Divide the class in half to review math problems. Each student stands by their desk (paper and pencil on desk). Call out a math problem such as 4+5=. One half of the class jumps 4 times, then the other half jumps 5 times. Each student writes down their own answer. Continue with other math problems, and vary the movements: clapping, touch toes, jumping jacks, side bends, high-knees. Have students pick the movements.
Try a balloon relay. The students can either:
The students need to walk or run a certain distance without letting the balloon touch the ground. If the balloon touches the ground, they would need to go back to the starting place and start over.
Divide the class in half. Half of the students each write a word on an index card. The other half of the class each writes the definition. Shuffle the cards and hand one card to each student. The students walk around the classroom and match the word with the definition. For younger students, match up sight words, letters or numbers. Also works well with math problems.
Divide the class in half. Half of the students each write a word on an index card. The other half of the class each writes the definition. Shuffle the cards and hand one card to each student. The students walk around the classroom and match the word with the definition. For younger students, match up sight words, letters or numbers. Also works well with math problems.
For these games you will need medium to large balloons (any color). Consider latex-free balloons as some students may have allergies to latex.
Divide students into equal groups of 3 to 6 people per group. These games can be done either standing or sitting.
Have the each group form a circle. Using just one balloon, see how many times they can volley the balloon without it hitting the ground or see how long they can keep it in the air (i.e. 1 minute, 2 minutes, etc.) The team that keeps the balloon up the longest wins!
A different version of this game would be to add a second balloon to the mix and have the students try the same activity.
Give youth the option to do this from a seated position so individuals who use a wheelchair can join in the fun, too!
Have students lie on their back with arms and legs straight up in the air. Instruct them to tighten their abdominal muscles or pull their belly button in (engage abs), then have students lower their right leg and left arm at the same time while leaving their opposite arm and leg in a stationary position. Instruct them to switch back and forth and remember to keep breathing.
Instruct students to stand with their feet shoulder width apart and their hands on their hips. Have them be sure to keep their stomach muscles tight and their back straight in line with your hips. Tell them to lunge forward with one foot, being sure to keep the knee straight in line with the ankle. Remind them not to let the knee go over the toe when they lunge. Have them slowly squat down, gently touching their back knee to the ground, and slowly raise their body back to standing. Step forward and repeat with the opposite leg in front. They can perform the lunges in place, or they can start at one end of the hallway or gymnasium and perform the exercise across the space available. To make the exercise more challenging, students can put their hands above their heads, or even hold a medicine ball, or a heavier object to add more resistance.
Place the hula hoops into six separate areas of the gym. If hula hoops are not available, choose four corners and two middle areas of the gym. Label each hula hoop or area of the gym with the five food groups, (fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy, protein, plus one hula hoop for unhealthful food (to supplement the ‘Fast Food Alert’ lesson). Scatter the laminated food cards or photos throughout the gym. The goal is for students to run around the gym and sort the foods into the right food group.
For example, a photo of an orange goes in the fruit category. A photo of a steak goes in the meat category.
*For the Fast Food Alert lesson; have one more hula hoop labeled with unhealthful food and laminate fast food/unhealthful food for this hoop.
Have students stand with their feet shoulder width apart. Instruct them to squat down (as though they are pretending to sit down a chair), being sure to keep their stomach muscles tight and their backs straight to prevent injury. Using their arms for counter-balance, they can reach out. Tell them to slowly squat down until their knees are bent to 90 degrees, and knees do not go past their toes, hold for a count of 3 seconds and slowly stand back up. Do sets of 8-10 repetitions. You could encourage the students to also incorporate doing squats during a TV commercial, or doing a set of 10 here and there throughout the day.
Have students move so they have room to use the edge of their chair. Have each student grip the edge of chair with legs extended out in front of the chair. The student will then lower their body down toward the ground, (keep back close to the chair edge) while bending at the elbows, lower down until elbows are approximately 90 degrees, then straighten elbows while bringing the body back up to starting position. A good example to explain this activity to students would be to pretend they are scratching their backs (from bottom to top on the way down and top to bottom on the way up) against the edge of the chair, their back however should not actually touch the chair edge, but be very close.
Wheelchair push-ups or use a chair with arms rests and pressing arms straight. Bend knees and use legs to help support.
