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Quick active activities to give students a brain break.

I've played some of the free Lumosity brain training games. Now they are accepting applications for teachers to get licenses for their class. There are more details and the research behind the move on the Lumosity blog http://www.lumosity.com/blog/were-helping-students-leap-ahead/

I've actually read through the entire application now. There are some components that are not feasible for my district based on policy. So, it might not be a match for your school, but it is still worth checking out.

The random fact of the day came from the Opening Keynote speaker Dr. John Medina. A question was posted from the audience if technology is changing our minds. His initial obvious answer is how can we know? There can not be long term studies about the changes occurring if the technology is still in development. However an immediate change to the mind is the endless blue screens are eyes are used to seeing. There is a relationship between blue light and cryptochromes. Because this was an unknown word, I felt obligated to look it up. "Cryptochromes are photoreceptors that regulate entrainment by light of the circadian clock in plants and animals. They also act as integral parts of the central circadian oscillator in animal brains and as receptors controlling photomorphogenesis in response to blue or ultraviolet (UV-A) light in plants." Circadian is defined as "Adjective: (of biological processes) Recurring naturally on a twenty-four-hour cycle."