Description of HealthyPEP

In the following section, HealthyPEP that was carried out over a timeframe of eight weeks and consisted of eight 90-minute health-promotion PE lessons is described in detail. As theoretically emphasised by Kurz (2008b), PE lessons should address students’ health both in a theoretical and in a practical way. Therefore, HealthyPEP consisted of a combination of age-appropriate practical training, theoretical elements, and some additional components (e.g., homework and bonus points for various assignments, see Table 11). The structure of all lessons was the same consisting of a warm-up introduction part, a main part, and a final cool-down part. Also, a number of the additional elements (e.g., the mood measurement, homework, and documentation of the favourite exercises and games in the booklet) were carried out during each lesson. The content of HealthyPEP was based on a combination of new and already existing and in the literature documented games, relays, and exercises for the promotion of mainly strength and endurance (Aschebrock, Edler-Koeller, & Maass, 2010;

Bader, Chounard, Eberle, Kromer, & Mayer, 2003; A. Becker, 2009; Belz & Frey, 2009;

Beudels & Anders, 2002; Blume, 1995; Brugger, Schmid, & Bucher, 2007; Deutsche Turnerjugend, 1995; Hottenrott & Gronwald, 2009, 2010; Jäger, 2009; Kruber & Kikow, 2007; Lange & Sinning, 2009; Reim, 2009; Tille, 2009). In the following, a more detailed description of each lesson of HealthyPEP is provided and an overview is given in table 11.

The practical elements during HealthyPEP aimed to provide students the opportunity to experience the effects of regular training and to raise awareness of the relationship between regular physical activity and health. Several components of the programme were repeated during the treatment period in order to provide opportunities for the students to experience

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91 mastery. Also many theoretical elements were integrated into HealthyPEP. Their aim was to raise students’ awareness of the relationship between regular physical activity and health.

These elements were constructed so that students would receive a small input from the teacher or from a small handout and were asked to work on it in small groups. Subsequently, questions were discussed with the entire class and the teacher provided some more information. The theoretical elements were designed to be suitable for young students.

HealthyPEP picked up on these theoretical elements and integrated them into the practical elements of the lesson.

The teachers were instructed to implement a number of additional elements during HealthyPEP and these are described in the following text. A summary of these additional elements is shown in table 11. Students of the IG received a small booklet at the beginning of HealthyPEP in which they were instructed to note their homework, their results of the shuttle-run test and the strength exercises (see lesson 1 and 7), their favourite exercises and games, and bonus points for the accomplishment of assignments. The students were instructed to have their booklet with them at every PE lesson. Students were also encouraged to give themselves bonus points for various accomplished assignments as for example for accomplished homework and a good participation in PE. The bonus points were gathered until the end of HealthyPEP and students that received many points over the investigation timeframe were especially praised by the teacher. Furthermore, the students were asked to document their favourite exercises and games carried out in each PE lesson in their booklet.

This collection of exercises and games should serve as basis for ideas of possibilities to be active in the afternoon alone, with friends or family members. Additionally, the results of the shuttle-run test and a number of strength exercises, which were carried out twice during HealthyPEP (lesson 1 and 7) should also be documented in the booklet. The aim was to provide the students with feedback on their results and to give them the chance to observe their development over the weeks. As already stated, students were given various practical or theoretical assignments for homework with the aim to intensify and manifest the content carried out during PE and to integrate physical activity into the afternoon schedule of the children. The “marathon” from Stuttgart to Athens was the biggest homework given. Here, students were instructed to go running 10 times for about 15 to 20 minutes each time during the intervention period. The students had to note in their booklet the date and time of each run. At the end of the intervention, the students that had accomplished the marathon were handed out a certificate as a reward. Finally, students were encouraged by the teacher to give a vague estimation of their mood at the beginning and at the end of each PE lesson. The teacher showed the students a poster revealing a smiley with its “thump up” indicating a positive mood, a smiley with its “thumb horizontally” representing a medium mood, and finally, a smiley with its “thumb down” symbolising a negative mood. The children were encouraged to raise their thumb according to their mood and thus provide information to the

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92 teacher on their mental state. Aim of the mood measurement was to raise students’ awareness of their mood state and how the mood changes during PE.

Lesson 1 consisted of an introduction into HealthyPEP and the handing out of the booklets.

During the main part of the lesson the students took part in a series of strength exercises such as climbing steps, throwing a medicine ball on the wall, sit-ups, press-ups and rope jumping.

Following these exercises, all students completed the shuttle-run test, which is a test to estimate the maximum oxygen uptake (VO2 max) (Léger & Lambert, 1982). This test is especially useful for testing the fitness of students at school. The test involves continuous running between two lines 20m apart in time of the recorded “beep sounds”. The students stand behind one of the lines and begin running when instructed by the CD. The speed at the start is quite slow and the students continue running between the two lines, turning when signalled by the recorded beeps. As the test proceeds, the interval between each beep is reduced, forcing the students to increase their speed over the course of the test, until it is impossible to keep up with the beep sounds. If the line is not reached in time for each beep, the student must run to the line turn and try to catch up with the pace within two more beeps.

Also, if the line is reached before the beep sounds, the student must wait until the beep sounds. The test is stopped if the student fails to reach the line (within two meters) for two consecutive ends. The recording is typically structured into 21 'levels', each of which lasts around 62 seconds. Usually, the interval of beeps is calculated as requiring a speed at the start of 8.5 km/h, increasing by 0.5 km/h with each level thereafter. The highest level attained before failing to keep up is recorded as the score for that test (Tomkinson, Léger, Olds, &

Cazorla, 2003). Finally, at the end of this lesson, the “Noah’s ark” game was carried out as a cool down. During this game the teacher spreads slips of paper with animal names on the floor so that each student could receive a paper. The students were instructed to run around the hall until the moment the teacher called “Noah's Flood”, at which they had to take one of the papers lying on the floor. For each animal two papers existed and the students had to try to find their “partner” by imitating the animal written on the paper. As soon as the students found their partner they had to run once around the hall and then head to the ark, which was a mat in the middle of the hall. This game was repeated several times.

Lesson 2 consisted of a combination of practical and theoretical elements with the aim to provide students with knowledge and practical experiences on the topic endurance and heart rate. Before beginning the lesson students were asked about their mood and then the homework that was given to them in the previous lesson was once more discussed. In the first part of the lesson, students were provided with a leaflet with information on the pulse, its frequency in different ages groups, and methods with which the heart rate can be measured.

On a second leaflet, the students were asked to answer four questions on this topic.

As a warm-up the students carried out a three-minute “guess-run”, in which they had to run across the hall in a constant speed and estimate a timeframe of three minutes. When they

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93 believed that three minutes had passed they had to stop running, sit down on the floor, and measure their heart rate. The student with the closest guess was praised by the teacher. In the main part of the lesson the students participated in practical activities. Here, they were told to perform several exercises and after each exercise they had to measure their heart rate as learned in the first part of the lesson. Furthermore, an endurance relay (lottery-relay) was carried out. Here, the number 1-49 were spread out upside down at the one side of the sports hall. The class was divided into four groups and each group received a lottery ticket, in which they had to mark six numbers. Three students from each team had to run across the hall and choose a number. The team that found all numbers marked in the lottery ticket won the game.

In the final part of the lesson, an exchange between the students and the teachers, based on the elements of the lesson, was carried out. The teacher asked the students how they experienced the lesson, which elements were especially tiring and during which exercises their heart rate especially increased. Finally, the association between physical activity and heart rate was discussed. The teacher assigned homework to the students with the target to further engage the students on the topic endurance, physical activity, heart rate, and health.

Lesson 3 aimed to improve students’ strength, provide them with theoretical knowledge on the topic physical activity and strength, and finally perform a number of strength exercises during PE which they could also carry out at home. In the first part of the lesson, the children were provided with a leaflet containing information about strength and physical activity and a leaflet with questions, which they should answer and discuss with the teacher. Following this, a warm up game was carried out as a preparation for the strength exercises. Enough material for the exercises was placed in different areas of the hall so that all students could exercise simultaneously. The exercises were the following: jumping on a bench, jumping over a bench, throwing a medicine ball on the wall, sit-ups, press-ups, skipping rope, jumping on a box, and sitting on an imaginary chair. In the last part of the lesson, a hockey match was carried out in which the students used one of their shoes as a hockey stick. Finally, the students were assigned to carry out five of the newly learned exercises with friends or members of the family. Thus, the students were encouraged to build a repertoire of exercises which they could easily perform at home.

Lesson 4 addressed for a second time the topic of endurance and heart rate. After discussing the homework of the previous lesson, the lesson started with a theoretical component including a leaflet with questions that should be answered by the students and then discussed with the entire class. Following this, the homework “marathon” was introduced. Here, the students were assigned to run ten times a free chosen distance of about 1-2 kilometres during the afternoon in the next weeks. The date, time, and distance of the run should be noted in the booklet. After a warm-up game, the main part of the lesson consisted of an endurance coordination course planned to last for about 40 minutes and was accompanied by music.

Eight teams were built and each team received five cards on which the number of the song

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94 was written and the exercises that should be carried out during that song such as jumping with one leg over hoops, jump over benches, and pull themselves over long benches. The lesson ended with a “mat-relay” in which two teams were created and each team received a large mat. The target was to move the large mat on the other side of the hall as fast as possible. To achieve this, four students run simultaneously towards the mat and jumped on it. The students had to run back to the beginning of the hall and only when reaching the start line the next group of students was allowed to start running towards the mat. The team that first crossed the start line with the mat won the game. Finally, homework was assigned to the students for the next lesson.

Lesson 5 targeted the increase of students’ knowledge on the importance of a strong and healthy spine and to provide practical exercises with which children can achieve this. The first part of the lesson consisted of a theoretical component in which the teacher gave information to the students concerning the spine. Additionally, the students had to answer some relevant questions on a leaflet. In the second part of the lesson, the “memory relay” was carried out in which the students were divided into several groups and were given the assignment to find matching pairs of cards that were spread on the floor on the one side of the hall. Three students of each group had to run to the other side of the hall and unveil two of the cards. If the cards were matching the students were allowed to take them with them. Otherwise they had to run back without the cards. This procedure was repeated until all the cards were on the other side of the hall. During the main part of the lesson, the students carried out a number of strength and stabilisation exercises in the group as for example the “flying fish” where the students are lying on the floor in two parallel rows with their heads next to each other. One of the students should be carried over this row by the students lying on the floor. Additionally, an endurance game was carried out where the class was divided into teams and each team consisted of a maximum number of five students. Each group began the “7 day race” at a set starting line in the hall. One student of each team had to run to the other side of the hall and back, pick-up a second student and run the same distance again. After each run one more student joined the group until the entire group run together. Following this, after each run one student was dropped until the last student run alone the final run. The team completing the race first won the game. Before dismissing the students to the next class, homework was assigned for the next lesson. Here, the students should check the posture of their family members and show them the exercises they had learned during this PE lesson.

Lesson 6 consisted of mainly endurance games and an introduction to acrobatics. The first out of two endurance games was the “board game” in which four teams were created and each received a board on which a road map consisting out of several fields was drawn. Some of the fields on the board described specific exercises while other fields where empty. The students were also given a pair of dices and a token. According to the field on the board where the token was placed, the students had to follow the instructions and carry out the exercises such as run one round in the hall with high knees/ circling arms/ or sidesteps. When the field on the

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95 board was empty the students had to run once around the hall without any specific additional exercises. The winner of the board game was the team that reached the end of the board first.

During the second game “Bingo”, the students were given a card with several numbers and instructions to exercises that had to be carried out when the dice showed that specific number.

The team that managed to cross out all the numbers on the bingo-card first, won the competition. In the second part of the lesson, information on acrobatics was given to the students by the teachers and then they were encouraged to try out some acrobatic positions with a partner, and if there was time left these exercises should be demonstrated to the entire class. The acrobatic exercises aimed to increase the strength of the students and teach them to improve their posture.

Lesson 7 was a repetition of the first lesson in which the students mainly carried out the strength exercises in a circuit form and the shuttle-run test.

Lesson 8, the final lesson of HealthyPEP included elements on the topic “rough-and-tumble play”. A number of games and exercises were carried out in this framework with the aim to promote students strength and to encourage them to experience body contact with their classmates. An example of these games was “clothes peg”, where every student had to adjust a clothes peg on his or her T-shirt. The students had to steal the clothes peg from each other, or in a variation form to get rid of their peg, while putting it on the clothes of another student.

A second game was called “come on my side”. The students were paired and were standing opposite to each other separated by a line in the hall. While holding each other’s hands they had to try to pull their partner over to their side of the line. A further game was called “move the turtle”. One of the students lay in an abdominal position on a mat and his or her partner had to try and turn him or her around. The lesson ended with a discussion between the teacher and the students concerning possibilities for being regularly physically active during the afternoon and on the weekends. This includes the questions with which people, when, and where students could be physically active. Finally, reasons for being physically active and the positive effects of regular physical activity were emphasised. In a last action, the children who completed the “marathon” were praised by the teacher and were given a certificate for their participation in a marathon.

Motivational input during the follow-up

Following the main intervention programme of HealthyPEP, the teachers were instructed to provide a further motivational input for the students. Therefore, the IG was assigned to carry out the shuttle-run test another two times during the follow-up timeframe during the three

Following the main intervention programme of HealthyPEP, the teachers were instructed to provide a further motivational input for the students. Therefore, the IG was assigned to carry out the shuttle-run test another two times during the follow-up timeframe during the three