" Why? Why take a risk and try for the first time, something new, something different? "
That’s what veteran elementary Physical Education teacher Rod Holler must have been asking himself 8 years ago when he was ready to add PE-technology into his program. In the Wisconsin suburb of Waunakee, Wisconsin at Arboretum Elementary, Rod Holler decided to take that leap with Heart Zones. For him, this decision was a no brainer; he even wishes he had found Heart Zones sooner! Rod explains how and why he first became interested in heart rate technology,
“One of the reasons I first became interested in the Heart Zones Move Solution was for its ability to ‘screen’ students for potential heart health challenges. A number of years ago, I had a 4th grade student go down in my PE class with chest pain...
This student was struggling to breathe and unable to walk. After an ambulance ride to the hospital and further examinations, it was discovered he had a blood supply issue to his heart which surgery later corrected. I was told that this student could have died if his issue was not discovered/corrected. I could not have predicted that this student was the one who had a heart ailment in my classes.
If I had the use of a heart rate monitor at that time, maybe it would have allowed me to discover this student’s heart health issue. Personally speaking, it was because of the onset of heart rate technology in PE years ago that led to my discovery of my own heart health issue – cardiomyopathy. The Heart Zones Move Solution has many uses in a PE class one of which is to ‘screen’ our students for healthy heart functionality.”
Rod Holler at Arboretum Elementary School
When did you first Heart Zones?
"Almost a decade ago, I first heard of Heart Zones through an email sent to me from Heart Zones many years ago. The email caught my attention so I contacted the company and soon after Sally called me and introduced me to Paul Drake who works with her."
In 2015, Rod Holler was a trailblazer and among the first teachers to have purchased Heart Zones technology to use in PE. Rod believed that adding this in elementary PE would provide physical literacy, a Social Emotional Learning experience, and most of all motivation and engagement for his students. That was the first year that Heart Zones introduced the first of its kind, a hardware and software for multiple heart rate monitors. Now, Heart Zones is a physical education technology solution that has since grown to over 2,000 schools worldwide.
Rod's willingness to upgrade his PE program ended up paying off big time! Hear from Rod himself as he shares how he has applied Heart Zones educational technology over the past 7 years:
What would you tell other teachers about Heart Zones?
"Other teachers should know that the Heart Zones support team is awesome, the technology is easy to work with, and students will work their hardest when using this PE-tech. It is also great for teaching about intensity and effort with young students."
What do you like most about Heart Zones?
According to Rod,
"For me, the best thing about the Heart Zones Move Solution is how this PE-technology motivates my students to move more and learn. When wearing either the step trackers or the heart rate monitors, my students work so much harder and they love to see how they are doing with the Big Board data display.”
Rod’s impressive credentials include teaching Elementary PE for 31 years all in Wisconsin. He’s coached basketball, football, baseball, softball, and soccer for most of those three decades. As a Madison guy, he played baseball in high school and went on to graduate from the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point. On a personal level, Rod loves resistance training, hiking, biking, watching movies, and spending time with his family. Rod welcomes your questions, emails, or a visit to meet him so he can show you how he applies Heart Zones in his program. Please do so soon because Rod is retiring in June of 2024:
Arboretum Elementary School
1350 Arboretum Drive
Waunakee, Wisconsin 53597