Tuesday, April 20, 2010
How many steps?
This week in third grade we are doing several lessons with pedometers. The children are trying numerous activities and learning how many steps each activity takes. The children also guessed how many steps they should be getting every day, and how many adult needs. Turns out children between the ages of 6-12 need approximately 12,000-15,000 steps every day to be at a healthy activity level. Adults need 10,000. Hmmmmm... the children wondered why adults need less. And how come it takes less steps to run if you are faster? And why don't I get many steps when I do crunches and push-ups? Lots of theories to discuss!
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Climb Away!
The JK children had a chance to climb on our climbing wall this week for the first time this year. It was awesome to see how strong and confident they were. Some children took a bit of time to figure out how to get up and get going, but once they make some progression in one direction, they seem to just "get it." Our climbing wall is actually a traversing wall which means they climb horizontally instead of vertically. The children have to keep their feet below a big red line so they are a safe distance off the ground. There is also a nice cushy mat for their landing. The children know that just like in gymnastics when we jump, we should try to land on our feet. I wish we had this piece of equipment when I was growing up...
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Scooters!
The PK children tried scooters for the first time today in the gym. Before they went for a ride, we talked a lot about safety. We have a few really important rules: no standing on the scooters, stay away from your friends (so you don't get your little fingers run over), and no crashing. Everyone was very careful. The children enjoyed riding the scooters on their bottoms, knees, and bellies. They liked going forwards, backwards, and especially liked spinning in circles. We will have several more opportunities to use scooters in the gym this spring!
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Speed Stack Battlestack!
First day trying a new piece of equipment: battlestacks! The 3rd and 4th graders are having a fun time racing each other using our speedstacks. If you get your stack done first, you get to pop the button and make your opponents cups go flying! The children don't even realize how much hand-eye coordination they are working on. FUN in the gym for sure!
Monday, February 22, 2010
Jumping Beans
This week and last week my students in 1st - 4th grade have been jumping, jumping, jumping... the rope that is. The first and second graders have been working on long rope. We have talked daily about how each group is a team and they need to work together as turners and jumpers to do their best and help the jumper get the most jumps in a row. The children have been getting very excited when someone jumps a big number. They know that they are a part of helping that jumper.
The third and fourth graders have been working on jumping an individual short rope. The third graders have a sheet with over 30 different jumps to try. Plus they have been coming up with some of their own stunts. Here is a sample of some of the jumps the children have come up with (the names are fun, and the jumps are so creative!):
hopscotch, bunny hop, disco jump, feet chainsaw, the spell jump, sonic speed, helicopter, spin jump, the whip, superstar jump, heat stroke jump, eyes closed, and sing a song. And that's only about half of what they have come up with!
The fourth graders are working on performing and perfecting stunts too, but they are combining them to make their own routine. The routine must contain at least 5 stunts, and it must be memorized. The children really love to do this. They work hard to make the routines challenging and fun. Many add their own flair with beginning and ending poses or stunts (like cartwheeling to pick up their rope off the ground, then jumping backwards). I enjoy watching their routines every time I do this unit; there are always new twists the children create.
The JK children are wrapping up their gymnastics unit, and now we are moving on to reviewing some of the skills we worked on at the beginning of the year like throwing and rolling a ball.
The PK children will have a few more class in the gymnastics gym. They have been learning to jump and land on their feet, balance on a variety of equipment, swing on the bars, roll down the incline mats, and lots more! We are still also working on our listening skills, specifically when the teacher says "Freeze" the children should be able to stop their bodies, look at the teacher, and listen to directions. Some children are really experts at this while others really seem to struggle with this. You could play this game at home with your child to reinforce this concept. Have your child walk, run, skip, or gallop around until you say freeze. See if they can stop right right away and listen to the next locomotor movement you tell them to try.
Hope you are enjoying our recent snowfalls. I know my own children have spent hours playing outside, so we are getting some use out of the winter precip!
The third and fourth graders have been working on jumping an individual short rope. The third graders have a sheet with over 30 different jumps to try. Plus they have been coming up with some of their own stunts. Here is a sample of some of the jumps the children have come up with (the names are fun, and the jumps are so creative!):
hopscotch, bunny hop, disco jump, feet chainsaw, the spell jump, sonic speed, helicopter, spin jump, the whip, superstar jump, heat stroke jump, eyes closed, and sing a song. And that's only about half of what they have come up with!
The fourth graders are working on performing and perfecting stunts too, but they are combining them to make their own routine. The routine must contain at least 5 stunts, and it must be memorized. The children really love to do this. They work hard to make the routines challenging and fun. Many add their own flair with beginning and ending poses or stunts (like cartwheeling to pick up their rope off the ground, then jumping backwards). I enjoy watching their routines every time I do this unit; there are always new twists the children create.
The JK children are wrapping up their gymnastics unit, and now we are moving on to reviewing some of the skills we worked on at the beginning of the year like throwing and rolling a ball.
The PK children will have a few more class in the gymnastics gym. They have been learning to jump and land on their feet, balance on a variety of equipment, swing on the bars, roll down the incline mats, and lots more! We are still also working on our listening skills, specifically when the teacher says "Freeze" the children should be able to stop their bodies, look at the teacher, and listen to directions. Some children are really experts at this while others really seem to struggle with this. You could play this game at home with your child to reinforce this concept. Have your child walk, run, skip, or gallop around until you say freeze. See if they can stop right right away and listen to the next locomotor movement you tell them to try.
Hope you are enjoying our recent snowfalls. I know my own children have spent hours playing outside, so we are getting some use out of the winter precip!
Friday, January 29, 2010
Gymnastics and Skating
This week has been filled with a lot of excitement in Physical Education. The children in PK, JK, 1st, and 2nd grades have started their gymnastics unit. We are so fortunate to have a big blue mat, 2 balance beams, 3 single bars, a vault, and lots of other mats and pieces of equipment to help us balance, roll, tumble, jump, leap, and so much more.
The 3rd and 4th graders started skating this past Friday and will continue next week. We have been working on forward skating, backward skating, stopping, crossovers, and some other fun tricks like dips, jumping, turning. The 4th graders are especially excited because they get to make up their own routine to perform. Some choose to do their routine to music. The routines in the past years have been wonderful to watch, so I am excited to see what this year's fourth graders will come up with. Some of the children also have asked to do an additional routine with a friend. The children really work hard to memorize and perfect their skills.
Stay warm!
The 3rd and 4th graders started skating this past Friday and will continue next week. We have been working on forward skating, backward skating, stopping, crossovers, and some other fun tricks like dips, jumping, turning. The 4th graders are especially excited because they get to make up their own routine to perform. Some choose to do their routine to music. The routines in the past years have been wonderful to watch, so I am excited to see what this year's fourth graders will come up with. Some of the children also have asked to do an additional routine with a friend. The children really work hard to memorize and perfect their skills.
Stay warm!
Thursday, January 7, 2010
3rd and 4th Ice Skating Dates
The third and fourth graders will begin skating soon. The skating dates are January 21, 25, 27, 28, February 1, 2, and 4. Third grade has a field trip on January 28th so they will not skate that day. Please remember to send sharpened skates, long socks (to prevent blisters), helmet, gloves/mittens, snowpants or sweatpants (to go over your child's school pants). The class skating times are during their regular PE times: Murray 12:30 - 1:00, Feldner 1:00 - 1:30, DeTorre 1:30 - 2:00, and Konik 2:00 - 2:30.
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