GoNoodle Back to School Blogger Blitz... win GoNoodle SWAG!

As a teacher, I love discovering new resources that make my life in the classroom a little easier and a lot more fun! GoNoodle is definitely one of those great resources! GoNoodle is a website that offers free brain break videos that help channel classroom energy for good. They have 7 different categories of videos including guided dancing, free movement, stretching, sports and exercise, kinesthetic learning, coordination, and calming. There are so many options for getting students up and moving or relaxed and calmed down when they need it most! I use it EVERY DAY in my classroom and couldn't imagine life without it! I believe in it so much that I'm joining with the fine folks at GoNoodle for the GoNoodle Back to School Blogger Blitz to share some ideas for how I'll be using it in my classroom this year. Keep reading to the bottom... I'll have a huge giveaway for you at the end!!

It's super easy to sign up - you just fill out a small information form, choose a class champ, and voila! You're on your way to GoNoodle brain break fun.

This year, I'll be using GoNoodle in my classroom in a variety of ways!

The first way I'll be using GoNoodle in the classroom is as a behavior motivator. I tell my students that they can earn a brain break for completing any number of tasks: working quietly, following directions quickly, doing their best work... anything goes! They instantly get straight to the task at hand when I tell them they can earn GoNoodle time. It's the easiest no-prep behavior reward around! 

My students also love to be able to choose their class champ. Sometimes, I'll let a student who exhibits extraordinary behavior choose our next champ when it's time to pick a new one. 

Other times, we'll do a whole class vote where my students will put tally marks next to the class champ they want to choose. This year, I'm planning on implementing a new way to choose: the Class Champ Spinner! I created circular pictures of every class champ. I'm going to cut them out, put magnets on the back, and arrange them in a circle. In the middle, I'll put a magnetic spinner, like these:

I found these at Dollar Tree!

...let a student spin, and whatever picture it lands on will be our class champ! You can download the spinner for FREE by clicking on the picture below!

The second way I'll be using GoNoodle in my classroom this year is our favorite way -- as a brain break resource! I've taught kindergarten for six years and now first grade for one; and kids, especially those in the primary grades, NEED time to move and groove around! We know that we can't have our students sitting in one place for too long, but sometimes it's necessary. Whenever we've had a time where I notice my kids getting wiggly or they've been working hard for a long period of time, we will do a brain break video just for fun! Our favorite channel is Koo Koo Kangaroo Party, where you can watch random, silly, and just plain fun videos such as ZAP IT!, which encourages kids to try their best!

And Pop See Ko 2.0!

There are tons of amazing videos that are so fun... even for me!

The last way I'll be using GoNoodle in my classroom is for academic resources - they have an amazing feature where you can upload any YouTube video and create your own channel! I'll upload video links from Harry Kindergarten, Have Fun Teaching, HeidiSongs, and more! That way, when we'll be watching videos anyway for our morning routines, calendar routines, etc., we can watch it through GoNoodle and get points for it! It is also a great way to have all of your Youtube links in one place.

Have I convinced you yet? No? Well, I've got some more amazing news for you. GoNoodle has an incredible online shop where you can get GoNoodle themed t-shirts, tumblers, student gifts, lanyards, and MORE! I've already made use of the store... I own the POP SEE KO shirt and "My Class is a Dance Party" shirt.... so fun!!!

You can also get fun classroom decor like this window decal (I hung it in my classroom window!):

You can get these things and even more amazing items in the GoNoodle shop at a 15% OFF DISCOUNT from now through September 11th! Just use the code BTSWithGoNoodle!

How generous are the people at GoNoodle? Not only are they offering a discount, but they are letting me have a big giveaway here on the blog! You could win a class set of 25 "Champtastic" Activity Books! How fun do these look?

Can you even imagine how excited your students would be if you gave them all one of these Activity Books?! I know mine would!

Just enter the Rafflecopter below to enter and WIN!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

GoNoodle Brain Break Blitz!

Have you ever been entrenched in the middle of a teaching day only to find yourself struggling to keep your students' attention or keep them in their seats? Have you exhausted all of your usual "attention getters"? (I'm looking at you, clap-clap-clap clap clap and "1,2,3 Eyes on Me"). Sometimes kids just need a little brain break to get refocused on their learning - that's where GoNoodle comes in! GoNoodle is a website that offers free brain break videos that help channel classroom energy for good. You'll find 2-5 minute video brain breaks for three different main categories: calm, energize, and focus. It's super easy to sign up - you just fill out a small information form, choose a class champ, and voila! You're on your way to GoNoodle brain break fun.

I started using GoNoodle in my classroom last year after taking a district PD class on brain breaks in the classroom. The second I introduced it to my students, they were hooked, and so was I!

This month I'm connecting with the fine folks at GoNoodle and am linking up with the GoNoodle Blog for their August Brain Break Blitz!

Click on the picture to go to the Brain Break Blitz and link up!

 

Here are three brain break questions to get the inside scoop on why I started using GoNoodle in my classroom....

 

1. Why are brain breaks so important for today's kids?

I believe kids learn best by DOING. I've been teaching kindergarten for six years now; and every group is the same. They cannot sit for long periods of time and you only have a short window to capture their attention on what you are teaching, especially at the beginning of the year. Keeping students engaged and involved in their learning is so important! Sometimes kids just need a little extra boost to get refocused and ready for the next task at hand. This is where brain breaks come in! It's a way to get the wiggles and fidgets out after doing a long activity; or a way to calm down and get ready for the rest of the day when they come in from an energetic, active recess outside. It really makes a difference when my kiddos can take a brain break, get their bodies moving, and then are ready for focused learning once more!

 

2. If you were stranded on an elementary classroom island and could only bring 3 brain breaks, what would they be?

That's an easy one. A class favorite is the "Let it Go" music video from Frozen! I also love the Dinosaur Stomp from KooKoo Kangaroo. For calming brain breaks, I love the Safe and Calm video. I tried that video after my kids were particularly wiggly after coming in from recess and it did wonders for them! They were ready to go for the rest of the day.

 

3. GoNoodle can be a great motivator! Share a tactic or idea for using brain breaks to engage the classroom.

GoNoodle has been an amazing behavior motivator for my students! I tell them that they can earn GoNoodle time every time they follow directions as a group, and it is amazing to see how quickly they shape up! This morning I had to give my poor kiddos a big pre-test and they were going to have to be in their seats, and quiet, no less, for a long period of time. I told them if they tried their best, they'd earn GoNoodle time, and they did SO well... hard for little kinder babies to do at this time of year! I actually let them have two brain breaks in a row and they couldn't contain their excitement as we watched our GoNoodle meter inch closer to the end! After completing the two brain breaks, my kids were able to get all their energy out and were calm and ready for our next lesson of the day. Without those brain breaks, it would have been tough to keep them totally engaged!

 

Do you use GoNoodle? Link up with their blog for the August Brain Break Blitz and share ideas for how YOU use brain breaks in the classroom! Click on the Brain Break Blitz photo at the top of my post; or you can click here to join in!