Exploring the use of three level guides in elementary and middle school classrooms

Collaborative classroom research among a group of elementary and middle school teachers provides insight into the effective use of the Three Level Guide. Building lessons around content area materials, teachers employed the Three Level Guide regularly, coming together to share successes and frustrations and to offer suggestions. Their reflective analyses of the use of the Three Level Guide offer insight into its impact on teacher effectiveness as well as its impact on students\u27 academic achievement, critical thinking ability, and academic esteem

Replacement of daily load attenuates but does not prevent changes to the musculoskeletal system during bed rest

The dose-response effects of exercise in reduced gravity on musculoskeletal health have not been well documented. It is not known whether or not individualized exercise prescriptions can be effective in preventing the substantial loss in bone mineral density and muscle function that have been observed in space flight and in bed rest. In this study, typical daily loads to the lower extremities were quantified in free-living subjects who were then randomly assigned to control or exercise groups. Subjects were confined to 6-degree head-down bed rest for 84 days. The exercise group performed individually prescribed 1 g loaded locomotor exercise to replace their free-living daily load. Eleven subjects (5 exercise, 6 control) completed the protocol. Volumetric bone mineral density results from quantitative computed tomography demonstrated that control subjects lost significant amounts of bone in the intertrochanteric and total hip regions (p  0.0125). Pre-and post-bed rest muscle volumes were calculated from analysis of magnetic resonance imaging data. The exercise group retained a larger percentage of their total quadriceps and gastrocnemius muscle volume (−7.2% ± 5.9, −13.8% ± 6.1, respectively) than their control counterparts (−23.3% ± 5.9, −33.0 ± 8.2, respectively; p  0.05). The decline in VO2max was 17% ± 18 in exercising subjects (p  0.05). In summary, the decline in a number of important measures of musculoskeletal and cardiovascular health was attenuated but not eliminated by a subject-specific program of locomotor exercise designed to replace daily load accumulated during free living. We conclude that single daily bouts of exposure to locomotor exercise can play a role in a countermeasures program during bed rest, and perhaps space flight, but are not sufficient in their own right to ensure musculoskeletal or cardiovascular health. Keywords: Space flight, Bed rest, Exercise, Biomechanics, Simulation, Gravit