5 Ways to Bring Learning Back to the Body

"When I sat to help my 8-year-old son with his homework, I noticed something surprising. Typically, he's been pretty good at math, if not exactly patient. With his paper-and-pencil homework, he might get frustrated, but he can generally push through. With his online homework, which was much more game-like, he either clicked the right answer if he knew it immediately"

"As someone who has taught educational assessment for years, I sensed that this assignment wasn't exactly assessing his math knowledge-at least not very effectively. The work was mostly disembodied. There was no physical effort, other than clicking and tapping, and no "result" or product left behind. There was nothing left to reflect on, to show others-no evidence that there had been any work at all, other than a bright flash of a balloon to show he was done."

"A 2025 review in Frontiers in Education examined embodied learning approaches across 21 studies, finding that these methods consistently enhanced student motivation, body awareness, and cognitive engagement (Faella et al., 2025). It's probably not much of a surprise if you think about kids you know. Who wouldn't rather learn while digging in the dirt? But, in our rush to "improve" learning, we often pass over this fact, treating learning and sensory experiences as opposites when they're actually complementary."

Hands-on, embodied learning combines sensory experience with academic tasks to boost motivation, body awareness, and cognitive engagement. Game-like digital assignments can encourage guessing and leave no tangible product for reflection, weakening their value as assessments. Physical approaches create observable artifacts that students can reflect on and share, providing clearer evidence of effort and understanding. Embodied methods reduce cognitive load by freeing mental energy for higher-order thinking. Research across multiple studies demonstrates consistent benefits for engagement and cognition. Embodied learning supports learners beyond early childhood and fosters deeper, more meaningful understanding.

Read at Psychology Today