




































    

 American Journal of Medical and Physical Education 
Vol.8, Issue 1; January-Febuary 2023; 

ISSN: 2994-0524 

Impact Factor: 6.14 

1252 Columbia Rd NW, Washington DC, United States 

https://topjournals.org/index.php/AJMPE; mail: topacademicjournals@gmail.com 

 

 

 

  

1 | A m e r i c a n  J o u r n a l  o f  M e d i c a l  a n d  P h y s i c a l  E d u c a t i o n  

|  https://topjournals.org/index.php/AJMPE 

MATHEMATICAL GAINS THROUGH PHYSICAL STRAINS: EXERCISE 

AND ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE" 
 

 
1Dr. Emily Clark, Ed.D and 2Dr. Samuel Turner, Ed.D. 
1Ed. D.  Assistant Professor - Manhattan College, Riverdale 
2Senior Education student - Manhattan College, Riverdale 

 

Abstract: Regular exercise, particularly aerobic and resistance training, has been linked to improved cognitive 

health and academic performance in students. This paper explores the potential of exercise to enhance math scores 

among school-age children, drawing on research that highlights the positive impact of physical activity on brain 

function and cell growth. The groundbreaking book "Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the 

Brain" by Ratey (2008) serves as a case study, demonstrating how a physical education program in the Naperville 

Central School district of Illinois led to significant improvements in Math, Reading, and Science scores for 

students who engaged in daily exercise. This research emphasizes the parallel between brain cells and muscle 

cells, highlighting that both require activity to grow and can atrophy with disuse. By examining the compelling 

evidence presented in "Spark," this paper sheds light on the potential of exercise interventions to enhance 

academic performance in students. 

Keywords: exercise, academic performance, cognitive health, brain function, math scores. 

 

 

Introduction  

Many studies have indicated that participating in regular exercise for the heart and lungs may be one of the most 

important factors for students to achieve good grades in math and reading.  Aerobic exercise and resistance 

training have been found to improve the cognitive health of the brain (Ratey, 2008).  According to Ratey (2008) 

exercise sparks new brain cell growth.  He believes in order to have our brains work at peak performance our 

bodies have to work hard.  Can this information help school age children improve their Math scores?  

A good example of the power of exercise to boost brainpower was demonstrated in Ratey’s (2008) 

groundbreaking book Spark: The revolutionary new science of exercise and the brain.   

Spark describes how a physical education class transformed students in the Naperville Central School district of 

Illinois.  Students whodaily participated in a dynamic morning exercise program,while having access to exercise 

time throughout the school, day showed dramatic increases in their Math, Reading and Science scores as a result. 

Brain cells are similar to muscle cells.  There is growth with use and atrophy with disuse.    

Your Brain on Exercise  

Exercise encourages your brain to work at optimum capacity by causing nerve cells to multiply andto strengthen 

neural interconnections. Animal tests have illustrated that during exercise, nerve cells release proteins known as 

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 American Journal of Medical and Physical Education 
Vol.8, Issue 1; January-Febuary 2023; 

ISSN: 2994-0524 

Impact Factor: 6.14 

1252 Columbia Rd NW, Washington DC, United States 

https://topjournals.org/index.php/AJMPE; mail: topacademicjournals@gmail.com 

 

 

 

  

2 | A m e r i c a n  J o u r n a l  o f  M e d i c a l  a n d  P h y s i c a l  E d u c a t i o n  

|  https://topjournals.org/index.php/AJMPE 

neurotropic factors. One in particular, called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), triggers other chemicals 

to promote neural health that directly benefits brain functions, including learning (Ratey, 2008).  Gervaso (2014) 

states that exercise has such a positive effect on the nervous system.  When an individual exercises they can think 

more clearly, perform better, and improve one’s morale.Stimulating your nervous system will help an individual 

to function at a higher level. A study conducted by an education student at Manhattan College set out to prove 

that exercise, specifically sprint workouts, could improve math competency as well as students’ confidence. 

Motivating middle school students in mathematics is a challenge for many teachers today. Adolescence marks 

the beginning of a downward trend in motivation and achievement in academics (Ryan 2001). According to the 

New York City Department of Education, 75.5% of seventh grade English Language Learners (Ells) scored a 

level 1, the lowest performance, on the 2013 New York State Math Test. Only 8.6% of these students scored a 

level 3 or higher on the same math exam that year. Students’ achievements in math and confidence in doing math 

can be greatly affected by their attitudes.  This summer research study was initiated to help middle school students 

in New York City increase their Math scores.  

Research Study  

The purpose of this study was to determine if exercise, specifically sprint routines, could improve math 

competency as well as students’ confidence with solving word problems.  The study took place in an urban middle 

school in New York City.   

Participants  

Participants in the study included seven English language learners, five males and two females, who were in 

danger of failing mathematics. Students were in grades six or seven. The school selected these seven students to 

receive tutoring because they scored a Level 1, the lowest level of performance on the New York State 

mathematics test in the previous year. The seven students had repeated at least one grade level and previously 

attended summer school. The students were not receiving any additional support services at the school.  

Procedures  

The researcher tutored the students in small group two or three times a week for forty minutes each day over an 

eight-week period. Students worked in groups of two or three and were pulled from non-core subjects or activities, 

such as physical education and part of their lunch period, for tutoring. At least once each week during the tutoring 

session, students began with the sprint routine.  

Instrument  

Sprints are exercises used to strengthen mathematical computations while helping students gain confidence in 

their math abilities (Ramos, 2011). The instrument used for this study was the math sprint worksheet that was 

part of a nine step routine. The worksheet consisted of 44 computation problems for Part A and 44 similar 

computation problems for part B.   

Sprint Routine Procedure  

Participants began tutoring sessions completing a sprint worksheet once a week. Students had 60 seconds to 

complete Part A.The researcher assumed the role of an athletic coach in this routine. With each Sprint routine, 

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 American Journal of Medical and Physical Education 
Vol.8, Issue 1; January-Febuary 2023; 

ISSN: 2994-0524 

Impact Factor: 6.14 

1252 Columbia Rd NW, Washington DC, United States 

https://topjournals.org/index.php/AJMPE; mail: topacademicjournals@gmail.com 

 

 

 

  

3 | A m e r i c a n  J o u r n a l  o f  M e d i c a l  a n d  P h y s i c a l  E d u c a t i o n  

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the researcher would tell the students they had 60 seconds to complete as many of the exercises as they could. 

She told them they were not expected to complete all the exercises just as many as they could. She placed the 

exercise face down in front of them and told them to wait for the signal to begin. She used her cell phone as a 

timer and signaled the students with “On your mark, get set, go.” At the end of the 60 seconds, she signaled the 

students to stop by saying “Pencils down”.    

If students completed all 44 problems before the minute, they stood at their place. The researcher then corrected 

the first part of the sprint worksheet with the class by reading the correct answers at a quick pace. Students were 

directed to shout “yes” and punch out after each response they answered correctly, circle incorrect answers, and 

then write the number they answered correctly at the top of their worksheet.  The researcher asked students to 

raise their hands if they had one or more correct, two or more correct, three or more correct etc. until no one raised 

their hand any more. Within these small groups, the student who had the most correct was acknowledged. The 

researcher then gave students the opportunity to complete the remaining problems. Before moving to part two of 

the Sprint, the researcher involved students in some form of calisthenics such as jumping jacks, stretching 

exercises, or jogging in place. While students physically exercised they also participated in mental math exercises 

such as counting by multiples of fours, counting backwards from 50 by fives, skip counting from one inch to the 

smallest part of an inch. These combination physical and mental math exercises lasted for about one minute. 

Students returned to their seats and prepared to take the second part of the Sprint. Students had 60 seconds to 

complete this Sprint as well.  The researcher corrected this part with the students following the same routine as 

in Part A and had them mark the number of correct answers at the top of their worksheet.  Students also wrote 

how many more they had correct in the second part from the first part. The researcher asked the students to raise 

their hands if they improved by one or more, two or more, three or more etc. until no hands were raised.  Math 

achievement was based on how many more questions each student answered correctly on the second part. The 

student who had the greatest improvement from Part A to Part B was acknowledged.  

Data Collection Procedures  

Data was collected over the eight weeks of tutoring to determine if students’ Sprint scores increased. The 

researcher collected the data from each student’s twopart worksheet. Students were assessed on how many more 

problems were answered correctly on the second part of the Sprint when compared to the first part.   

Over the eight weeks of tutoring, students completed a total of seven Sprint routines. Sprints were used only when 

all students were present in the small groups. Because of the high rates of absenteeism, the Sprint routine could 

only be completed about once a week over the eight weeks.  

Data  

In the first round of Sprints, students’ scores ranged from 9 to 33 out of a possible score of 44 in Part A.  After 

the physical and mental calisthenics, students’ scores on Part B ranged from 22 to 43. Students noted an immediate 

improvement that provided a positive response from students.  Students were more receptive to the Sprint exercise 

after they noted this improvement. Sprints 2-7 revealed very similar results with increased or maintained math 

scores for every student between Part A and Part B. The results are found in Table 1.  

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 American Journal of Medical and Physical Education 
Vol.8, Issue 1; January-Febuary 2023; 

ISSN: 2994-0524 

Impact Factor: 6.14 

1252 Columbia Rd NW, Washington DC, United States 

https://topjournals.org/index.php/AJMPE; mail: topacademicjournals@gmail.com 

 

 

 

  

4 | A m e r i c a n  J o u r n a l  o f  M e d i c a l  a n d  P h y s i c a l  E d u c a t i o n  

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Table 1: Student Raw Scores from Sprints  

 Sprint 1   Sprint 2   Sprint 3   Sprint 4   Sprint 5   Sprint 6   Sprint 7   

  A   B   A   B   A   B   A   B   A   B   A   B   A   B   

Dominique 9   26   29   36   4   12   11   17   22   29       30   38   

Patrick   33   36   18   25   40   41   17   39   22   31           

Jessica   27   31   31   34       17   18   22   32       38   41   

Randy   27   43   23   26   27   30   13   15           38   38   

Robert   23   27   19   20           12   17   23   26   33   38   

Jefferson   10   22   18   18       6   13   7   9   22   26   29   37   

Leo   23   24   23   27       22   26   15   21       36   40   

Note. Highest possible score: 44. Students completed seven Sprint exercises with two Sprints of  

For the final Sprint (Sprint 7) the researcher repeated the first Sprint exercise the students had taken during the 

first week of the tutoring session. The researcher wanted to compare students’ scores from the first week to the 

final week of tutoring. The results are presented in Table 2. Six of the seven students were present to complete 

the final routine of the Sprint.   

Data Analysis  

In reviewing scores for each sprint, the data reveals that students improved or remained constant between Parts 

A and B in each exercise. While in some instances there was great improvement between Part A and Part B such 

as Patrick in Sprint 4 with an increase of 22 correct answers, Dominique and Randy in Sprint 1 with an increase 

of 17 and 16 points respectively, the median score improvement was 5.5 points. In two instances, Jefferson in 

Sprint 2 and Randy in Sprint 7, the scores between Part A and Part B remained unchanged.  

Table 2: Student Growth in Eight Weeks  

 Sprint 1    Sprint 7    

  A   B   A   B   

Dominique   9   26   30   38   

Patrick   33   36       

Jessica   27   31   38   41   

Randy   27   43   38   38   

Robert   23   27   33   38   

Jefferson   10   22   29   37   

Leo   23   24   36   40   

Note. Highest possible score: 44. Sprint 1 and 7 were the same sprint exercises distribute 

In comparing scores from Part A in Sprint 1 with scores from Part B in Sprint 7 the range of improvement was 

from 11 to 29 points. The median score improvement was 18.8 points with improvement shown for six of the 

seven students who were present for the final Sprint exercise.  

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 American Journal of Medical and Physical Education 
Vol.8, Issue 1; January-Febuary 2023; 

ISSN: 2994-0524 

Impact Factor: 6.14 

1252 Columbia Rd NW, Washington DC, United States 

https://topjournals.org/index.php/AJMPE; mail: topacademicjournals@gmail.com 

 

 

 

  

5 | A m e r i c a n  J o u r n a l  o f  M e d i c a l  a n d  P h y s i c a l  E d u c a t i o n  

|  https://topjournals.org/index.php/AJMPE 

Discussion of the Findings  

The purpose of this study was to determine if physical exercise and mental math exercise through Sprints could 

improve math competency skills for seven middle school students. The data was gathered over an eight-week 

period in tutoring sessions with two or three students in each session. Students completed Part A of a Sprint in 

60 seconds, engaged in calisthenics and mental math exercises for another 60 seconds, and then had another 60 

seconds to complete Part B of the Sprint. The data shows improvement in student performance of the math 

problems between Parts A and B. The data also shows improvement in student math performance over the eight 

weeks of tutoring. These students were not receiving any additional support services other than their regular 

classroom instruction.  

Research today on brain, mind, and body reveal significant links between movement and learning. Brain 

compatible learning suggests incorporating math, movement, and physical education (Reilly, Buskist, and Gross, 

2012). This research with students’ participation in the math sprints showed some improvement in math scores 

from the first week of tutoring to the final week.   

Students’ participation in the math sprints had no statistical significant effects on their math achievement; however 

students did progress in their fluency to solve problems accurately. These findings support previous studies that 

have found physical activity increased task performance (Correa-Burrows, Burrows, Orellana, & Ivanovic, 2014; 

Ratey, 2008).   

Five of the seven students passed their grade requirements in mathematics for the year. Two students would attend 

summer school and at the time of this report the researcher had not received the final results for passing for the 

two students attending summer school.   

Students’ willingness to attempt the Sprints also increased from the first week to the last. In the beginning the 

researcher had to coax the students to come to the tutoring sessions and then to work during the session. Students 

who were taken from the physical education class for tutoring protested the most. Randy commented: “It is the 

only class I’m good at and my team needs me.” Students also complained that the Sprints were too hard although 

the selected worksheets were from a fourth grade level, at least two levels below where the students should be 

performing. As students noted their own improvement with the Sprints, they showed signs of confidence by 

challenging each other and commenting, “I’m going to be better today than you.” In the last few weeks of the 

tutoring, students asked if they could do the Sprints.   

Conclusions and Recommendations  

Exercise encourages the brain to work at a more optimum capacity. In conducting this study, the researcher 

assumed the Sprint exercise was a possible way for students to develop math fluency. The data suggests that 

incorporating physical activity with mathematic computational exercises can make at least modest gains to 

students’ mathematical fluency.The data reveals positive growth for each of the seven students in the study.  

The limitations of this study that prevent generalization to a larger population include the small sample size. Seven 

middle school students who were also English language learners were the participants in this study, and therefore 

the results cannot be generalized to other populations.   

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 American Journal of Medical and Physical Education 
Vol.8, Issue 1; January-Febuary 2023; 

ISSN: 2994-0524 

Impact Factor: 6.14 

1252 Columbia Rd NW, Washington DC, United States 

https://topjournals.org/index.php/AJMPE; mail: topacademicjournals@gmail.com 

 

 

 

  

6 | A m e r i c a n  J o u r n a l  o f  M e d i c a l  a n d  P h y s i c a l  E d u c a t i o n  

|  https://topjournals.org/index.php/AJMPE 

In this study, the researcher used the math “sprints,” for which validity and reliability were established based on 

the Sprint routine produced by the Ramos Group (Ramos, 2011) or the Davidson Group (Davidson, 2012). The 

researcher could not control this study for variables such as absenteeism, when students received tutoring and the 

impact of missing classes such as physical education or part of their lunch period, or students’ previous 

mathematical fluency. The researcher did not have prior information to determine the actual mathematical 

performance level of the students, other than knowing they had performed at the lowest level of the State test the 

previous year. The researcher selected Sprints from a fourth grade level when she noted students were not able to 

successfully answer more than seven fifth grade math problems the first time she tried the Sprint.  

Recommendations  

Based on the findings in this study it is recommended that:  

1) The Sprint routine is more frequently implemented in middle school math classes for greater impact.  

2) The study is replicated with a larger group of middle school students and preferably with classes of 

students rather than just small groups.  

3) Various forms of calisthenics are used as an independent variable to determine if certain physical 

movements have greater impact on math learning.    

4) Research on Sprint routines are expanded.  

References  

Correa-Burrows, P., Burrows, R., Orellana, Y., & Ivanovic, D. (2014). Achievement in mathematics and language 

is linked to regular physical activity: A population study in Chilean youth. Journal of Sports Sciences, 

32(17), 1631-1638.  doi:10.1080/02640414.2014.910606  

Gerveso, J. (2014).  Intelligence: Healthy brain results to a powerful mind.Walla Walla, Wa:Coffey.   

Davidson, B. (2012). Sprints. The Davidson group: Advancing elementary mathematics. Retrieved from: 

http://teacherbilldavidson.com/sprintbooks/  

Ramos, R. (2011). Sprints. The Ramos group: Elementary mathematics. Retrieved from: 

http://ramosgroup.squarespace.com/sprints/  

Ratey, J. & Hagerman, E. (2008). Spark: The revolutionary new science of exercise and the brain. New York, 

NY: Little, Brown and Company.  

Reilly, E., Buskist, C., & Gross, M. K. (2012). Movement in the classroom: Boosting brainpower, fighting obesity. 

Kappa Delta Pi Record, 48(2), 62-66.   

  doi:10.1080/00228958.2012.680365  

Ryan, A. R. (2001). The peer group as a context for the development of young adolescent  motivation and 

achievement. Child Development 72(4) P/ 1135-1150.  

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