For a 7th-grade science fair project, Deana Williams wanted to test her hypothesis that yoga is better than aerobics for stimulating the brain prior to a math test.
“I had thought that yoga would help relax the mind,” said Deana, now an 8th grader at St. Mary School in Park Forest.
But when the data from her 8-month experiment came in, Deana, like many scientists, had to face a cold, hard fact: She had proved herself wrong. The results of her data showed aerobic activity — not yoga — improves performance.
Still, her efforts paid off. Deana earned a First Place Gold at the annual State Exposition of the Illinois Junior Academy of Science in May, and, starting this school year, a science teacher at St. Mary is incorporating the experiment and its results into her lesson plans.
“Deana took this idea and ran with it and conducted research like I have never seen in a student before,” said St. Mary science teacher Kathy Bajt, who coordinates the school’s science fair and is using Deana’s project.
Deana does both yoga and aerobics, as well as ballet and swimming. Her experience with those activities and the energy she draws from yoga laid the groundwork for her research last year.
To compile the data, the then-12-year-old recruited nine 6th- and 7th-grade volunteers from St. Mary to take a total of 260 math tests after school from October to May. On Tuesdays, the students did yoga prior to testing, and on Thursdays, they did aerobics.
Deana, who led the exercise and yoga classes, said she did face some challenges.
“It was difficult to keep volunteers focused,” she said.
Even so, the experience was a nice change from the usual classroom assignment, she said.
“It was a fun way of learning and different from going to science class,” said Deana, who lives with her family in Park Forest.
Her project won first place in the behavioral sciences category of the St. Mary science fair. In March, she earned a First Place Gold in the annual Regional Exposition of the Illinois Junior Academy of Science, and, in May, won a First Place Gold in the state exposition.
Winning those awards was not even a goal, she said, but it did reinforce her commitment to math and science.
“I have kind of thought of being a doctor,” Deana said.
Meanwhile, her project will be put to good use at St. Mary. Bajt said she and other teachers are suggesting students engage in a few minutes of aerobics prior to quizzes and tests.
And if students ask why jumping jacks are mandatory before a test, Bajt said she knows her stock response: “Because one of our students proved with research that aerobics improves test performance.”
