Susanne Ebner
Senior Lecturer
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Project Duration: 01.01.2004
The Bachelor's program in Physical Therapy (in cooperation with Physio Austria and the Cliniclowns) is carrying out a project at elementary schools in Vienna that teaches students back-friendly and health-promoting movement habits for their daily school life.
In four units, the schoolchildren learn the anatomical basics of the spine, foot structure and leg axes. They learn about the physiological posture of the body when sitting and standing and the effect of movement on the spine and the body in general. Different learning and sitting positions are practised in a playful way and instructions for "back-friendly" bending, lifting and carrying are demonstrated, with the "back-friendly school bag" taking centre stage. The project includes additional exercise programmes such as active breaks, activation sequences in lessons and the "physiotherapy gym lesson". This promotes the ability to concentrate and motor skills with balancing exercises.
Students carry out the project as part of their 5th and 6th semester elective internship in health promotion under the supervision and guidance of lecturers and in close cooperation with the qualified teachers at the respective primary school. The students receive worksheets and handouts as project documents. In a fifth unit, they deepen their knowledge in an entertaining way with clinic clowns who - contrary to what they have learnt - do not behave in a back-friendly manner.