An SEL + STEM Curriculum Using Biofeedback and Data Inquiry for Grades 5–9
A STEM + SEL Curriculum That Teaches Students How Stress Affects the Body Using Real-Time Heart Rate Data
HeartData™ is a classroom learning program that integrates social-emotional learning (SEL) with STEM-based data inquiry. Students learn how the body responds to stress by collecting, graphing, and interpreting their own heart rate data using wearable biofeedback technology.
Designed for grades 5–9, the program connects physiological awareness with core academic skills in measurement, graphing, and data analysis, helping students understand how emotions, attention, and the body interact during learning.
Where Science Meets Self-Awareness
When students learn to observe how their bodies respond to stress, they begin to recognize early signs of dysregulation and develop strategies to regain focus.
HeartData uses experiential learning and scientific inquiry to help students explore this process. Students collect their own biometric data, analyze patterns, and reflect on how different activities influence their heart rate and emotional state.
Through guided observation and reflection, students:
- build awareness of their stress response system
- practice evidence-based self-regulation strategies
- develop scientific reasoning and data literacy
Program Overview
Duration: 2-week instructional unit (10 scaffolded lessons)
Grade Levels: Grades 5–9
Subject Integration: Math, Science, Health, Physical Education, or SEL programs
Core Learning Model: Students collect real-time heart rate data, graph and analyze results, and reflect on how different activities influence physiological regulation.
What Students Learn
- The body’s stress response system
- The relationship between emotion and physiology
- Data collection, graphing, and pattern recognition
- Self-awareness and self-regulation strategies
Program Features
- Standards-aligned with middle school math and science concepts around data collection and graphing
- 10 scaffolded lessons with structured activities and reflection logs
- Student workbook (print or fillable digital format)
- Trauma-informed learning framework aligned with CASEL SEL principles
- Flexible delivery through teachers, counselors, or wellness programs
- Optional faculty training to support implementation
Technology
Students connect to a Bluetooth heart rate monitor and the HeartData mobile app to view heart rate changes in real time.
A patented visual display translates heart rate changes into color-coded feedback, helping students observe how activities such as movement, breathing, and sensory grounding influence their physiological state.
Implementation Options
- STEM or SEL enrichment programs
- Health or physical education courses
- School counseling or wellness programs
- Tier 2/3 behavioral supports within MTSS frameworks
Important Note
Get to Know Your Heart is an educational curriculum designed for classroom learning. It is not a medical or diagnostic tool and is intended solely for use in educational environments.
This trauma-informed, science-aligned curriculum empowers learners to:
- Build awareness of their stress response system
- Use data to make meaning from their own lived experience
- Develop personalized self-regulation skills they can use for life
Students use heart rate monitors to collect real-time biometric data, which they then plot, graph, and analyze — reinforcing data literacy, scientific thinking, and healthy stress management habits.
by Instructor Knapp 