Hyatt Park Elementary Utilizes Action Based Learning

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - In some classes at Hyatt Park Elementary, students are encouraged to twist, wiggle, wobble, and pedal on their stationary bikes, all while they are in their regular learning environment. It’s called Action Based Learning, a non-traditional way to keep students actively engaged while in class.

“The concept in the Action Based Learning labs are based upon brain research that supports the link of movement and physical activity to increase academic performance,” Hyatt Park Elementary School Principal Dr. Dell N. Brabham said. “In an age where we have a lot of kinesthetic learners, this is a nontraditional way to keep students actively engaged in the learning.”

“I don’t know if we can directly relate it to the increase in test scores, but I will say is that this is the third year of implementation. The first year of implementation was in Ms. Green’s fourth grade classroom, we saw a definite increase there in terms of the response in the test scores for her class. So I thought at that point we saw some good data, and we would implement that on a broader scale, so we’ve added three additional classrooms since that time,” Dr. Brabham said. “Exercise fuels the brain, and so we’re giving students an opportunity to be energized with the brain and learn at the same time.”

Richland One started using action-based learning in 2016, and there are seven Richland One schools with action-based learning equipment.

There is a one-time cost of $10,000-20,000 per school for equipment, support materials, and teacher training.