What is Active Movement? 

Active movement is a behaviour change programme that integrates moving more and sitting less into the daily routine of any school setting. It is a unique approach to making children more active. It is not about exercise, but reducing the amount of time they sit still during everyday classroom routine.

Science has shown that standing often and moving more not only improves children’s physical and emotional wellbeing but can help with focus, energy, creativity, work levels and cognitive ability.

What does that look like at Westende?

Every day, the class will take part in an ‘Active Walk’, which is a short walk around the school site (approximately 500 steps). This walk is incorporated into lesson time and gives children a few minutes during the school day to clear their minds, burn some energy and enter the classroom reinvigorated and ready to learn.

If the children complete this walk every day, over the course of the year, children will have walked approximately 55 miles!!!!

But that’s not all. Teachers build in opportunities for standing and moving into lessons too- this may be as simple as standing to answer the register or standing to answer a question.

In addition, each class has an Active Movement Ambassador.  This allows children to have a greater role in the Active Movement Programme by giving them responsibility for running it. The ambassadors support the class in school wide events, such as Active Swaps, Active Reading, Active Travel and Active SATS!

Westende Junior has just started its third-year Active Movement programme – the only school in Wokingham to do so! We want to encourage as many children to change their active behaviour to move more and sit less- not just for their time at Westende but change for life!

Can parents get involved?

Absolutely! Encourage your children to sit less, stand often and move more when they are at home. Act as role models for them by doing the same! Try simple things like standing up whenever an advert comes on the TV; stand up when they finish a page of their reading book; or perhaps walk to school whenever you can.

If you want more information about the programme – and to find out how you can make your own daily routines just a little more active and the reasons why – email peter@activemovement.co.uk