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AR Question: What percentage of my students are actually working within their target heart rate? -Should students record their heart rates during only one activity per unit? -Should students record their heart rates during every activity in a specific unit? -Should I only have students record heart rates during my most active games? -Does what I do really lower students' resting heart rates?

Description: If students are to truly increase their cardiovascular endurance, get into shape and be heart healthy during my PE classes, they need to exercise within their target heart rate for at least 20 minutes every time they are in class. I have pretty accurate heart rate monitors and will be able to do this with 5th or 6th graders. I can teach them the math involved with finding their maximum and target heart rates and provide times throughout the half hour class for them to record these rates.

Audience 1: My students What is maximum heart rate? -The fastest number of times your heart can beat in one minute. What is target heart rate? -The number of times you want your heart to beat in one minute in order to increase cardiovascular endurance. What is cardiovascular endurance? -It is your stamina. It is how long you can exercise without getting so tired that you have to stop. Why can't we just play? -This way we get an idea of how hard our heart is working and make it stronger so that we can play longer.

Audience 2: A colleague Are the HRM accurate? -They are the most accurate I can get without having students put on monitor straps under their clothes. Do students even know what the numbers mean? -I will explain the math, purpose, and benefits to the students. Will these numbers motivate them to work harder? -Hopefully it will encourage them to be more active in order to get into that target zone. And what do you do if they cannot get into that zone? Or will not get into that zone? -Well then I need to play, modify, or include new and old games that increase interest, activity, and participation.

Matt - I like that you are incorporating the use of the HR monitors with the students. Are you going to have the students record their heart rate outside of the school day (resting heart rate, heart rate during recess, other activities, etc)? I think that in order to get a true test of whether they are improving the cardiovascular endurance (as tested by the pacer or mile run) it would be helpful to know what other activities they are participating in outside of class that may help/hinder their scores. Just an idea. . . we have to mold our 2 questions together anyway so they will both change but this could hopefully get me some HRMs. ~Katie

﻿I would like to test this out when I work out! Again, like Katie's question, I think it's a great idea to get kids informed and interested in their health at a young age. Going off of Katie's comment could you give them homework X amount of times per week to try this at home? They could even do it as a family and maybe try out different activties to see which gave them the highest heart rate. Kim

Matt, it does sound like your project and Katie's could go hand-in-hand, if you guys chose that route. It might be neat to have a partner-teacher who is in the middle of the same wonderings and investigations you are. My question for you would be : how will you provide for students with special needs that are in your gym classes? What if you have a number of them who aren't capable of doing some of these things on their own (like accurately recording)? It's just a thought... we've got some extremely cognitively-low children who still are fully capable of being in regular gym class. ~Michelle

Matt- I like your questions a lot. I give you credit for attempting this within the framework of a 30 minute math class. Thinking about Michelle's questions...maybe they could have a HRM buddy. The classroom teachers could help you pair up a stronger math student with a weaker math student. I know that math is part of this, but I'm guessing that really it's about the physical activity and the heart rate. Laura

﻿Matt- Your question is definitely interesting. It would be especially interesting to see what happens to a students' target heart rate during P.E. as students get older. I sometimes feel that the 5th and 6th graders (more often girls) are much more active and willing to participate in P.E. then the 7th and 8th graders, you know, that age when some of them are // way // to cool for P.E. :) The sooner kids are informed about the benefits of being active and the idea that physical activity can certainly be fun and something to look forward to, the better. ::Lindsey::

Matt- I think that this is a great reasearch plan. It will be interesting to see if the kids are really working to the THR. I think that you should take more than 1 activity throughout the class period. I like the idea of a HRM buddy. Are all the students able to participate in this activity? What would you do if you had a student in a wheel chair? How would you be able to modify this for the student? or would you choose another question? The classrom teachers or parents can manybe help the students keep a log or journal with them. Maybe the students have a log or journal at home that the parents have to sign for an outside information. Jessica



FAMILY: Married to Amy, have twin girls Ella and Grace, and even our dog is a girl: Lola Older brother, Jeff, 34, sister-in-law Amy, parents of Lucia, Kaila, and Jakobe Parents, Dennis and Mary Jo, both teachers Very close to cousins, aunts, and uncles on both sides of the family

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