IHT

Renita Searcy, PE teacher at Whispering Pines Elementary in Humble, Texas, wanted heart rate monitors for her students but didn't have the budget. So she did something about it: she applied for and was awarded an American Heart Association grant, raised additional funds through Field Day T-shirt sales and her school's Turkey Trot, and built a program from the ground up for her 100 fourth graders. 🫀 Now, students who used to resist running are engaged. These young students can see their heart rate zones in real time, allowing them to understand what their bodies are doing and feeling. “They can actually see what they’re doing,” Searcy said. “It’s such a game-changer. And it might even cut back on some of your behavior students or students who really are not the big PE kids. This is a new generation of kids who are all about technology. So bringing technology in, that’s what they love.” If you're a PE teacher who's been wondering how other educators are funding edtech for their programs, Renita's story and her tips are exactly what you need. She even shares helpful tips about how to apply for AHA grant money. Read the full blog post here: ihtusa.com/iht-blog/pe-te…

A 9th grader walked into PE class weighing nearly 450 pounds. By the next school year, he'd lost 52 pounds – not because of a fitness program, but because his PE teacher met him exactly where he was. Using an IHT Spirit heart rate monitor, he could see his own data. His teacher gave him one goal every day: just make your body that much stronger. "He started paying less attention to what others thought and was focused on himself," his teacher said. "And now he's got a physical difference to see for it." This is how PE can transform a child’s life with the use of #edtech like the Spirit System. Read more about this powerful story: ihtusa.com/iht-blog/high-…

What if the secret to getting kids focused in class happened before they ever left PE class? Eagles Elementary School PE teacher Tyler Hetland (in Fargo, North Dakota) uses party lighting + IHT’s heart rate monitors to help his elementary students calm their bodies and minds before heading back to class … and it's changing everything. The result? Calmer kids, more focused classrooms, and teachers who notice the difference. “Not only are the (heart rate monitors) and lights helpful from a classroom management standpoint, I think they are helping set our students up for a successful, healthy life further down the road,” Hetland said. Read more about his innovative PE program: ihtusa.com/iht-blog/teach…

🎯 Goal-setting. Safety. Independence. Self-awareness. These gains are possible when heart rate monitors are used in adapted PE. From tracking exertion to supporting IEP goals, the right #edtech can help students with disabilities thrive. Learn more about how this educator transformed his Adapted PE class: ihtusa.com/iht-blog/adapt… #AdaptedPE #PhysEd

This #MentalHealthAwarenessMonth, we're thinking about what it actually looks like to support student mental health – not just in theory, but in practice, every single day. At an elementary school in Littleton, Colorado, behavior-based incidents dropped from 17 to just three in a single school year. Suspensions dropped from eight to three. The tool at the center of it? A wrist-worn heart rate monitor. When students could see their own heart rate rising in real time (before frustration became an outburst, before anxiety became a shutdown) they had something most kids never get: an early warning signal they could actually act on. "Heart rate is one of the simplest and easiest ways to see how people are doing on the inside," said Littleton Public Schools Director of Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Services Nate Thompson. "The progress these students made was life-changing for them." More and more schools are using our heart rate monitors in counseling programs, special education settings, and all-day wear for students who need continuous biofeedback support. This May, if you're thinking about how to do more for your students' mental health, this is worth a read: ihtusa.com/iht-blog/how-s… #MentalHealthMonth #edtech #teachers

Meet the Student Growth Report, the latest addition to the Spirit Software Suite! 📊 ✨ Easily see every student's fitness progress side by side, across any time period. Track fitness gains, validate your program’s impact, identify struggling students, track longitudinal progress for IEPs, adjust curriculum, evaluate teacher effectiveness, support state physical education requirements and more! No other system gives educators this much longitudinal data, this clearly. Your program is working. Your students are improving. Let us help you collect the quantifiable data to prove both. Learn more and watch the demo video: ihtusa.com/iht-blog/the-s… #teachers #educators #schools #EdTech #edtechtools #EdTechSolution #physed #physedteacher #peteachers #IHT

When your PE Coordinator or Principal asks for student fitness data and you already have it. 🥳 🏆 The Classroom App tracks, syncs, and reports … before anyone asks for data. If you’re a PE teacher not already using the Spirit System and the Classroom App, contact us today to make your 2026/2027 school year your most impactful year yet. Learn more about the Classroom App here: ihtusa.com/iht-blog/iht-c… #teachers #educators #schools #EdTech #edtechtools #EdTechSolution #physed #physedteacher #peteachers

“I’m blessed because my district truly believes in student wellness,” Humble School District Coordinator of PE/Wellness Helen Wagner said. “The more kids you can show that you’re going to affect, the greater the return on what the district can get for you. The biggest thing I’m hearing is that [IHT] has completely changed the mindset of PE in high school.” Read more about how this Texas school district’s Coordinator of PE/Wellness used grant money to strengthen her district’s wellness curriculum: ihtusa.com/iht-blog/stude…

Most kids can't describe what anxiety feels like in their body … until they can see it on their wrist. Schools are using heart rate monitors to give students real-time feedback on their emotional wellness. When a student's heart rate spikes before a test, during a conflict, or at recess — that color change on their wrist becomes a cue: time to breathe. The results are changing lives. One school saw behavioral incidents drop from 17 to 3 in a year. Read the full story, including 3 real school case studies: ihtusa.com/iht-blog/how-s…

📣 Exciting news: Today, we’re launching the Spirit System for Staff Meetings. Because someone needs to document the decline of teacher engagement during a 55-slide budget presentation. Measure stress. Measure engagement. Measure the exact moment morale leaves the room. Measure peak frustration during “a quick update.” Measure exactly how many times someone checks their smartwatch during a 4-hour PD day. 📉 IHT makes it easy for you to track staff heart rates in real time, so you finally have data-backed proof of what you already know. Special features: •Includes Passive-Aggressive Heart Rate Alerts™ during open discussions •Flags sudden heart rate spikes during phrases like “just one more thing” •Syncs seamlessly with eye-roll frequency •Try our beta Auto-Sigh Detection™ add-on! Available for purchase April 31st. Finally, wearable heart rate technology designed for people who sit through hour-long department meetings every week and live to tell the tale. 💪 #HappyAprilFools #EdTech #Teachers #StaffMeetings

@MrPicha_PE Thank you for the repost and support! Hope you had a great time at SHAPE!

What if the key to better focus, behavior, and academic performance isn’t more seat time… but more movement? Research shows physical activity directly supports how students think, learn, and retain information. If you’re an educator looking for practical, science-backed ways to better support your students and improve academic performance, this is an important read: ihtusa.com/iht-blog/physi…

We had a tie for our BlazePod Challenge at #SHAPEKC! Watch these two battle it out and find out who has the FASTEST FEET! Who's going to win our grand prize? #SHAPE2026 #EdTech #PhysEd #IHT

Stop by Booth #907 at #SHAPEKC and take on our BlazePod Challenge! Tap as many times as you can in 30 seconds, and the contestant with the most foot taps wins the grand prize! 🏆 Think you've got the fastest feet? Prove it! Check the leaderboard to see where you stack up and come back to defend your spot! And don’t forget to catch our live demo tomorrow, Friday 3/20 at 11:10 a.m. in the Demo Playground, and discover how the Spirit System turns heartbeats into meaningful insights! #SHAPE2026 #SHAPEAmerica #EdTech #PhysEd #PhysicalEducation #HealthEducation #IHT

The competition is heating up at #SHAPEKC booth #907! Compete in our BlazePod Challenge at our booth and see if your cardiovascular health can get you the grand prize! (We’d love to also talk to you about our passion for student wellness!) #SHAPE2026 #EdTech #PhysEd #PhysicalEducation #HealthEducation #IHT

🏃 We're at #SHAPEKC this week! Swing by our booth #907 to learn how we help PE teachers use heart rate data to motivate students, measure what matters, and improve fitness outcomes. Let's connect! Compete in our fun BlazePod Challenge and see if your cardiovascular health can get you a grand prize! #SHAPE2026 #EdTech #PhysEd #PhysicalEducation #HealthEducation #IHT

@heartbeatsofape @SHAPEAmerica Thanks for the Repost!!

Check out @IHTSpirit at #SHAPEKC on March 20! #physed #adaptedpe #healthed @SHAPEAmerica

👋👋 Hi!!! We'll be presenting Friday, March 20 from 11:10 - 11:30 a.m. "Discover PE's Future with IHT's Spirit Heart Rate Monitor!" Location: Demo Playground Definitely attend our demo or feel free to swing by our booth # 907 anytime! Our heart rate monitors are loved by Adapted PE teachers because our monitors give their students confidence to work out while providing APE teachers with peace of mind knowing they're able to keep their students safe by monitoring their heart rates. Here's a recent blog post about APE use: ihtusa.com/iht-blog/adapt… We hope to see you at the demo and our booth! Hope you have fun at the conference!

Are you presenting at @SHAPEAmerica #SHAPEKC? Let us know when and where! #physed #adaptedpe #healthed

We're at #SHAPE2026 and the vibes are everything! 🎉 Dozens of educators jumped into our demo this morning and absolutely crushed it. Seeing these teachers work their hardest to get their heart rates up reminds us of why we're so passionate about empowering them with the tools they need to inspire movement and wellness for every student. If you're here, come find us at booth # 907 to learn about our on-going contest and grand prize! The fun isn't over! #SHAPEKC #EdTech #PhysEd #SHAPE2026 #PhysicalEducation #HealthEducation #IHT

"No" isn't the end of the story … it's just the beginning. We gathered the stories of 4 incredible educators who fought through budget rejections and bureaucratic walls to bring heart rate monitor technology to their students. Their secret? Learning the funding strategies that actually work. The funding was always there. What these educators had to learn was where to look and how to ask. Read their stories, learn their tips, and steal their strategies: ihtusa.com/iht-blog/fundi… #EdTech #SchoolWellness #StudentHealth #PhysicalEducation #Teachers #IHTSpirit