Why Bushintai-Do Programs, Inc.
"Exercise enhances cognition, academic outcomes, and graduation rates, and it reduces behavioral problems.”
Eric Jensen, Author, Teaching with Poverty in Mind (2009)
“Just 15 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity during frequent regular classroom breaks has been shown to decrease body mass index (BMI) in students over a period of 2 years.”
Institute of Medicine, Educating the Student Body (2013)
“Principals are now learning about the relationship between brain activity and physical activity. In the past, where principals have said, ‘well, it’s a frill we can take out of the schools,’ they are now rethinking that and putting physical education and physical activity, in particular the physical activity breaks and recess, back into the schools.”
Dr. Jayne Greenberg, District Director,
Physical Education and Health Literacy, Miami-Dade County Public Schools;
Committee Member, Institute of Medicine’s Educating the Student Body
Current and emerging research confirms the relationship between physical activity, brain development, emotion control, obesity prevention and academic achievement, and schools can make a significant difference.
The Institute of Medicine of the National Academies concluded that when factors, such as parental involvement and socioeconomic status are controlled, active children had stronger academic performance, especially in reading and mathematics, than inactive children. The benefits of exercise during the school day, the IOM reported, outweigh the benefits from increasing class time for additional academic instruction (2013). The concern for educators is no longer if physical activity builds a student’s capacity for learning, but how to integrate more movement into the school day.
The Institute of Medicine of the National Academies concluded that when factors, such as parental involvement and socioeconomic status are controlled, active children had stronger academic performance, especially in reading and mathematics, than inactive children. The benefits of exercise during the school day, the IOM reported, outweigh the benefits from increasing class time for additional academic instruction (2013). The concern for educators is no longer if physical activity builds a student’s capacity for learning, but how to integrate more movement into the school day.
To meet this growing need for in-school physical activity, David Quinlan, a Vermont-based sports and fitness educator, professional martial artist and business owner, and long-time middle level educator, Nancy Keller, founded Bushintai-Do Programs, Inc., a project dedicated to the health and well-being of children and adolescents through physical activity. In January 2013, they launched their first movement-based program called Bushintai-Do for the Classroom as a way for students to meet the recommended 60-minutes of in-school physical activity each day, while also learning about perseverance, respect, and self-control. Bushintai-Do’s 25-minute movement lessons can be shortened or lengthened to fit the classroom schedule, used as structured recess or teacher advisory time, or integrated as shorter movement breaks throughout a student’s day. With the on-line Teacher’s Guide, educators can also connect the study of Bushintai-Do to the study of language arts, social studies, mathematics and science.
Bushintai-Do for the Classroom is more than a set of “brainbreak” videos. It is a moderate to vigorous exercise program designed for the classroom that also integrates the practice of coordinated and complex movements (e.g., contralateral) in a safe and school-appropropriate format. Research shows that technical movement, in particular, is the most beneficial to the development of attentional, sequencing and information processing skills, and it engages the brain and body in ways that normal exercises don’t. (Ratey, 2008; Jensen, 2009) In addition, Bushintai-Do for the Classroom provides a clear and powerful system of proficiency-based goals in the belt-ranking system that motivates students and develops a work ethic. Students learn how to set, achieve and meet goals, and this success translates into academic achievement and personal growth.Why Bushintai-Do instead of other martial arts?
Bushintai-Do, "the Way of the Warrior in Mind and Body," is a martial art developed by Quinlan specifically for Vermont public schools. It is a synthesis of traditional Asian martial arts, but was designed without violent or dangerous techniques, so Vermont school children and adolescents could reap the physical and mental benefits of martial arts training without any of the potential risks.
Throughout the years of teaching martial arts to school-aged children in the greater Burlington, Vermont area, Quinlan saw the benefits traditional martial arts could provide them. Parents often reported that their children were more confident and well-behaved, and showed improved academic performance, sometimes after only months in his program. He began to approach local public schools, hoping to bring the benefits of martial arts training to more children. After perceiving concerns on the part of school teachers and administrators about the safety of these disciplines, he developed the martial art, Bushintai-Do. Bushintai-Do draws from the purely defensive aspects of the traditional martial arts, and is a complete martial arts system in itself. It offers self-defense techniques, pre-arranged routines (forms), a comprehensive fitness program, a positive philosophical foundation, and the integration of mind and body development. Children and adolescents can experience the action and excitement of martial arts, but it is safe for all students to learn and practice.
Since Quinlan first developed Bushintai-Do in 2002, over 500 students in three different Vermont public schools have experienced the benefits of his martial arts training. With a growing national need to counter childhood obesity trends, movement-based programs, like Bushintai-Do, are becoming a welcomed solution. What Quinlan noted many years ago when he first started teaching martial arts to children is now scientific fact: There is a strong positive correlation between cognitive development, obesity prevention, and physical activity. As John Medina, author of Brain Rules (2008) reminds us, “Cutting off physical exercise – the very activity most likely to promote cognitive performance – to do better on a test score is like trying to gain weight by starving yourself.”
What is the mission of Bushintai-Do Programs, Inc.? How can we help?
Since Quinlan first developed Bushintai-Do in 2002, over 500 students in three different Vermont public schools have experienced the benefits of his martial arts training. With a growing national need to counter childhood obesity trends, movement-based programs, like Bushintai-Do, are becoming a welcomed solution. What Quinlan noted many years ago when he first started teaching martial arts to children is now scientific fact: There is a strong positive correlation between cognitive development, obesity prevention, and physical activity. As John Medina, author of Brain Rules (2008) reminds us, “Cutting off physical exercise – the very activity most likely to promote cognitive performance – to do better on a test score is like trying to gain weight by starving yourself.”
What is the mission of Bushintai-Do Programs, Inc.? How can we help?
Educators David Quinlan and Nancy Keller have dedicated their entire adult lives to the well-being of children and adolescents. They have witnessed how active bodies make for healthy minds and believe that both the physical activity and philosophical foundation of Bushintai-Do for the Classroom can make a difference.
In over 25 years of working with children and adolescents, Quinlan and Keller have observed that when students don’t participate in physical activity, it usually means that they haven’t learned how to move. Rather than risk embarrassment, a child may elect to stand at the side and watch their classmates participate instead. Some students have been stunted by a lack of success in traditional sports in which a culture of competitiveness may inhibit those who do not excel from an early age. Many students are less active simply because screen time has replaced the time for movement activities. Bushintai-Do for the Classroom was designed to help all students learn athletic and functional movement patterns and, as a result, develop the physical and mental confidence necessary for a life-long habit of physical fitness.
While Bushintai-Do for the Classroom can benefit every child, it is not for every teacher. Studying a martial art requires discipline, focus, perseverance, and patience. Just as students need these qualities to succeed in the martial arts, in the classroom, and in life, educators will need to apply these qualities to their own implementation of this program. This is not a push-button program or a lightweight diversion for your students. It is for those educators who believe that students need purposeful (and fun) developmental instruction regarding movement, and for those who can also commit to learn Bushintai-Do alongside their students--all with our on-going support and encouragement. Those who do have found it a rewarding way to bond with their students, helping them achieve and exceed their goals academically, physically, socially, and emotionally.
In over 25 years of working with children and adolescents, Quinlan and Keller have observed that when students don’t participate in physical activity, it usually means that they haven’t learned how to move. Rather than risk embarrassment, a child may elect to stand at the side and watch their classmates participate instead. Some students have been stunted by a lack of success in traditional sports in which a culture of competitiveness may inhibit those who do not excel from an early age. Many students are less active simply because screen time has replaced the time for movement activities. Bushintai-Do for the Classroom was designed to help all students learn athletic and functional movement patterns and, as a result, develop the physical and mental confidence necessary for a life-long habit of physical fitness.
While Bushintai-Do for the Classroom can benefit every child, it is not for every teacher. Studying a martial art requires discipline, focus, perseverance, and patience. Just as students need these qualities to succeed in the martial arts, in the classroom, and in life, educators will need to apply these qualities to their own implementation of this program. This is not a push-button program or a lightweight diversion for your students. It is for those educators who believe that students need purposeful (and fun) developmental instruction regarding movement, and for those who can also commit to learn Bushintai-Do alongside their students--all with our on-going support and encouragement. Those who do have found it a rewarding way to bond with their students, helping them achieve and exceed their goals academically, physically, socially, and emotionally.
Please contact David Quinlan at dave@bushintai-do.com to learn more about our classroom-based programs and how they could meet the needs of your students.
David Quinlan , Founder and Lead Instructor
Nancy Keller, Education Coordinator
Bushintai-Do Programs, Inc.
Milton, Vermont
www.bushintai-do.com
