Brain Breaks Before Exams
By: Jocelyn Wright
When do our students need breaks the most? As I write this, it is the final exam period in South Korea. The semester is winding down, but students are winding up. Now is the time they tend to feel the most stressed and exhausted.
While I do not often give traditional exams, I sometimes do or I may assign alternative in-class assessments that students consider exam-like because, for example, they require independent work to be completed within a time constraint, without access to external resources, and/or are scored. In these cases, I usually try to begin with relaxation activities. My hope is to give their brains and minds a pause, even if for only a brief moment! Below, I present five types I have used in class.
Deep breathing is calming and can contribute to clarity. I have tried self-directed Box Breathing, a somewhat more hypnotic and guided version, which involves breathing following a ball moving on screen, and the 5 Finger Breathing Technique, which consists of inhaling and exhaling while tracing one’s hand.
Another activity I have used in class involves thumb pinches and squeezes that offer respite to the stressed “master” endocrine gland (i.e. the pituitary gland). I recommend this explanatory video: “Reboot Your Brain in 30 Seconds.” Like the deep breathing techniques, these practical strategies are sustainable resources students can take away with them.
Sometimes, I start with short meditations. While I could read a script myself, to diversify voices in the classroom, I generally prefer to play a video like “3 Minutes Body Scan Meditation – Mindfulness For Kids And Adults,” which, in addition to valuable listening contents, also features soothing background music to relieve the whole body.
Chair yoga is a useful type of self-care before and during assessments. Easy exercises that can be done from head to foot while sitting include gentle neck glides and extensions, shoulder shrugs and rotations, wrist wiggles and arm reaches, side bends, spinal twists, cow and cat poses, ankle rolls, etc. These can give students a chance to move a bit more than the previous activities. Authentic materials (images with text and short instructional videos online) with simple English and without abound (e.g. link and link). There are many that can be shared for students to follow if a live demo seems difficult. In some ways, though, I prefer illustrations that I can leave up on presentation slides, so students are prompted to breathe and stretch every time they look up.
Finally, affirmations are a spoken technique that can reduce anxiety and boost confidence as well as improve pronunciation. Constructive phrases with basic frames “I’m . . .,” “I know . . .,” “I can . . .,” and “I’ll . . .,” can suffice to promote positive feelings. While I can provide students with affirmations to listen to/read and repeat, they can also come up with their own lists to use throughout the semester. I have had students do this from the first week of classes.
Try these wellbeing strategies I have used more than once. You will likely notice immediate effects and feel instant relief. Then, assured of the benefits, you can readily share them with students, too!
