Just Do It! It Is Really That Easy...

Often when I travel to conferences I have the opportunity to present on active gaming. My latest focus has been on helping teachers understand the most appropriate way to implement these activities into their curriculum. I have been positively surprised at the interest I receive from teachers that truly want to step out of the box and incorporate active gaming in their classes. What they do not understand, hence the purpose of this post, is how easy it is to make this step. The first major issue is always about the money. Teachers that do not have funding are discouraged as they think the activities are all incredibly expensive or they have to have a room full of the games. This is simply not the case. 1. The active gaming field has grown dramatically due to the popularity of the industry. Now there are a plethora of games such as the XBox Kinect and Nintendo Wii that are compatible with a lot of popular games. Some teachers have even stated they already have these video game consoles at home and could bring them to class for their students to enjoy. Also, some students have these games and enjoy being able to bring them in to share during class. The most important aspect is making sure they are not just playing the games, but basing the game play on learning objectives. 2. It is certainly not necessary to have a full room of active games. This actually concerns me as many teachers that do have access to a variety of active games do not appropriately implement them. For example, if I am working on a dance lesson, students should not be playing activities such as makoto, 3 kick, virtual bikes, or virtual boxing games. These activities are most appropriate for a different kind of skill development and/or fitness curriculum. Having just one or two active gaming activities is appropriate and provides the fun motivation for children to be exposed to a variety of physical activities. Once again, implementing active gaming into your curriculum can be EASY. You just have to make that step and Just Do It!!!

Active Gaming in PE - See it for yourself!

Researchers at the University of South Florida have been conducting studies to better learn how active gaming fits in the physical education classroom as well as the academic classroom. This is an educational video of active gaming and how it relates to the academic and physical education classroom - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBv1LBpHGIM

This video is fun and easy to follow to understand how active gaming can affect a quality physical education curriculum. Notice the students in the video smiling while exercising as well as the teacher's positive comments about how active gaming has motivated her students to enjoy being active.

I wanted to share this article...a good and easy read about active gaming with the exception of one paragraph that is a little vague:

"During one session run by Miller's research assistants last month, it was clear how four students felt about leaving a well-organized dodgeball game in the regular gym to go play video games in a smaller gym."

I am not sure if dodgeball will ever be a developmenally appropriate activity (I may get a few emails for this) yet the article demonstrates how video games may have a strong effect on children and their desire to be physically active. Another powerful statement in which I have observed and believe:

"If you're not an athlete, you generally are not going to have a good time in PE," said Todd Miller, who teaches exercise science at George Washington University. "But if you do something like Dance Dance Revolution, you can play the most athletic person in the class and still win."

In response to this statement, I have observed many unskilled, overweight children experience success with active gaming. There may be something to this generation - an open mind may serve well.

Christmas Time: Affordable Active Games!

I previously wrote a blog about physical education teachers promoting active games over sedentary video game play as potential Christmas presents for children. I would like to simply extend that post and suggest just a few specific active games that are affordable, feasible, and easy to use:

Dance Dance Revolution - Multiple webistes provide multiple a variety of games and pads to fit your financial desire.
Nintento Wii Games - Sports, Resorts, Fit, etc...
Microsoft Kinect
Gamercize Steppers - compatible with multiple video game consoles (PS3, XBox 360, Nintendo Wii)
Virtual Bikes - A variety of video game bikes that offer residential pricing.
Xavix games - boxing, jackie chan, tennis

As quality physical education teachers - we need to make sure we are promoting healthy alternatives to the sedentary lifestyles in which many of our children are engaging in everyday.Suggest active games - not the traditional sedentary game! Inform parents, administration, and other teachers. It is a simply solution to replace sedentary screen time with more active play.

Healthy Christmas Presents For Children!

That special time is once again approaching! Black Friday has come and gone which means - Christmas time already! Many parents spend money buying children their favorite gifts and toys....guess what is #1 on many children's lists? VIDEO GAMES! Introducing children to the concept of active video games is a healthy alternative to sedentary video game play. As physical educators, it is important that we are able to make children and parents aware of healthy alternatives to sedentary toys and gifts. Physical education teachers may or may not have active video games in their classrooms; however, putting together a newsletter, parent letter, or website blog to educate parents and children about active video games is a great way to advocate for physical activity incorporating games that children desire to play.

Just to name a few economical and fun active games parents could consider: Nintendo Wii, Dance Dance Revolution, Microsoft Kinect, Gamercize, Sony Move, etc. Many of these are compatible with video game consoles (PS2, PS3, Nintendo, XBox, etc) children already have at home. Check out the PE Central Website for examples of active games that are appropriate, feasible active games for use at home in which may serve as excellent christmas gifts.

Active Gaming: A Family Fun Experience

I often discuss active gaming related to the physical education classroom or teaching environment. A goal for physical education teachers should be to encourage children to participate in physical activity away from school in order to achieve the objective of lifelong physical activity behaviors. Research suggests parent involvement with their children's activities are important and can be a motivating facet to encouraging particular behaviors. The following video is an excellent example of how active gaming can be a family, fun experience to encourage physical activity behaviors opposed to sedentary video game play. Additionally, the video provides a few practical tips regarding active gaming at home.

Criticism #7: Children Will Get Bored!

The last but certainly not least important criticism in this series of seven posts is that “Children will simply get bored of these activities too quickly”. Sustainablity is another concern for some teachers and parents. The notion that playing any activity too long and in the same way becomes less appealing and motivating may be true. They key to sustainability in a quality physical education program is effective, developmentally appropriate implementation strategies. In more simple terms, avoid using an active game “…too long and in the same way.” For example, must teachers would agree that throwing a ball to a target from a cone for extended periods of time will get boring for children. However, if I change the target to “blue”, move the cone back a few steps, or challenge the students with a “game” while still focusing on the same skill of throwing, we have now created an entirely new, appealing, and enjoyable task. The use of active gaming in the physical education classroom should be viewed in the same manner.

Additionally, many active games are compatible to a traditional game console (Nintendo Wii, Sony Playstation 2 and 3, Xbox, etc.) allowing children to choose a variety of games in which to play. Some active games even allow children to plug the equipment to their computer and expand game play online.

School systems should understand that an appropriate instructional environment for active gaming is essential in order to promote the most effective learning and motivating experiences for children. Teachers should have training as well as personal practice on all purchased active games before including these activities in the curriculum. Using active gaming as a tool to accomplish learning objectives can be successful to sustaining the attentions span of children. However, using active gaming as a replacement for quality instruction or just as a fun game does not foster sustainability. After all, even the coolest video game such as Pac Man drops in sales at some point!

User Engagement: Engage Them then Educate Them

My husband recently presented at The World Congress Annual Leadership Summit on Mobile Health (mHealth) in a workshop titled "Consumer Engagement Through New Media - Mobile, Video Gaming and Virtual Worlds”. The more I have learned about this workshop, the more I have realized another way to understand active gaming in physical education. Have you heard of the term consumer engagement (CE)? The presenters in this workshop discussed the importance of CE in the 21st century in terms of getting consumers engaged (in a product or brand) in order to sustain, maintain, and retain them ultimately enhancing a business. My husband said, “Really that’s what it sounds like active gaming should be in physical education – but more like user engagement. Engage the kids then educate them.” Coming from a business mind and someone that still thinks dodge ball (the big red ball that eliminated the same kids each game) was the greatest game ever in physical education; I was hesitant to admit that he was absolutely correct. User Engagement….engaging the users or what we consider to be our students first! Then educate them about living a healthy lifestyle. After all, in the academic classroom teachers must triumph in engaging the students attention in areas such as math, science, or history in order for the students to perform successfully.

In a previous blog the importance of entertaining individuals during exercise, exertainment, was discussed. Additionally, the concept of children wanting to play and have fun being their top priority was discussed. If children do not enjoy the task, they will not continue doing it. Make it fun, and they are likely to continue the task. Children love technology, especially video games. They are appealing, motivating, and most importantly, engaging! Active gaming is a great tool for physical education teachers to use in order to engage the users (students) then educate them. Once students are active and realize exercise is enjoyable, physical education teachers can then teach students the value and importance of exercise as well as develop the necessary skills and confidence needed to maintain an active and healthy lifestyle into adulthood.

Active gaming "user engagement" – I like it. Engage them then educate them. Sounds like successful 21st century teaching and learning!

The Case for Exergaming (Active Gaming): Systems by Wii and Others Force Players to Break a sweat

I found the below recently published article "The Case for Exergaming (Active Gaming): Systems by Wii and Others Force Players to Break a sweat" to be a nice read from the Chicago Tribune. The article discusses active video games as well as the support from the American Academy of Pedriatrics for using active video games to encourage physical activity among youth:

"Whew-hew," yells Lorelei Mansfield, throwing her arms in the air. Her breath is audible and the smell of sweat is in the air — par for the course for a boxer dealing some serious rough justice.

Then she puts down the controller and heads to the kitchen for some fruit snacks.

Today's video games have very little to do with that Atari system boxed up somewhere in the garage. For nearly three decades, the only physical sign of someone having played video games was a thumb cramp. Now, the virtual reality of many games requires players to punch, throw and swing. And that, according to some studies, is helping keep video game players in better physical shape than in decades past.

The American Academy of Pediatrics this year said the magic words gamers have dreamed about for decades: Playing video games actually can be considered exercise. That especially applies to Wii Sports and Konami's Dance Dance Revolution, in which users go through the motions to make their virtual counterparts perform. Boxing, martial arts, basketball, archery, bowling, table tennis and more can be simulated in one's own living room. The key is to stand up and participate in what's being called "exergaming."

"Exergaming is beneficial because it keeps (kids) in a culture of movement as opposed to a culture of (inactivity)," Dr. Michael Rich, the director of the Center for Media and Children's Health at Children's Hospital in Boston, tells the American Academy of Pediatrics newsmagazine.

A study published in the journal Pediatrics showed that participation in intense games such as Wii Boxing or Dance Dance Revolution was comparable to moderate-intensity walking. But another article in the same issue said that though exergaming uses significantly more energy than sitting around pushing buttons, those games don't provide as much benefit as participating in actual sports.

In other words, gaming nerds aren't totally off the hook.

"Unless you do resistance-type exercise, you won't gain a lot of strength," says Dr. Robert Dimeff, sports medicine director at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. "To get cardiovascular benefits, you'd need to get your heart rate and blood pressure up."

Getting beat by an 8-year-old at Wii boxing will get the blood pressure up, all right.

A firsthand look at five kids, ages 5-12, playing Wii Sports and Wii Sports Resort, shows that the games generate a lot of action among players.

Yelling, bickering and controller tug-of-war are optional.

"I think that (action games) are more fun because they're active," says Tony Romano, 12, of Clayton, Calif. "It feels more real when you're standing and playing. You feel like you need to win."

The kids really get worked up playing Swordplay, where the on-screen weapon looks like it's made of wood (probably to cut out the gore caused by a blade). It requires players — whose avatars stand atop a round platform in a large stadium — to defend, strike, parry and basically beat their opponent until they fall into the water below (far enough to allow pre-splashdown gloating). The harder the swing, the more powerful the attack, which gets the blood pumping.

Ron Rogers of Brentwood, Calif., only lets his kids play Wii on weekends. But when they do, he can tell the difference between the active and nonactive games.

"They end up all sweaty and red in the face from all the jumping and twisting and punching they do while playing," he says. "They're jumping the whole time and moving their arms about. We always say it makes us feel better about them playing video games because they get such a good workout."

The workout, of course, depends on the level of commitment. Mickey DeLorenzo, a 25-year-old Philadelphia man, began a semifamous fitness regime in December 2006, playing Wii for 30 minutes a day for six weeks."

Chicago Tribune

A few important take home messages:

1. As with any physical activity, active games are only as beneficial as the intended use of the games. As the above quote mentions, "the workout...depends on the level of commitment."

2. This article focuses on Nintendo Wii and Dance Dance Revolution. There are many more active games available that produce similar and/or different health benefits. Resistance training (muscular strength improvement)can be developed with a variety of active games.

3. Active games have the potential to replace sedentary screen time because of the whole body immersion that children enjoy: "I think that (action games) are more fun because they're active," says Tony Romano, 12, of Clayton, Calif. "It feels more real when you're standing and playing..."

Why not let tell them to "get up and go get your game on"...

Welcome to PE Central - Active Gaming Blog

Welcome to our Active Gaming Blog. The purpose of this blog is to provide you with appropriate, updated information regarding the field of active gaming with a primary focus on applying the information to the physical education classroom. Please take a few minutes to check out our PE Central active gaming website at http://www.pecentral.org/activegaming/. At this PE Central website you will find relevant information such as teaching tips, resources, websites, videos, pics, and frequently asked questions regarding active gaming.

Additionally, I encourage you to submit new lesson ideas regarding how you may be using active gaming in your physical education classroom. A gift certificate will be rewarded for each PUBLISHED lesson idea! A great way to earn spending money for additional equipment for your classroom and students.

We look forward to keeping you up to date with active gaming information. Contact us anytime!

Lisa Hansen