District/School Administration PK-16 Program Support Educational Technology
Technology Toolkit

Straight from the Heart
Carver Public Schools

Description of Activities

First, the students learned how to use heart rate monitors during physical education classes. After learning proper use of the monitors, students wore them during various activities and recorded heart rate data. They also determined their target heart rates using the Karvonen formula [PDF] and developed strategies to obtain the rates.

Next the students worked in the computer lab and used their data to create a spreadsheet. In the computer lab, each student had access to one desktop computer, which was connected to the Internet on the school's local area network. The students each had a folder on the school network where they saved their work. The students inputted data taken from the heart monitors into a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, then created graphs [PDF] from the spreadsheets .

Through discussion with the physical education instructor, the students learned about the effects of exercise on heart rate and how the elements and conditions (physical and environmental) impact their heart rate results. Students then analyzed their graphs.

The culminating activity was a writing project, which allowed the students to describe and assess their individual heart rate information in regard to their activities. After classroom discussion, the students applied what they learned about the effects of exercise and other factors on the heart. They used the graph results and Microsoft Word to write reports [PDF] comparing the effects of exercise and other factors on heart rate.

Universal Design/Inclusion
Physical education/health classes include all students assigned to a particular homeroom. This includes all students regardless of the learning styles or physical ability. All students were able to use heart rate monitors, work with computers in the lab, and complete the activities to the best of their ability.

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