Primary school children who are quick runners also race through their school work, a study has suggested.
Researchers found that fitter primary school pupils had, on average, better response times in visual and reading activities, and memory, than those who were not as fit.
Nottingham Trent University scientists observed 104 pupils aged nine to 11 as they undertook a series of cognitive function tasks immediately following exercise and after a 45 minute rest.
Off they go! Scientists have found that children who ran further during daily school exercise performed better in the classroom
Nottingham Trent University experts explored the impact of the Daily Mile – a school-based physical activity on children’s learning and memory.
It involves pupils running or jogging at their own pace, usually via laps of a sports pitch or playground.
WHAT IS THE ‘DAILY MILE’ SCHEME?
Elaine Wyllie, who was the headteacher at St Ninian’s Primary School in Stirling, set up the Daily Mile to offer children a simple, inexpensive way to incorporate exercise into their daily regimens.
It involves pupils leaving the classroom for 15 minutes every day to walk, jog or run a mile by going around the playground several times.
Individual teachers decide when to incorporate the activity into the school day, which is done in addition to PE lessons and does not replace exercise during playtime.
Ms Wyllie claims she saw first hand that the initiative both improves children’s health and their concentration.
The Scottish Government encourages schools to take up the Daily Mile scheme, but has no plans to make it compulsory.
According to the Daily Mile Foundation, more than 2,265 UK schools take part in the initiative, which has also been taken up by 3,600 schools worldwide.
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They found that executive function – a set of mental skills that includes working memory, flexible thinking and self-control – tended to improve immediately after exercise.
The children considered the most fit, which in the study was defined as those who ran furthest in The Daily Mile, performed better in the classroom.
These little endurance runners completed cognitive tasks five to 10 per cent faster than their slower peers and just as accurately.
Researchers also found the children particularly liked the self-paced nature of the Daily Mile, the social aspect and the fact that it was outdoors.
The scientists said this suggests the exercise could be an effective and sustainable way to increase physical activity, and subsequently fitness, in children.
Lead researcher Dr Simon Cooper, associate professor in exercise, cognition and health in Nottingham Trent University’s School of Science and Technology, said: ‘Our work shows the importance of regular opportunities for physical activity in schools, not just for health and wellbeing but also cognition and academic achievement.’
The study is published in the journal Psychology of Sport and Exercise.
This new research is the latest to highlight the benefits of The Daily Mile.
The scheme was set up by a former headteacher in 2012.
According to the Daily Mile Foundation 13,379 schools across the world now participate in the program.
It is most popular in the UK where more than 8,000 schools take part.
A Stirling University study in 2018 found children who went to a school participating in the scheme are more likely to have students of a healthy weight.
Another study in 2018 from British Columbia University claimed a Daily Mile scheme for teenagers may help them beat depression.
Source link : https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-10061789/Exercise-make-child-better-school-study-finds.html
