday classroom

experience (Tomlinson, 2014). Incorporating physical activity, as this lesson does, engages

kinesthetic learners. Educational activities that occur in concert with physical activity have been

shown to positively influence academic achievement (Ford, 2016). Not only does this lesson

provide a much-needed physical stimulus, but it also provides an opportunity for diverse learners

to be better engaged and for all student to reap the academic benefits of increased physical

activity.

In the modern academic environment, where so much emphasis is placed on the core

areas of reading, mathematics, social studies and science, classroom teachers must find ways to

integrate core academic subjects with other, oft neglected but perhaps equally important subjects,

such as physical education. This lesson builds a local Alaska-focused science lesson around an

hour walk, a strategy that is designed to promote physical heath and academic achievement

(Marttinen, McLoughlin, Fredrick, & Novak, 2016). While not the most glamourous of activities,

walking is a physical activity that people can engage in throughout their lives: anywhere, without

equipment, from toddlerhood to old-age.

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Of course, physical activity is not only associated with improved academic performance.

It also increases students’ ability to focus, stay on task, and perform pro-social functions

(Watson, Timperio, Borwn, Best, & Hesketh, 2017). In this lesson, students are given the

opportunity to practice learning outside the school environment.

The lesson also incorporates an in-school element of paper-and-pencil work to help

cement the information gained during the lesson. In this way, the lesson reaps the academic and

social benefits of physical activity. Students experience much more than the obvious benefits to

health when they engage in physical activity: they learn valuable skills they can apply to other

areas of their lives (Lepine, 2013). This lesson’s local focus and attention to a useful outdoor

skill (plant identification) are sure to serve students throughout their lives in Alaska.
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References

Ford, K. N. (2016). The impact of physical movement on academic learning. Culminating

Projects in Teacher Development, Paper 13. Retrieved from

https://repository.stcloudstate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1009&context=ed.etds

Harri, R. Marttinen, J., McLoughlin, G., Fredrick III, R., & Novak, D. (2016). Integration and

physical education: a review of research. Quest Journal. Volume 69 (1): 37-49. Retrieved

from https://doi.org/10.1080/00336297.2016.1150864

Lepine, Nicolas. (2013). Learning through movement: integrating physical education with

the classroom curriculum. Sophia, the St. Catherine University Repository Retrieved

from https://sophia.stkate.edu/maed/35

Tomlinson, C. A. (2014). The differentiated classroom: responding to the needs of all learners.

Alexandria, VA: ASCD.

Watson, A., Timperio, A., Brown, H., Best, K., & Hesketh, K. (2017). Effect of classroom-based

physical activity interventions on academic and physical activity outcomes: a systematic

review and meta-analysis. The International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and

Physical Activity, 14 (114). DOI 10.1186/s12966-017-0569-9