The Effects of Using a Relaxation Exercise on a Fourth Grade Class

Abstract

This action research was designed specifically to address the need for stress management among children. Children have been bombarded by stress not only at home and in their communities, but also at school. The problem was that they had not been given the information and tools to battle stress. The fourth grade students in this study listened to a relaxation tape twice a day for one week. They were also asked to identify on an emotion chart the emotion that best fit their mood before and after listening to the tape. At the end of the study, students wrote how they felt about participating in the exercise. The different emotions on the emotion charts were tallied, counted, and analyzed to determine if students' moods changed as a result of the relaxation exercise. There was a thrty-one percent increase in the number of students who reported to be calm after taking part in the relaxation exercise for the week. All of the comments written by the participants were positive about the experience.