Peer-reviewed article
A yoga-integrated mind-body movement intervention: effects on children's problem solving, mathematics anxiety, and physical activity.
Kayıran D, Avci A, Türkmen EN, Haji Mohamud RY ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study tested whether adding yoga and mind-body movement to mathematics lessons helps elementary school children learn better and feel less anxious about math. Third-grade students were assigned to either a yoga-integrated mathematics class or a traditional class for 10 weeks. Children in the yoga program showed better problem-solving and computation skills, lower mathematics anxiety, and reported being more physically active than those in the traditional class.
Key points
- Students in the yoga-integrated program showed significantly greater improvements in problem-solving performance and computation skills compared to the control group
- Mathematics anxiety was significantly lower in the intervention group at post-test
- Students in the intervention group reported higher physical activity levels (PAQ-C scores) following the intervention
- Overall mathematics achievement improved significantly in the intervention group
- The intervention was a 10-week program embedded within routine mathematics instruction
Limitations
Physical activity was measured using self-report rather than objective measurement, and the quasi-experimental design used intact classrooms without random assignment, limiting causal conclusions. The study does not provide information on long-term effectiveness or the specific mechanisms explaining how yoga-integrated instruction improves learning.
Abstract
Introduction This study examined the effects of a 10-week yoga-integrated mind-body movement program embedded within routine mathematics instruction on elementary school students' problem-solving performance, computation skills, mathematics anxiety, and self-reported physical activity. Methods A quasi-experimental design was employed with third-grade students assigned to either a yoga-integrated mathematics group or a traditional mathematics instruction group. Outcome measures included verbal problem-solving performance, computation skills, overall mathematics achievement, mathematics anxiety, and self-reported physical activity assessed using the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children (PAQ-C). Results Compared with the control group, students who participated in the yoga-integrated program demonstrated significantly greater improvements in problem-solving performance, computation skills, and overall mathematics achievement. The intervention group also showed significantly lower mathematics anxiety at post-test. In addition, students in the intervention group reported higher PAQ-C scores following the intervention, suggesting increased self-reported physical activity. Discussion Overall, the findings suggest that integrating structured mind-body movement into routine mathematics lessons may support cognitive, emotional, behavioral, and physical aspects of learning. However, because physical activity was assessed using a self-report instrument and the intervention was implemented in intact classrooms within a quasi-experimental design, the findings should be interpreted with appropriate caution. Future studies employing active comparison groups, objective measures of physical activity (e.g., accelerometry), and longitudinal follow-up designs are needed to clarify the mechanisms underlying these associations and to evaluate the long-term effectiveness of yoga-integrated mathematics instruction.
Findings the Hub has extracted
Each claim below is labelled by its type of design and links back to this report.
- Intervention
- A 10-week yoga-integrated mind-body movement program embedded within routine mathematics instruction
- Population
- Third-grade elementary school students
Key finding
Significantly greater improvements in problem-solving performance compared to control group
D et al. · Europe PMC · 6 Aug 2026