Elementary school students in Florida must now have 150 minutes per week of health and fitness instruction and activities. We've had to become very creative in order to fit this time into our already crunched schedules! Legislators are concerned because an increasing number of young people are obese and suffering from health problems due to a lack of exercise and proper nutrition. I have long been a believer in teaching kids about taking care of their bodies, so I'm actually happy that we are now required to spend time on this topic. However, it's been difficult because we have been given very few resources and no materials at all. So, here are some ideas, resources, and activities I've compiled to help my students learn about health and wellness. If you have more ideas, please send them to me at contactmspowell@yahoo.com. Thanks for your input!
Developing Healthy Eating Habits Through Snack Time
My kids have had the 12:30 lunch shift for the last few years (school starts at 8:00), so I began allowing them to eat snack. They eat during small group reading time when they are doing their independent work, so it's not a distraction during instruction. I don't allow them to drink anything other than water in case it were to spill. Here's an excerpt from our class handbook explaining to parents the need for healthy snacks:
Healthy Snacks
Do you go from breakfast to lunch with no snacks in between? If you’re like me, you are able to concentrate more fully at work when you take a short break to have something to eat and drink. You also probably enjoy soda, doughnuts, coffee, and other unhealthy treats like I do!
I want to help the children make good choices about the foods they eat. We’ll be spending a few days in August talking about the Food Pyramid (which has been recently revised- see below), healthy foods, and the importance of exercise. We will also brainstorm a list of snacks that are good for our bodies that we can bring to school each day.
Children are encouraged to bring a daily, small, HEALTHY snack that is not messy to eat, such as one from the list below. Students will be given five to ten minutes to eat while they finish their center work in the mornings. I encourage all the children to keep a bottle of water at their desks and refill them throughout the day at the water fountain to stay well-hydrated.
Suggested Healthy Snacks:
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peanut butter crackers
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cheese crackers
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fruit
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veggies and dip
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yogurt
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raisins
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trail mix
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granola bars
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goldfish crackers
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dry non-sugary cereal
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pretzels
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nuts
Please do not send soda, candy, chips, or other snacks with little nutritional value and high sugar/fat content. The purpose of providing a snack time at school is not just to fill our bellies, but to learn to make good choices about what to eat! J Many children do not like foods that are good for them, but eating healthy snacks every day will soon establish new eating habits, especially when everyone around them is making good choices as well and the temptation to eat junk food is not there. Thanks for your cooperation and support!
More Resources for Healthy Eating
A great link for
healthy eating lessons, activities, snack guidelines, worksheets, and more.
Walk N Talk/ Family Fitness Program
Here's another excerpt from our class handbook. If you choose to use this program, be sure your administrator approves it first. In some school districts, recess must be free play and no additional breaks are allowed. This is a program I did two years ago:
In addition to learning about healthy eating, students will be adopting a regular exercise routine. Over 30% of children in America are obese, and a large cause of that trend is too much television and video games and not enough exercise! Here’s what our class is going to do to take care of our bodies:
AT SCHOOL: WALK-N-TALK
I provide students with a ten-minute morning break in the middle of the large block of instructional time before lunch and allow students to get some fresh air and socialize. Three times per week, we will use this break to do a Walk-N-Talk: a brisk walk around the perimeter of the school while chatting with friends. I enjoy this time to get to know the students on a personal level, as well. We will walk about a quarter mile during each Walk-N-Talk session and keep track of our miles. By the year’s end, we should have walked nearly 25 miles! Students will be encouraged to Walk-N-Talk around the playground perimeter during our regular morning break days and recess time to ‘earn more miles’, but will not be required to do so. If your child is unable to participate because of a health condition or disability, please let me know so I can make accommodations. Remember to send your child to school in comfortable walking shoes each day.
AT HOME: FAMILY FITNESS PROGRAM
Students are encouraged to exercise for at least 20 minutes three times per week at home. There isn't a penalty for not participating in the Family Fitness Program; however, there are incentives and prizes for those who do participate. The term exercise is used loosely to indicate any sort of physical activity: soccer practice, basketball games, bike riding, jump roping, playing tag, walking the dog, etc. Remember that these are activities that most of us used to do almost daily when we were children, but this generation is much less likely to be found outdoors playing. We want to get children into this habit for a lifetime. All they need to do is record their activity on the calendar in their BEE books and turn it in at the end of the month. While the entire family is not obligated to participate, many families begin taking walks together once or twice a week, or go swimming on the weekends. The Family Fitness Program is a motivator for everyone to get more active. I’ll be participating, too!!
More Resources for Exercising
"Family Mind and Body Night" ideas from Tom McCall Elementary in Michigan
Extensive links for nutrition games and resources (including Nutrition Reader's Theater, slideshows, and contests) for kids from Mrs. Renz- an awesome compilation!
Physical Education Games and Ideas for Classroom Teachers
The P.E. coach at my school, Mr. Hall, sent the following information to our third grade team at the beginning of the school year. I think these games are awesome, and I wanted to pass them along! I have not personally tried them all, but I know Mr. Hall has, and he knows his subject area (and children) very well. I hope you find these ideas as helpful as my colleagues and I have.
"Teachers, here are some ideas to help you get through the new 150 minutes a week mandate. Some things to keep in mind.
*When playing outside on a hot day, make sure you make time for a water break.
*When playing a tag game, make sure you review rules before each game as to avoid injury (no pushing, light tagging, use the key words "tag and bring back" to help the kids remember that once you tag someone, you do not need to grab their clothes or keep tagging them, one touch and bring your hand back to your body).
*You WILL need to monitor these games. The children should not be responsible for playing and refereeing each other.
*To keep this going all year long, try to pick one game a week, playing it all week long. This way you will be able to revisit things you’ve already done later in the year, and the kids won’t be bored with it.
*Some of the activities for the younger grades can be used for the older kids too, so don’t skip through it, you may find something they will like.
OUTSIDE GAMES
Red Light/Green Light (K-2)
One student is the caller, the rest are all in a line facing the caller with at least 10 yards space between. The caller will then call one of three commands: Red light, which means to stop; Yellow light, which means to walk and Green light which means run. When the call is made, the students will move towards the caller. The first student to tag the caller is the new caller and the game begins anew.
Mother May I? (K-2)
One student is designated as the "mother". The other students are lined up in the same fashion as Red Light/Green Light. The students will then, one at a time ask if they can take a creatively thought of step towards the "mother". First student to reach the "mother" and can touch them without taking any steps, is the new "mother". For this game, you may want to do 2 groups because there isn’t too much movement when the entire class is waiting for a turn.
Freeze Tag (K-5)
1-3 students are designated "it". The others are being chased by the "it" students. When tagged, the student freezes. There are a couple of choices to pick for unfreezing a player. Either a student who has not been tagged can tag them or the students can straddle their legs and a student who is not it can crawl under them and they are set free! (the latter might not be a good idea for the older students :o))
Toothbrushes and Germs (K-2)
This game can be integrated with a lesson on brushing teeth. 2 students are assigned to be the "toothbrushes". The rest of the kids are "germs". Set up 2-3 cones just as a marker for where the kids can go after they’ve been tagged (I refer to this as the "mouth"). When a "toothbrush" tags a "germ" they go into the mouth and are now a "tooth". A "tooth" can be a loose tooth (they can wiggle), they can be a crooked tooth (they can lean to the side) or they can be a baby tooth (they can squat down). The rounds should be short for this game. No more than 3-4 minutes per round so that everyone can get a chance to be a toothbrush. If there isn’t enough time, repeat the game a few days in a row so that everyone can have a turn. For the "toothbrushes", they can have some sort of prop to identify them from the other students, such as a real toothbrush or a cut out of one.
Red Chase Blue and Blue Chase Red (K-2)
For this game you will need 2 red and 2 blue cones. If you have 2 other colors, it works just as well. Half of the class is the red team and the other half is blue. Place the blue cones about 15 feet apart, leaving room for the students to run behind them. Place the red cones parallel to the blue with about 6 or 7 feet between the 2 colors. The red team is lined up between the red cones and they are facing the blue team, lined up the same way at their color. The teacher will call out a balance, or an exercise and then say either "red chase blue" or "blue chase red". The students will never know which one they will call. If red is supposed to chase blue, the red team runs toward the blue team and tries to tag someone. If they are tagged, they will switch teams. Make sure there is a signal, such as a whistle or a key word, to signal the students to stop chasing. They should only be given about 10-15 seconds to chase.
Battle Tag (K-5)
2 students are assigned "it", the rest are being chased. When a student gets tagged, wherever on their body they get tagged, they must hold it with their hand. If they get tagged on their shoulder, their hand holds their shoulder. If they get tagged on their leg, they hold their leg. Some students will get tagged on multiple locations, they must find a way to hold their "battle wounds". Each game shouldn’t be longer than 3 minutes long. A new tagger should be picked each time.
Relay Races (K-5)
Try to get the kids into even groups or 5 or 6 (one group can have less and one person goes 2 times to make up for it. Don’t make a group with more than the rest). Let them create the races in the classroom, perhaps in the groups they will be in, and use the ones they create to do the races. Help them out with ideas of real races and what the limitations are, such as no equipment races only.
Guard The Pin (K-5)
This game requires clothespins. Each student gets 3 clothespins and clips them to the back of their shirt. They will try to steal the clothespins off the other players, but they can only take 1 at a time. When they get a pin, they clip it to the front of their shirt. No one can take a pin from the front of the shirts, only the back. The student with the most clips wins. You can also make teams and incorporate basic math skills.
Kickball (3-5)
This game is played with traditional kickball rules (this game is good, but too much standing around and not enough kids participating at the same time, so try to avoid playing this game too much).
Straddle Kickball (3-5)
The class is split into 2 teams (Teams should be made by the teachers and not by the kids, splitting them up as evenly as possible according to skill level). One team is the kicking team and the other is the pitching team. The kickers will kick the ball and run around the bases, without stopping at any of the bases. The pitching team must get the ball as quickly as they can. Wherever the ball goes, the entire pitching team follows. The first person to get the ball waits for his/her team to form a line and straddle their legs. Once in a line, the ball must be rolled through everyone’s legs, except the last person. The last person in the line will lift the ball in the air. If the runner made it to home plate (or home cone) before the ball is lifted by the last person, he/she is safe, if the ball goes in the air before they make it home, they are out. If, while the ball is going through the pitching teams legs, the ball falls out of the line, or if someone picks up the ball and puts it behind them instead of rolling it, the ball must start back at the beginning. Let every person on the team kick before switching. If the teams are uneven, let one person from the smaller team kick twice. The teacher has to really be on top of this game and help them work together. It requires a lot of guidance and coaching, but its so much fun!
Cooperative Games (3-5)
The first one is partner get up. In groups of 3 or 4, have the students hold hands and have a seat. The students, never letting go, will attempt to get up and sit down a few times. When they have successfully done this, they will then cross hands over each other and hold hands. They will attempt to get up and sit down a few times. The students will pair up. The students will stand face to face. They will place their hands out flat and attempt to push the other person off balance (hand to hand). The person who can maintain balance is the victor (the one who does not move their feet). They will have about 7 minutes to work with each other.
INDOOR GAMES
4 Corners (K-2)
Heads Up 7 Up (K-2)
Freeze Dance (K-2)
Using upbeat, age appropriate music, have the students find their own space and dance. When the music stops, they have to freeze. If they move, they must perform a predetermined exercise (such as 10 jumping jacks, 5 push ups, 10 windmills, 10 sit ups etc.). An added twist is to add laugh attackers. When the music stops, 2 students will try to make the others move, but without touching them. They will try to make them laugh. The "laugh attackers" will only have about 15 seconds to do this. As soon as the students who moved do their exercises, the music goes back on.
Move To The Music! (K-2)
Making a music sample with short clips of music is best for this activity. Each student needs to have a scarf, or if you don’t have scarves for an entire class, a good substitute would be a tissue. When the music goes on, ask the students to move their scarves and their bodies to the music. If the song is slow, they should have larger slower movements, if its fast, the music should compel them to move in short bursts.
Scarf Juggle (K-5)
This activity uses tissues as well. Each child will get 1 tissue to start. They throw it in the air and then try to catch it. After about 1-2 minutes of that, add a tissue. If the kids want to challenge themselves, add a third scarf. To make it a little more exciting for them, after they get the 3rd one, add some music.
Balloon Volley (K-5)
Each student will get an inflated balloon. Let them know the safety rules prior to handing the balloons out. They should not touch anyone else’s balloon but their own. They are not allowed to purposely pop a balloon, they should stay away from cluttered areas where they can fall or trip and lastly they should make sure that they watch where they are going so that they do not collide with anyone or anything. Here are the challenges for balloon volley: *see if you can keep the balloon up without dropping it, *when I say go, count how many times you tap it (1 minute), *See if you can keep the balloon in the air, using only your elbow (then knee, shoulder, head, wrist, foot and lastly, everything EXCEPT hands), *for grades 1 and 2, let the kids partner up and tap the balloon to each other (putting one of the balloons away).
Poison Number (K-5)
For this activity you will need one die per group of 5 or 6 (you can do any size group for this one) a sheet of paper and pencil. Each person will take a turn rolling the die. You will give an exercise to the students to do that are indoor friendly (sit ups, jumping jacks, pushups, hops on the left foot, hops on the right foot, squats, jump squats, lunges, jump lunges etc.), when they roll the die, that’s how many times the students in that group must perform this exercise. After each roll, each of the players will write down the number rolled in their group. After 4 rolls, let them add their numbers together, if no one has over 20, continue. When a group has 20 or more, they are the victors! Here’s the kickerÖif a group rolls the #1 (the poison number) they start back at 0 and start over. This is a great activity for long addition and can be changed to accommodate different math skills (go backwards from 20 and use subtraction to get to 0 and the poison number starts you at 20 again, you can make the winning number in the hundreds or thousands and use multiplication etc..
Quick Draw Math (K-5)
Each student finds a random partner (if there’s an odd one out there can be a group of 3) and on the count of 3 both players hold out a certain number of fingers. The one to say the sum of the fingers first is the winner. Both players will then randomly find someone else and do the same thing. To make it more challenging you can ask them to use 2 hands, subtract the bigger number from the smaller, multiply using one hand, then 2, all according to grade and skill level.
Bingo Ball (K-5)
Divide the students into groups of 5-8. Each group will form a circle. One student will be given the ball. The teacher selects one of the classes spelling words. The object of the game is for each group to spell the word while passing the ball around the circle using one letter at a time. If the ball drops, it goes back to the person it started. When the word is spelled the person with the last letter of the word holds the ball in the air to signify that the group is done (or if you have a bell, one person from the group can run up and ring the bell). You can use tally marks to give each team points and let the kids do the math as a class, then add up the whole class to see what they all got collectively.
High 5 Recall (3-5)
Each person gets 1 partner. Partners face each other and are about 10 feet apart, forming 2 long lines (you may have to move the desks for this one). Using a loco-motor movement (run, skip, hop [1 foot], jump [2 feet], gallop, slide [like a baseball player when getting ready to run, moving sideways one foot is brought to the other, both feet coming off the ground], jog) partners meet in the middle and give each other a high 5 and then return to the line. The teacher then calls out a new loco-motor movement and a new hand movement. The student must travel to his/her partner using the first loco-motor movement, the first hand movement and then the new loco-motor movement and the new hand movement. For example: 1. Skip to your partner and give them a high five, 2. Jog to your partner and give them a low five (first the will do command 1, then command 2), 3. Slide to your partner and clap 3 times (they will do command 1, then 2 then 3), 4. etc... If you see the students start getting confused, start over with new commands."
