Keeping Kids in Motion
Building a community where fitness and play are the foundation for all families.
April’s JUMP INTO SPRING Fitness Challenge
Click JUMP ROPE for an editable copy of the challenge!
Choose a level that’s comfortable yet challenging for you:
Level 1 – Perform the number of jumps listed each day followed by the 1-minute speed rope challenge.
Level 2 – Double the number of jumps listed each day followed by the 1-minute speed rope challenge.
Level 3 – Triple the number of jumps listed each day followed by the 1-minute speed rope challenge.
The 1-minute Speed Rope Challenge
Count how many times you can successfully jump your rope in one minute. Jumps do not need to be consecutive. Calculate your daily total on the calendar.
What if I don’t have a jump rope?
No problem at all! Simply perform the challenge by jumping with an invisible rope. Pretend to turn the rope as you jump.
What if I can’t jump rope?
Each of us are at a different level when it comes to jumping rope. Try to perform the minimum number of jumps each day with the rope. For the 1-minute challenge, stretch the rope out on the ground. Count how many times you can jump back and forth over the rope in one minute.
What is the goal of April’s Jumping for Fitness Challenge?
This challenge has multiple goals. The first is to improve cardiovascular endurance. Secondly, jumping rope improves dynamic balance and coordination, reflexes, bone density and muscular endurance.
Complete the Jump Into Spring fitness challenge throughout the month of April. At the end of the month, add up the total number of days completed, have your parents sign the bottom of the calendar and return it to your PE teacher for a certificate of completion and a shoe token.
Click JUMP ROPE for an editable copy of the challenge!
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10 Simple RELAY RACES for YOUR Students
Relay Races are be a quick and easy way to promote teamwork, active participation, integrity and fun. One of the keys to a successful relay is group size. Depending on the relay, limit the number of students per team to maximize movement and excitement. Of course, fast-paced relays can have more students than some of the slower relays where students are waiting for a turn.
Throughout any unit, I will sometimes take a quick “relay break,” even if it doesn’t directly relate to the topic. Other times I’ll incorporate a skill related to a unit into a relay race. For example, here’s one called The Hiking Relay I did with my 5th grade students.
Most of our relay races have a time limit, rather than the first team that finishes wins. A time limit allows students to continuously participate no matter how fast they are.
Here are three common ways we challenge our students when participating in a relay race:
- “How many times can your team pass the ball down and back in two minutes?”
- “How far can you team travel in one minute?”
- “How many repetitions can you and your teammates complete in three minutes?”
Overall, relay races are a cost-effective, high energy way to boost the excitement level in PE class. Many relays can be done with large groups in smaller spaces with limited equipment.
Check out some of our favorite relay races. I hope you can use them. Please comment on relay races you use with your students!
The following relays can be adapted for multiple sports.
Thank you to everyone on Twitter who has contributed to our growing list of relay races.
If you enjoyed this post, consider following my blog to receive future posts.
Follow me on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/justybubpe.
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Blowing off S.T.E.A.M. in PE: Design a Kicking Tee for Football
How this video and the process my sons’ took to create a kicking tee inspired this challenge!
It began one morning in January when my sons wanted to go to the soccer field in our neighborhood to practice kicking field goals with an American football. Instead of an actual field goal post, they would use the soccer goals measuring about six feet high and ten feet across. I always admire the way kids can improvise. *Click Blowing Off Steam – Football Tee for an editable copy of the challenge.
“Has anyone seen the kicking tee?” I didn’t have the heart to tell the boys that one of our dogs had used the tee as a chew toy several months back.
A kicking tee is used to hold the football in place, allowing the kicker to kick the ball. The alternative is having a brave sibling or friend (or father) hold the football between the ground and index finger, often resulting in a kicked digit. I’ve been there on many occasions. Ask Charlie Brown what else can tend to happen when someone holds the ball for you.
After several minutes of searching, rather than giving up, they began to once again improvise. They tried balancing the football on a large bottle cap but alas, it kept tipping over. Next, they attempted to balance the ball on the ground by digging a small divot. This had limited success and they didn’t want to keep digging every time they needed to increase the distance of the field goal attempt. Back to the drawing board!
How about a roll of duct tape? The football stood perfectly in the roll, however, too much of it was covered. Each attempt resulted in the roll being kicked, rather than the football.
Their minds began to shift from a traditional kicking tee to a football holder.
“Why don’t we try a stick with a “v” shape on one end.”
For the next fifteen minutes, the boys searched the wooded area for a stick that fit their description. No luck!
Just when I thought they were about to ask me to sacrifice my fingers, they took another trip back to the lab (playroom). They pulled out the Tinker Toys and began to design a functional football holder through trial and error. Back and forth they travelled between the playground and their lab, making subtle tweaks to their design. Finally, they had it! They created the perfect apparatus for their mission. Check out their creation, the “Tinker Tee,” in action.
Witnessing my sons’ take on this dilemma, inspired me to create the latest “Blowing Off S.T.E.A.M. in PE” Design Challenge. I hope you and your students can find it fun and challenging. Good luck!
Click Blowing Off Steam – Football Tee for an editable copy of the challenge.
If you enjoyed this post, consider following my blog to receive future posts and fitness challenges.
Follow me on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/justybubpe.
Check out my Facebook group called Keeping Kids in Motion!