Impact of brain breaks to supporting the physical activity during the covid-19 pandemic in elementary school

Changes in learning patterns during the Covid-19 certainly have a negative and positive impact, especially on students’ physical activity development. The brain breaks program is a new program in Indonesia. This program is designed to develop physical activity in children to improve learning, motor skills, fitness, and cultural culture. This research provided students’ perceptions of the use of the brain breaks program increasing physical activity, especially during the Covid-19. The research design used is descriptive quantitative research with survey techniques. Researchers conducted a survey of the entire population, which described the population’s unique attitudes, behaviours, and characteristics. Students did a brain break for a week, then fill out a questionnaire to measure their opinions and attitudes towards the brain break program. This research uses purposive sampling. This study involved 194 elementary school students (4-6) in six areas of DKI Jakarta. This research used a questionnaire instrument od Attitudes toward Physical Activity Scale (APAS). The percentage and descriptive analysis techniques were used to analyze the data in this study. Result: According to the findings, students’ perceptions of the brain breaks program were excellent, where the average score is 81.40%. The brain break program is beneficial from the aspect of physical activity and can contribute to the overall educational process, especially during the Covid-19. This positive impact must be supported by the competence of physical education teachers in the use of technology both in operation and in variations in the development of brain break movements adjusted to local wisdom based on Indonesian culture. The next step from the results of this research needs to be further developed research on brain breaks programs, especially in Indonesia, to increase physical activity in students at other educational levels and improve the quality of education. © JPES.