Make Your Brain SMART!

As everyone knows April is Iowa Core Testing Month for the Cedar Rapids Community School District. Testing- that is the word of the month.  Below are some tips are how to get kids in the right frame of mind for testing from a nutritional stand point:

Parents:

1. Get enough sleep.  Kids should get 10-11 hours of sleep a night!
2. Get up and get going.  Start your day with a couple jumping jacks or crunches or even hopping up and down.  This will wake you up and get the blood in your body moving up towards your brain.
3. Start your morning with a good, solid breakfast full of whole grains. Oatmeal, whole grain toast, or whole grain cereal are great options.
4. Eat fruits and vegetables.  Trying to eat healthy snacks of fruits and veggies will keep you healthy!  
5. Keep hydrated. That means drink lots of water and not so many sugary drinks like pop.

 Teachers:

1. Take brain breaks between tests!  (If you look at previous posts I've made I've posted several different videos that you can play quickly).
2. Do breathing exercises to calm students' nerves and focus their brains.  It can be as simple as having students sit up straight in their chairs, take a long, silent, deep breath in, and then slowly letting it out.  You'd be surprised at how much calmer students can get through this simple breathing technique.