Brain Breaks Teaching Resources
Do you need new brain break ideas and activities for your primary classroom? Welcome to brain break central at Teach Starter!
This collection of teacher-created brain break activities and printables for foundation through Year 6 includes active games to get students up and out of their chairs, would you rather brain breaks, whole class escape games, creativity challenges and a whole lot more.
New to brain breaks? Take a peek at a primer from the teachers on the Teach Starter team!
What Is a Brain Break?
Not sure what qualifies as a brain break? A brain break is a short mental break incorporated into classroom instruction to provide literally what the name implies — a break for that hard-working brain.
Brain breaks can be done in the middle of a lesson or during a transition from one lesson to another, and the goal is to help the brain refocus so students can dive back into learning refreshed and ready to absorb the material.
Most brain breaks only last a few minutes. They're a break, after all!
Teachers can add as many or as few of these breaks into the school day as necessary. Younger children, such as a classroom full of early years students, may require more brain breaks than upper years students.
Why Are Brain Breaks Important?
Wondering how brain breaks help students? There is plenty of research on brain breaks for kids, and it all points to the importance of taking short breaks to help students succeed in the classroom.
For example, studies show that primary students often lose focus and become inattentive during lessons that drag on. Something as simple as a brain break in the middle of a lesson, however, gives students the redirection they need to get back on the attention train and absorb the information.
Brain breaks are also helpful in reducing student stress and increasing overall productivity, with research showing that students get a boost in their reading comprehension and divergent thinking skills when they get breaks in the school day.
How Often Should You Use Brain Breaks?
Frequency — and length — of brain breaks for your students will vary depending on the age and abilities of your students.
You know your students best, and you'll be best able to tell when they need a break. But if you're looking for a good rule of thumb for primary school, consider adding a break for students at least every 15 to 20 minutes for students to refocus their attention.
The later in the school day, the more important experts say it becomes for you to incorporate these breaks. One study by Danish experts even deduced that the cognitive fatigue students experience which each passing hour is equivalent to losing 10 school days’ worth of learning!
Fun Brain Breaks Students Love (And So Do Teachers)
Looking for fun brain breaks to get you started with this collection? Our teacher team designed every break in this resource collection to be fun, but here are a few favorites to add to the list!
- Hand Hockey — Have students stand in a circle with their feet touching, leaving a space on either side of the circle for goals. Toss a soft ball in the center, and tell your students they can only use their non-dominant hand to try to score a goal.
- Scissors, Paper, Rock — Take the popular rochambeau game up a notch with different versions. For example, you can challenge students to play using only their feet!
- Silent Ball — Challenge students to throw a ball around a circle for 5 minutes without making a sound.
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Symmetry Drawing Worksheet Pack
Teach your students about symmetry using this series of drawing worksheets where they must copy an image symmetrically using grid lines for reference.
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End-of-Year Activity Booklets - Differentiated
Have some end-of-school fun with a printable End of Year activity book!
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Christmas Symmetry Worksheets - Symmetry Drawing Activity
Explore symmetry with these Christmas symmetry worksheets.
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This or That? Christmas Edition
Take a Holiday Brain Break and play a game of This or That! Christmas Edition!
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Would You Rather? Christmas Edition
Engage your students in thoughtful and hilarious discussions in an engaging, interactive game of Christmas Would You Rather?
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End of the Year Mindfulness Colouring Sheet
Calm the end-of-year chaos with a printable end-of-the-school-year colouring page.
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One Has to Go! Game of Elimination Icebreaker
Play ‘One Has to Go!” and engage your students in a friendly classroom debate with this Google Slides icebreaker game.
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Christmas Brain Breaks - Activity Slides
Add some Christmas Brain Breaks to your classroom festivities to help boost engagement and attention during the holiday season.
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Christmas Trivia Advent Calendar Interactive
Host a Christmas trivia game show with an interactive advent calendar trivia game.
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Christmas Worksheet - Search and Find
Practise counting with your students to get them in the mood for the holidays with this fun Christmas search, count, and find activity.
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Dragon Colouring Pages
Create colourful Chinese dragon art to celebrate the Lunar New Year in the classroom with a pack of printable dragon colouring pages.
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Random Acts of Kindness Chatterbox
A random acts of kindness chatterbox template.
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Would You Rather...? Question Cards
Would You Rather use this set of 31 question cards or eat a can of worms?
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Mindfulness Bookmarks to Colour
Bring calm to the classroom with these mindfulness colouring bookmarks.
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Draw a Town with 2D Shapes
An interactive and evolving resource where students draw 2D shapes incrementally to create a town map and 3D models.
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Student Workbook Covers - Mindful Colouring Sheets
Practice mindfulness and create fun notebook covers with a pack of printable mindful colouring worksheets.
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Draw The Line of Symmetry Worksheets
Use this lines of symmetry worksheet to help students practise drawing lines of symmetry on 2D shapes.
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Speaking and Listening Activities Task Cards
A set of 13 cards with instructions for speaking and listening activities.
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Mindfulness Activity Mats
A set of 10 mindful activity mats to use to help children focus.
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Back to School Activity Mats - All Year Levels
Use these back-to-school activity mats as your first day of school warm-up activity during morning arrival.
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Anti-Bullying Colouring Sheets
Discourage bullying and promote kindness in the classroom with a set of printable Anti-Bullying Colouring Sheets.
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30 Mindful Drawing Tasks
30 drawing tasks to promote mindfulness in your classroom.
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Drama Game Task Cards
A set of 17 activity cards with instructions for drama games.
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Calm Down Corner Classroom Decor Pack
Create a classroom calming corner with a printable Calm Corner Decor Pack.
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Brain Break Activity Cards
Give your students a quick brain break with this set of 19 whole-class games.
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Soup, Salad, or Sandwich Game - Interactive Icebreaker
Play the Soup, Salad, or Sandwich? Game for an exciting icebreaker or brain-break activity!
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Mindfulness Activity Task Cards for the Classroom
Get mindfulness activity ideas for your classroom with printable activity cards you can use again and again!
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Christmas - Spot the Difference Interactive
Put on your Christmas goggles and spot the difference between Christmas scenes with an exciting Spot the Difference Christmas Game!
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Grid Drawing Christmas Worksheets
Bring a bit of art into the classroom this season with easy Christmas drawing activities.
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Getting to Know You Chatterbox
Use this getting to know you chatterbox template and summary sheet as a first day of school activity.
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What's Missing? – Interactive PowerPoint
An interactive presentation where students try to guess what object is missing from the picture.
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Tricks in 60 Ticks - Classroom Party Games
A collection of 10 fun classroom games to do in 60 seconds!