Preferred Partner Highlight: Walkabouts

###The Vision ActivEd was founded by Dr. Julian Reed and Matt Ferebee, two fathers with a passion for education and fitness. Julian has dedicated his career to researching the connection between physical activity and learning. The benefits of physical activity in the classroom are overwhelming. **[Research](http://http://info.activedinc.com/active-learning-research)** shows that students who are physically active while learning have increased focus and reduced hyperactivity, leading to better behavior in the classroom. In addition, achievement increases when students engage in active lessons. alt

Matt met Julian at a community pool, and Matt shared the challenges his son faced in school due to dyslexia. As Matt shared his family’s story, Julian shared his expertise in kinesthetic learning and suggested Matt's son move while learning. After this brief interaction, Matt's son embraced a new, life-changing learning strategy, and ActivEd was born.

The Product

Our product, Walkabouts, integrates movement into pre-kindergarten through second grade lessons in a meaningful way. The standards-based online adventures get students out of their chairs with physical activity. Moving beyond brain breaks, Walkabouts present math, language arts, and reading concepts in a new way.

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Through his research, Julian keeps up with the latest developments in kinesthetic learning while the team at ActivEd supports teachers and parents as they implement the Walkabouts platform in classrooms, schools, and districts across the United States.

The Testimonial

We connected with Suzannah Evans, a kindergarten teacher from Longmont, Colorado, and asked her about what it has been like using Walkabouts in her classroom.

How did you learn about Walkabouts?
I heard about ActivEd through our Professional Development office and PE teacher. There was a presentation given by Julian Reed, the founder of ActivEd and were given a pilot trial period in the Spring of 2016.

How do you utilize Walkabouts in your classroom? What are the benefits?
I utilize ActivEd to support mastery of standards I am teaching as well as to incorporate necessary movement and exercise into the daily schedule. The immediate benefits of incorporating movement into my teaching are increased brain activity in my students and creating a fun, kinesthetic platform and the long term benefits are targeting obesity in children as well as supplementing their learning.

What would you say to another teacher who may be hesitant about trying a new #edtech product in their classroom?
I would strongly encourage new teachers to the program to be very intentional in their use of ActivEd as opposed to just inserting the program randomly into their daily schedule. It is not "just another movement break" but a standard-specific tool that should be used to assess comprehension of certain skills and support student mastery.

If you have any questions, email us at info@pledgecents.com.

Because Every Cent Counts