Brain Breaks

Quick resets I use when a class needs to move, refocus, or just laugh for a minute before getting back to work. Most need nothing but the room you’re already in.

Why Brain Breaks Work

Teenagers aren’t bad at paying attention. Their brains are still building the systems that sustain it. The prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain that helps us hold focus, tune out distractions, and control impulses, keeps maturing through adolescence and into young adulthood (Casey & Caudle, 2013). Asking a 15-year-old to sit and focus for an entire class period is asking a lot.

Attention also fades the longer anyone stays on one task. A meta-analysis pooling data from more than 10,000 people found that mind wandering becomes steadily more frequent with time on task (Zanesco et al., 2025). Lectures are no exception. Students report more mind wandering, and remember less, late in a lecture than early in it (Risko et al., 2012).

A short change of pace resets the clock. In general chemistry classes, students’ attention drifted in shorter and shorter cycles as a lecture went on, but lapses dropped during demonstrations and clicker questions and stayed lower during the lecture that followed (Bunce et al., 2010). Getting students up and moving adds to the effect. A meta-analysis of classroom physical activity found that active breaks increased on-task behavior (Watson et al., 2017), and a review of active breaks and attention found benefits, especially for selective attention, with no evidence that breaks hurt focus (Infantes-Paniagua et al., 2021). Most movement-break studies took place in elementary classrooms, but the attention research applies to students of every age.

My recommendation

A brain break every 20 to 25 minutes

You may have heard that students can only pay attention for 10 minutes. Researchers who traced that claim back found little direct evidence for any fixed number (Wilson & Korn, 2007). What the evidence does show is that attention fades with time and bounces back after a change. That’s why I recommend a quick brain break, usually 2 to 3 minutes, after every 20 to 25 minutes of focused instruction. It catches students before their attention drops off, costs very little class time, and gives everyone a fresh start for the next part of the lesson.

The Breaks

Up and moving · No materials

Simon Says

Everyone stands. Students follow a command only when it starts with “Simon says.” Anyone who moves without it sits down, and the last few standing win.

Up and moving · Balloons

Balloon Bounce

Toss a balloon into the room. The class works together to keep it from touching the floor. Add a second balloon when it gets too easy.

Up and moving · A small prize

Rock, Paper, Scissors

Students pair up and play. Winners find another winner, and each loser follows the person who beat them and cheers them on. The last student standing wins a prize, and I make a big deal out of the final round.

Tip: Have players hold their choice behind their back and reveal it on the count of three. It keeps everyone honest.

Seated or standing · Soft ball, music, stickers

Hot Potato

Students pass a soft ball around the room while music plays. When the music stops, whoever is holding the ball is out. It doesn’t have to come down to one winner. When time runs out, everyone still in gets a sticker.

Calm reset · No materials

Air Writing

Students use a finger to write a word or symbol in the air while a partner guesses what it is, then they switch. Vocabulary words and element symbols work well.

Up and moving · No materials

Speed

Students form a line, and the first two come to the front. When I clap, each races to give me a high five on their side. The first to land it stays up, and the other sits down as the next student steps in. The last student standing wins.

Up and moving · No materials

Red Light, Green Light

Everyone stands. On “green light,” students march or jog in place. On “red light,” they freeze. Anyone still moving sits down.

At tables · Dice and candy · About 2 minutes

Dice Game

Each table gets two pairs of dice and a small pile of candy in the middle. Students take turns rolling. Roll doubles and you grab a piece of candy, then pass the dice. No doubles, just pass. Once the pile is gone, doubles let you take a piece from another student. When time runs out, usually after 2 minutes, students keep whatever they have.

References

  • Bunce, D. M., Flens, E. A., & Neiles, K. Y. (2010). How long can students pay attention in class? A study of student attention decline using clickers. Journal of Chemical Education, 87(12), 1438-1443. https://doi.org/10.1021/ed100409p
  • Casey, B. J., & Caudle, K. (2013). The teenage brain: Self control. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 22(2), 82-87. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721413480170
  • Infantes-Paniagua, Á., Silva, A. F., Ramirez-Campillo, R., Sarmento, H., González-Fernández, F. T., González-Víllora, S., & Clemente, F. M. (2021). Active school breaks and students’ attention: A systematic review with meta-analysis. Brain Sciences, 11(6), 675. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci11060675
  • Risko, E. F., Anderson, N., Sarwal, A., Engelhardt, M., & Kingstone, A. (2012). Everyday attention: Variation in mind wandering and memory in a lecture. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 26(2), 234-242. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.1814
  • Watson, A., Timperio, A., Brown, H., Best, K., & Hesketh, K. D. (2017). Effect of classroom-based physical activity interventions on academic and physical activity outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 14, Article 114. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12966-017-0569-9
  • Wilson, K., & Korn, J. H. (2007). Attention during lectures: Beyond ten minutes. Teaching of Psychology, 34(2), 85-89. https://doi.org/10.1080/00986280701291291
  • Zanesco, A. P., Denkova, E., & Jha, A. P. (2025). Mind-wandering increases in frequency over time during task performance: An individual-participant meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 151(2), 217-239. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000424