Brain Workout 2.0 Class 4 Pilot
CLASS 4 | LISTEN TO THIS
Pair up to sharpen attention and focus skills with an active listening workout.
TRAINER OVERVIEW
- Timer or stopwatch
- Now Do It! worksheets, enough for each student
WELCOME TO CLASS
- Welcome everyone.
- Introduce the class topic.
Welcome to today’s class! Our topic is “Listen to This.”
Our TBH Blueprint focus is the “Sharpen Skills” action point.
Research shows how our ability to focus affects our social lives. In today’s workout, we will both sharpen our active listening skills and get to know each other better.
We will be working on the following thinking skills today:
- Perception
- Attention
- Speedy Thinking
- Nimbleness
- Verbal Skills
- Memory
- Problem Solving
- Executive Control
Hand out the TBH Welcome Packet to all new students for a more complete introduction.
TBH LET'S GET IT STARTED
- Get everyone ready to learn with this seated toes-to-top
warmup. - Use the TBH music to set your pace, or choose your own.
We are going to begin with TBH Let’s Get It Started!
Being physically active is great for our brains. This quick warmup is a great way to get focused, build energy and get us ready to learn. We’ll do this right at our seats at the beginning of every class. Just watch what I do and follow along!
(At end of warmup) Great job, everyone! We are started up and ready to go!
FEET GET STARTED!
- Lift toes to the sky for 5 beats. Feel the stretch while counting together from 1 to 5.
- Lift heels off the floor for 5 beats. Feel the stretch while counting backwards from 5 to 1.
- With feet on the floor, curl your toes tightly and hold for 5 seconds, counting backward E to A. Relax then repeat once more.
LEGS GET STARTED!
- Gently kick legs out from the knee, alternating legs. 8 repetitions. Count together backward from H to A.
- While sitting tall with feet together, gently swing right leg open to the right and tap toes. Then bring legs together. 5 repetitions. Count backward 5 to 1.
- Repeat with left leg swinging it open and tapping toes to the left side. Then bring legs together. 5 repetitions. Count backward from 25 by 5’s (25, 20, 15, 10, 5).
- Stamp feet on the ground, alternating feet. Make “noise” with group.
BACKS GET STARTED!
- While seated, gently twist upper body to the right. Hold and count together 1 to 5.
- Repeat to the left, gently twisting the upper body to the left. Hold and count together 1 to 5.
- Reach arms forward, gently rounding the upper back. Hold for 5 counting E to A, then reach arms up, straightening upper back. Hold for 5 seconds. Count A to E.
ARMS GET STARTED!
- Gently shake arms at the side of the body, open and close hands.
- Circle wrists a few times clockwise and counterclockwise.
- With arms straight in front, use right hand to gently pull left-hand fingers up to the sky for a nice forearm stretch. Hold for 5 seconds. Count by 2’s (2,4,6,8,10). Then, use the right hand to help gently push the left-hand fingers down towards the floor for another stretch. Hold for 5 counts. Count backwards by 2’s. (10, 8, 6, 4, 2).
- Repeat on the other side. With straight arms, use left hand to gently pull right-hand fingers up to the sky for a nice forearm stretch. Hold for 5 seconds. Count A to E. Then, use the left hand to help gently push right-hand fingers down towards the floor for another stretch. Hold for 5 counts. Count E to A.
- Slowly circle shoulders to the front. 3 repetitions. Circle shoulders to the back. 3 repetitions. Count together 1 to 3 and then 3 to 1.
VOICES GET STARTED!
- Say “OHHHHHHHHHH.” Have group say sound with you. Hold for a few seconds. Try lifting eyebrows while making noise for a surprised facial expression.
- Say “EHHHHHHHHHH.” Have group say sound with you. Hold for a few seconds. Try smiling while vocalizing.
- Say “AHHHHHHHHHH.” Have group say sound with you. Hold for a few seconds. Try frowning while making noise.
- SSay “OH – EH – AH.” Hold each sound for a few seconds. 3 repetitions. Use the facial expressions for each sound.
- Say “I wish to wash my wristwatch.” Repeat this famous tongue twister exercise, focusing on articulation and participation. 3 repetitions.
BREATH GETS STARTED!
- Slow focus to bring awareness to sitting still in chair.
- Take a deep breath in through the nose and out through the mouth.
- Give a full body shake and a wiggle.
- Give selves big hug, wrapping arms across waist and squeezing gently, as able.
- Thank selves and send some “TBH love” to our brains!
Click to open the TBH Let’s Get It Started! playlist.
Click for the TBH Let’s Get It Started! complete guide.
TBH BRAIN PLAY | Beep Bop
- Get everyone ready to learn with this fast-paced cognitive warmup.
- Challenge everyone to create and remember motions as they say “beep” and “bop.”
Now let’s do our “Brain Play.” Research shows that working against the clock is an important way we can keep our thinking focused, fast and nimble. We will “play” with our brains at the start of every class to support these important cognitive skills.
Today’s Brain Play is called “Beep Bop.”
(Student’s name) will make a simple motion with their hands like this (demonstrate) and say the word “beep.” Then (student’s name) will repeat that motion and add their own, saying “bop.” We’ll keep going around like that, with everyone repeating the movements and “beep bops” and then adding their own.
It will take all our attention to play, and it will get harder to remember all the motions and sounds! When someone can’t repeat the whole thing, they’ll start us over with a new round. We’ll keep going as long as time allows. Ready?
- Lead this quick cognitive warm up to build attention, processing speed, nimbleness and other cognitive skills, as well as group connection.
- Have students sit in a circle. The first person makes a simple motion with their hands while saying “Beep.” The person to their right repeats their motion and adds a new motion while saying “Bop.” Keep going around to the right, with students adding a movement and alternating saying “beep” and “bop” as they take their turn.
- Continue as long as time allows. When the motion thread becomes too long for a student to repeat, they will begin a new round.
- Encourage distance learners to join in from home.
LEARN THE TBH SCIENCE
Present the science behind the class.- Allow for brief discussion of the science with your students.
Today we are going to learn about why attention and focus are so critical to maintaining our social connections and brain health. Paying attention plays a key role in our ability to socialize. Attention skills allow us to be a part of a conversation, learn information about other people, and recall details like where we are meeting someone for lunch.
As we get older, our ability to sustain our attention can diminish. In addition to age, lifestyle factors such as changes in hearing and trouble sleeping can also affect our ability to hold focus.
These age-related changes can put a serious cramp in our social lives. The good news is research shows we can maintain and even build our attention skills, no matter our age. For that reason, focus is a skill we should practice, just like playing the piano or chess. It not only supports memory, but also our ability to socialize and stay connected to each other.
NOW DO IT!
Pair up your students to share and remember each other’s stories.- Adapt as needed to include everyone as they are able.
Now, let’s get ready for some of that brain training that will sharpen our attention, listening and social skills. As a bonus, we’ll also get to know each other better.
Let’s break into pairs. Please pair up with someone you don’t know. One of you will tell the other a brief story about something that happened to you. It can be about something you did recently, like a movie you saw or a trip you took, or can be about something from your past, like a childhood memory or favorite adventure.
You have about 3 minutes to tell your tale. Then, the person who was the listener will share your story with all of us, recapping it briefly in about 3 sentences. After that round, we will switch roles so that everyone gets a turn to be the tale teller and the listener.
- Option to distribute the Now Do It! class worksheets.
- Break your class into pairs of 2 or 3 students.
- Have one of the pair share a recent story with their partner. Give them 3 minutes to complete the story.
- Have the person in the pair who listened to the story share their partner’s story with the class, summarizing in about 3 sentences.
- Have pairs switch roles and repeat the exercise.
- For virtual delivery, modify workout to do “All Together.” Ask a few students to share stories, allowing about 2 minutes each turn. Then have another student recall details they learned. Adjust scripting accordingly.
TBH TAKEAWAY
Share this brief wrap-up to end the workout.- Ask students to share one thing they will “take away” from today’s class.
That was a fun brain workout! It shows just how much sustained attention matters to socialization and memory, even when it’s just a short conversation. Challenging your attention skills and working out your brain will not only improve your social life, but are important to healthy aging as well.
What is one thing you learned about someone else in the class?
TBH TAKE A BREATH
- Lead this cooldown exercise to end class.
- Use the TBH music to set your pace, or choose your own.
Let’s wrap up with “TBH Take a Breath.” Being mindful of our breath and sharing some positive thoughts is a wonderful way to acknowledge what we’ve learned together before we go back to our day. Research also shows that these kinds of exercises help us focus better and even learn more effectively.
- Have students get comfortable, resting both feet flat on the floor, hands resting in their laps.
- Have students close their eyes and keep them gently closed.
- Ask students to focus their attention on their breathing, noticing the rate and rhythm of their breath. Allow them to focus on their natural breathing for a few moments.
- Instruct students to begin rhythmic breathing. Ask them to inhale slowly and deeply through their nostrils, breathing gently into their chest and belly. Then ask them to exhale slowly through their lips, slowing the rate and rhythm of their breath.
- Have students continue rhythmic breathing, instructing them to continue to focus on gently and slowly inhaling and exhaling, allowing their attention to simply “ride” the wave of their breath. Allow them to focus on rhythmic breathing for several moments.
- Offer the following positive affirmation statements below in a calm, slow voice. Invite students to simply listen, repeat the phrase silently to themselves, or to think about what each statement means to them.
My body is relaxed.
I am grateful I can listen.
I am grateful for stories I hear.
I am grateful for the support of my classmates.
I take this time and this breath for me.
- Pause for several moments.
- End the exercise by inviting students to bring their awareness back to the room, gently opening their eyes and becoming more aware of their surroundings.
- Invite them to end practice with gratitude for taking a moment for themselves, for the chance to learn together and connect with each other.
Click for the TBH Take a Breath music playlist.
Click to open the TBH Take A Breath complete guide.
COMING UP NEXT!
- Thank students for attending the class.
- Invite students to join you for the next TBH class.
I am so glad we had this time to learn together today. It was nice to share our stories with one another and boost our focus skills.
I look forward to seeing you for our next Total Brain Health class. Be sure to bring a friend!
CLASS RESOURCES
NOW DO IT! WORKSHEETS
Use these optional worksheets to run your class.
Listen to This Worksheet. Use this worksheet to support the class exercise as needed.
