WEEK 25: JUMP ROPE CONTINUES

Though Jump Rope 4 Heart is over, all classes will continue jump roping this week. Some will do the single jump ropes that did not finish from two weeks ago. Other classes will work with long jump ropes. Third through fifth grades will have a little fun with the long jump ropes. Groups of three or four will be made and students will be given a chance to create a one minute jump rope routine, performed at the end of class. Each routine will be scored and students will be given tips and hints on how to score the most possible points in their routine. Everything done in the routine that is not a regular jump is a point, incuding any tricks, dancing, turner switching and running in and out. Everytime the rope stops or is messed up, one point is taken away. Students are encouraged to do tricks quickly and use strategy to score points.

Kindergarten through second grades will also work with the long jump ropes. Emphasis will begin with the rope turn. Students will practice with a partner turning high, low and slow! Students will then break into threes and try to get each person in the group to jump 10 consecutive times. At the end of class, three groups will try to see who can get the most points by jumping ten times. Every time a student in each group jumps ten times, the group scores a point.

WEEK 24: SUBSTITUTE

There were no plans this week. A substitute conducted the PE class and on Wednesday, February 14, the entire school participated in Jump Rope 4 Heart. Regular PE will resume next week on Tuesday February 20.

I was absent this week because my dad died Saturday February 10. He had been sick for a while but I am still a little sad. If you would like to read about my dad click here http://www.lsureveille.com/home/index.cfm?event=displayArticle&ustory_id=13ec27b7-f494-46ae-b5d7-4a5216bdaf3a

WEEK 23: QUICK SWITCH TO JUMP ROPES

With "Jump Rope 4 Heart" approaching next Wednesday, we will do a jump rope challenge this week. 2nd through 5th grades will be doing a recorded challenge of four jump roping skills. Next Wednesday at the event, the classes that are the best in each skill will be recognized. Class is set up in a large cone circle with a jumprope between each set of cones. Students will work on their first two challenges as I walk around and mark them correct or give feedback and instruction. Those who get checked off on the challenge can practice any other tricks. The first challenge is jumping ten times without messing up and the second is 20 times without messing up. Students in 2nd through 5th grades must do the fast turning as two jumps between each turn will not count. The second challenge will be the "Criss Cross" jump. Students will be instructed on techniques and led through all parts of this jump. If students are successful they will be challenged to beat the school record for criss cross jumps in a row...25! Last will be the "Double Turn" jump where students have to do two turns on one jump. This is very hard and if students need to make up other jumps they missed, now is the time. Music will be played all during jumping.

Kindergarten and first grades are a little different. Students will be started like the higher grades but no challenges will exist. I will give students a quick example and they will begin to try jump roping to the music. Students will be identified and used as examples of good jump roping skills. At various time, the music will be stopped and small suggestions issued to the class like don't bend over, small circles with the hands, keeping the beat with your hands and feet. Sometimes we will review the correct swing by no jumping, just turning the rope and letting it slide under the feet, then stepping over it. I will also circulate and give specific help or advanced instructions to students. Different kinds of jumps will be done including, the one hop, two hop, the run in place, and the run around. We will end class with jump rope running races.

WEEK 22: GOLF CONTINUES & FLAGS!

Week two of our golf unit has begun. There are still some classes who have not done week one yet because of weather! We are still trying and I know that students are frustrated and want to continue golfing. In week 2, instruction time will go down and practice time will go up. We will all review quickly the rules and swing directions quickly and then get started. If I had to guess I would say every student hits at least 40 golf balls! Students will be given a letter grade. The grade will go down one letter for every cue we have discussed. These include: triangle with feet, correct aim, hand configuration correct, hands together, club behind the ball before the swing, head stays down, full swing, both hands stay on club. Students are given their grade immediately and told what can do to improve grade. Grades are constantly assessed throughout the class and they can either go up...or down! Grades will not count on report card but they are only for our ability to improve.

Kindergaretn through 2nd grades will be playing flag games. Classes have already started this and they love it! Review of flags rules will be followed by three game. The first game, with a partner, is "Grudge Match". Students will go one on one to pull their partners flag off. Once a flag is pulled off the puller must dance while the pullee puts it back on then the game restarts. Game two is "Triple Tag" in groups of three. This is the same game as before but to win a student has to be the only one left with a flag on. IF somehow all the flags come off, often the winner could be the one who puts the flag on the fastest! The third and most exciting game is "Flag Collecting" where it is you against the class. Everyone has a flag on to start but if your flag gets pulled off it does not matter, just keep going. The object is to pull as many flags of other people as possible and have the most flags in your hand at the end of the game. Sometimes students can find falgs onthe ground but you can never pull a flag out of someones hands!

WEEK 21: GOLF BEGINS & ENDS QUICKLY

After many weeks of waiting, golf began with the third grade but the fun quickly ended when a downpour completely soaked all of the equipment. The field is now wet once again and we will be doing tennis ball games on the court this week with all of the grades. We will be partnering up for some relay and continuous relay games including rolling, throwing and many modified activities. All grades will participate!

UPDATE: We have some new decent weather and have resumed golf for 3rd through 5th grades. Keep your fingers crossed for our students. They are very excited and really want this unit to begin!

WEEK 20: 5th GRADE TO CAMP CRYSTAL

This entire week was dedicated to 5th graders and their trip to Camp Crystal. Kindergarten through 4th grades have a PE sub and will be doing fun alternate plans at school. The 5th grade took a three day trip to Camp Crystal to study science in nature and I went along to encourage participation during the outside activities. We did quite a bit of hiking, played team building games, shot the bow and arrow, dancing, and played lots of volleyball and four square during our many break times. Students got more "PE" type time during these days than they ever would have during a regular week in school!

WEEK 19: WEATHER CONTINUES DELAYS

More delays this week from weather problems. We will continue "Four Square" and "Wildcat Ball" with all grades. Kindergarten through 1st grades will be doing very basic work in these areas. Golf is still planned for our next unit in the 3rd through 5th grades and Kindergarten through 2nd grades will do rolling balls.

WEEK 18: MORE DELAYS

Due to more weather problems and a wet field, PE has again opted for the optional lesson. Third through fourth grades will be playing "Wildcat Ball". "Wildcat Ball" is similar to volleyball but there are some major game modifications. The court is very large, about 30 yards wide and each side has about 20 yards depth. Anyone can serve and can be decided by the team. When the serve goes over the net, the ball must be struck in the air or it can bounce one time. If it bounces twice then the point goes to the other team and a the other team also gets to serve. Players and teams can hit an unlimitesd amount of times before the ball goes back over. If it goes under the net the other team gets the serve and point. Small classes or lower skilled calsses use the throw and catch as a further modification. Teams are encouraged to keep the ball up and pass to teammates as a higher strategy. Fourth and fifth grades are combining classes with PE2.

Second grade is still working on "Four Square" and is progressing from "Two Square" very nicely. They will continue this until next week. First and Kindergarten are at different levels of "Two Square". They are practicing the serve and some volleying but not much emphasis is given to the actual game.

COLONIAL DAY FOR 5th GRADE

PE was called off on Friday before the Christmas holidays due to "5TH GRADE COLONIAL DAY". Students in the 5th grade went to six stations to learn about things colonial americans did. One station was the "Colonial Game". Students spent time learning about colonial games and then focused on "Horse Shoes". Rules were reviewed and then the games began!

WEEK 17: LAST WEEK OF SOCCER DELAYED

Before Christmas holiday began, our 3rd through 5th grades got a few days of soccer in but due to the rain from the start of the year we have had to change plans and do an alternate activity on the covered court. PE1 and PE 2 have combined and will do a few days of "Four Square". Students will learn the rules and play basic "Four Square" in small groups. Students will learn how the proper athletic stance is helpful, strategies for personal game improvement, and strategies for refereeing their own game. Sportsmanship is the main emphasis and students are encouraged to work out their own problems in their own games.

Kindergarten through 2nd grades will be playing "Two Square" which is the same as "Four Square" but with two squares. Focus will begin basic without squares, move to serve practice, then playing small games. Some free ball time will end class. Second grade will move to a little "Four Square" play at the end of their class.

WEEK 16: SOCCER IS FINALLY HERE

After practicing a week of kicking, students have been rewarded with two weeks of soccer. This is actually not normal soccer but "Two Ball Soccer". The rule changes are as follows: two balls in play at all times, no out of bounds on the side, no out of bounds on the ends, only stops of play on hand ball and fouls. This is another good opportunity for students to learn how a referee impacts a game. The ball never stops unless blown dead by the referee (me). Sportsmanship and teamwork are emphasized to keep a fun flow in the game. A small meeting with each team at the beginning talks about the importance and responsibility of the goalie, defense, and offense.

Kindergarten and first grade continue to practice the power kick on the ground then will play "Circle Number Ball". Students stand on a pre-set spot and colors and numbers are called, cuing students to race to the middle of the circle to get a ball and do some skill. Second grade will learn the punt. It will be introduced and then practiced in partner groups. After some practice time, these groups will punt over the soccer goal and then keep score. Cues for the punt include; dropping the ball 9not throwing it), drop and kick at the same time, and drop the ball forward to meet the foot.

WEEK 15: EVERYBODY KICKING

We remain on the field this week with all classes and are starting three weeks of "Kicking and Soccer." All grades will study the power kick. Students will learn that a power kick of a non-moving ball is used in football and soccer. It involves running to the ball, stepping beside the ball, bringing the foot under the ball, keeping the foot flexed, and following through with a high leg kick. We encourage long high kicks that can be caught in the air. Students will practice with partners in the field and then play "Goal Scoring." There are eight teams of two or three students in each line. A student will power kick to the goal for points from 10 to 20 yards away depending on the level. One point through the soccer goal, two points between the narrow passage inside the cone target and three points over the goal like a field goal. Students will also gain points from hustling and good teamwork and sportsmanship. Kindergarten and first grade will be a little less organized. They will "Kick and Go" all the way down to the opposite goal. They will score goals repeatedly and not in any order to help them learn about goals and points.

This is Coach Viau's last week at Williams. If you see him tell him what a great job he did teaching here at our school. We wish him the best of luck and know that he will be a great PE teacher somewhere!

WEEK 14: CATCHING WITH A GLOVE

With the end of paddles comes a similar skill that is necessary to continue to build hand-eye coordination, catching with a glove. Our students will be introduced to gloves in week 14 and play a fun game for lots of catching practice. We will start with an introduction of the baseball glove and how to put it on and use it. We will catch our own tossed up fly balls and we will catch with a partner. The culminating activity, "Meteor Ball", will see two teams throwing pop-flys over a 25 foot middle area so that each team has chances to catch many balls. Students must throw high, no line drives, and they must have their own side of the activity area clean for bonus points at the end. Points are scored for every catch made during the game. It is a wild and exciting game giving lots of opportunity to catch with the glove.

Kindergarten through second grades will be rolling balls this week. They will learn the proper techniques, comparing the roll to the bowling movement and skee-ball in the video arcade. Students will work with a partner from different lengths and different rolling velocities. Students will then be put in groups of three and have a middle person as the target...well not really a target! The outside students will roll under the legs of the middle person and the middle person will have different skills they must do as the ball goes under thier legs. Groups will switch jobs. A target rolling game will end the class if there is still time!

WEEK 13: PADDLE BALL TOURNAMENT

Third through fifth grades will be continuing "Paddle Ball" this week and we will also be participating in an "one-on-one Paddle Ball" tournament. We will begin thew tournament with a single elimination bracket including every student in the class. Three games will be played at a time, all games going to 5 points. Students who are not intheir game or are eliminated are challenged to practice using the passles at their own pace; striking alone, with a partner, creating a unique game or even cheering their classmates on. At the end of class, the class champion will be named.

Listed below are the class champions of the 'Paddle Ball" singles tournament that each 3rd through 5th grade class participated in during week 13.

3rd grade - Wilson Peter - Jonah Thiele - Riko Mirti
4th grade - Akis Pardalos - Fred Carmen - Peter Sarmiento
5th grade - Paige Vermeulen - Allie Sourakov

Kindergarten through 2nd grades

WEEK 12: PADDLES AND HOOPS

3rd through 5th grades will continue striking but this time with implements...paddles! We will work individually with a paddle, trying to strike the ball up continuously, low and high. Students will be challenged to count how many times in a row they can strike the ball, a tennis ball, without it touching the ground. Students will also be challenged to move the paddle in different ways while continuously striking. Students will move to partner groups and try to strike the ball back and forth with unlimited bouces between strikes. This will lead into "PADDLE BALL". Four small courts, 10 feet square sides, are marked with a 2 - 3 foot net betweeen. Students will play doubles action with a few rules: the ball must bounce once and only once, serve must be bounce ball and then strike underhanded, students can only hit the ball one time on their side before it goes over. Games are played to ten and groups switch to play other teams. Teamwork and sportmanship is a main emphasis.

Kindergarten through 2nd grades are working with hoops this week. Mostly students will have a hula hoop for themselves and emphasis will be put on individual skills. These skills include: trick around arm, hips, neck, switching arms during spin, spin hoops on ground, walk the dog, drop over body, around the leg, jump rope, rolling hoop, chasing hoop, hoop race, and jumping through a moving hoop. An ending activity will be target practice throwing nerf balls through moving hoops.

WEEK 11: REAL VOLLEYBALL ACTION

This will mark the third and final week of Volleyball for our 3rd through 5th grade students. We will continue to practice our basic skills through partner work. The bump and set will be broken down into basic easy parts and students will be challenged to work with their partner to keep the ball up. Emphasis will be put on the height of the shot! Students will again be placed on a team and then begin real volleyball. Truthfully this is not real volleyball but it is closer! All volleyball rules are the same except you can hit the ball as many times as you like on your side to get that ball over the net.

Kindergarten through 2nd grades will be continuing scooter games. They will again go over the safety rules for scooter use and do a little free scooting. The court will be set up by placing treasure boxes (cones) in a wide 25 yard diameter circle. Students will take their scooter to a treasure box and prepare to play "Treasure Hunt". On the signal students will sail their scooter into the middle of the ocean and can grab one piece of treasure from the middle are, which has been littered with hundreds of assorted little treasures. Students must work quickly to grab a piece of treasure, bring it back to their treasure box and then sail back in for more. Some treasures will be assigned a different value to improve higher counting skills upon game completion.

BEST MILE TIMES

Over 350 2nd through 5th grade students took the mile run test at the beginning of October. The following students were the best runners in the entire school. Check out the top girl. She is not only the fastest runner in the school right now but she also broke the all-time girls mile run record!

GIRLS

1. Christine Pu - 5th grade - 6:58

2. Madison Burger - 5th grade - 7:25

3. Charlotte Talham - 4th grade - 8:02

4. Jasmin Brown - 4th grade - 8:05

5. Allie Sourakov - 5th grade - 8:10

6. Amaleah Mirti - 5th grade - 8:23

7. Delaney Rua - 3rd grade - 8:42

8. Sarah Collings - 5th grade - 8:51

9. Daniela Roth - 5th grade - 9:25

10. Vivian Zhu - 5th grade - 9:26

11. Kate Warren - 4th grade - 9:30

12. Brittany Thomas - 5th grade - 9:37

13. Dershona Glenn - 5th grade - 9:40

14. Stella Reneke - 4th grade - 9:45

15. Jasmine Jackson - 4th grade - 9:46

16. Lillian Zhu - 3rd grade - 9:49

17. Sarah Lulu - 4th grade - 10:03

17. Meghan McCallister - 4th grade - 10:03

17. Samantha Payne - 5th grade - 10:03

17. Asia Cromwell - 5th grade - 10:03

.

BOYS

1. Michael Quillen - 5th grade - 7:12

2. Will Burger - 3rd grade - 7:15

3. Ayaz Khan - 4th grade - 7:29

4. John Dampier - 4th grade - 7:37

4. Noah Killingsworth - 4th grade - 7:37

6. Lorenzo Smith - 5th grade - 7:43

6. Robin Xu - 5th grade - 7:43

8. Joshua Quillen - 3rd grade - 7:55

9. Darius Mitchum - 4th grade - 7:57

10. Jeramie Jones - 3rd grade - 8:01

11. Kyung Seok Oh - 5th grade - 8:04

12. Camilo Moraga-Lewy - 3rd grade - 8:06

12. Steven So - 5th grade - 8:06

14. Eric Burch - 3rd grade - 8:25

15. Luca Diplan - 5th grade - 8:32

16. Nathan Fisher - 4th grade - 8:33

17. Bamboo Blanchard - 5th grade - 8:36

18. Aloha Blanchard - 4th grade - 8:38

19. Jonah Thiele - 3rd grade - 8:41

20. Davonte Scott - 3rd grade - 8:42

PRESIDENTIAL FITNESS AWARDS

The fitness award mostly talked about is the National Fitness Award, given to students passing all tests at the 50th percentile. An even more impressive honor is achieved when a student passes all tests at the 85th percentile, the Presidential Fitness Award. This award is rarely given out but amazingly, we had 8 who qualified for this award.

5th GRADE

Allie Sourakov - Madison Burger - Christine Pu

4th GRADE

Nathan Fisher - Charlotte Talham

3rd GRADE

Eric Burch - Joshua Quillen - Jonah Thiele

NATIONAL FITNESS AWARDS

Our October pre-fitness test is complete. Students that passed all four fitness tests at the 50th percentile qualify for the National Fitness Award. These students are listed below.

5th GRADE

Bamboo Blanchard - Luca Diplan - Luke Hall -Kyung Seok Oh

Samantha Payne - Lorenzo Smith - Brittany Bennett - Hannah Burgess

Sierra Coomber - Spencer Perrine - Michael Quillen - Jaquita Richardson

Daniela Roth - Kenya Tolbert - Sarah Collings - Ronerica Johnson

Ricky Rivers - Robin Xu - Vivian Zhu - Rebecca Figlio

Amaleah Mirti - Brittany Thomas - Asia Cromwell

4th GRADE

Darius Mitchum - Stella Reneke - Kate Warren - Aloha Blanchard

Ayaz Khan - Sarah Lulu - Meghan McCallister - Alice Hou

Kaylee O'Neal - Fred Carmen - Bethany Webster - John Dampier

Damonte Flowers - Jasmine Jackson - Gloria Kann - Noah Killingsworth

Jasmin Brown - Evan Milch - Jordan Warmke-Robitaille - Sarah Peace

3rd GRADE

Rafael Bichier - Katwain Daniels - Bhavani Srinivas - Carly Alexander

Ryan Jacobs - Soowhan Kim - Jason Myers - John Finnerty

Camilo Moraga-Lewy - Delaney Rua - Davonte Scott - Axel VanOostrom

Ul'Ondrea Johnson - Jackson Jost - Jakyia Lovett - Wilson Peter

Collin Ulmer - William Burger - Seth Giles

2nd GRADE

Mountain Blanchard - Xzavion Carmen - Kara Doles - Spencer Warren

Claire Meyer - Nicholas Schrott - Malika Smalls - Morgan Giles

Emilie Pearson - Elaa Singh - Victoria Thompson - Corey Daniels

Jeremiah Robinson - Donavin Bird - Owen Gardiner

WEEK 10: VOLLLEYBALL and SCOOTERS

Volleyball continues this week as Wednesday starts the beginning of week 2. This week we will continue to emphasize the volleyball serve. Students will practice for a short time with a partner then take an assessment/test form and record how many times they can serve over the net out of ten. After partner groups turn in their skills test, they will be quickly introduced to the bump and challenged to practice with their partner. When all groups are finished with the skills test, students will form two teams and play another week of "Serve Newcombe Volleyball".

Kindergarten through 2nd grades will continue finishing their fitness test. All grades should finish by the middle of next week. When they finish their final test there will be half of the class left and they will begin to use the scooters. They will be introduced to keeping their bottoms only on the scooters for safety and pushing backwards instead of forward for greater speeds! We will play free scoot, bumper scooters, speed races, tag, and partner push. Next week will be teh great "Treasure Hunt".

WEEK 9: VOLLEYBALL BEGINS

On Tuesday of this week, the 3rd through 5th grades completed their fitness test. The fitness test winners and other great scores will be posted soon. Kindergarten through 2nd grades will test unitl next week.

Wednesday marked the beginning of "Volleyball". Students will participate in a three week unit to improve serving skills, bumping and setting skills, learn how volleyball positions and rotations are done, and finally scoring. We will practice skills, play games and do assessments. This week we start with proper serving technique. We will practice in groups of two, trying to serve the ball high and accuartely so our partner can catch the ball when hit over the net. We will use the underhand serve and emphasis is put on a straight serving arm, contact with the ball out of the holding hand, and follow through. After skill practice we will create two teams for "Serve Ball". Points will be kept in this wild and active game. Anyone can score anytime by serving any ball over the net and having it land on the other side...ANYWHERE. Watch out though, the other team can catch a ball to save a point! We will end with "Serve Newcombe Volleyball". This game is played just like a real rotation volleyball game except there are no strikes, students must catch and then serve either to a teammate or over the net. Students must be quick and use strategies to score. Students will learn the importance of serving excellence and get a lot of practice with serving during game play.

WEEK 8: FITNESS TEST CONTINUES

We will begin our second week of fitness testing Tuesday, September 3. Most classes in second through fifth grades have completed the mile run and pull ups, some even have started their sit ups. These grades will definitely finish the sit ups and sit and reach by the end of the wheel, which will be the middle of next week. We have a day off on Friday so no test that day. If some students missed the mile run, there will be a make up day next week. Please continue to bring water. Encourage your child to give the test the best attempt they are able to give. Unfortunately, kindergarten, first and second grades were only able to complete the running test. They will be doing the test for an extra week.

Third through fifth grades will begin "Volleyball" when the next whelll starts next week. This unit will be for three weeks. Look forward to learning lots of great skills and volleyball strategies!

WEEK 7: FITNESS TEST BEGINS

This week we will begin the pre-fitness test. All grades will participate in 4 tests that will show progress toward cardiovascular endurance, muscular endurance, muscular strength and flexibility. The tests will include running, pull ups, sit ups and sit and reach. This week we will attempt to complete two tests: the run and pull ups. Second through fifth grades will be doing the mile run and kindergarten and first will do the half mile run. Students will get to have some fun time with PE equipment between testing opportunities. Please bring water, it gets hot out there! GOOD LUCK!!

WELCOME COACH VIAU!

We would all like to welcome Coach Viau (pronounced V-O) to Williams Elementary. He has been here four weeks and already has great things to say about our school. He says "I have really enjoyed working with the students and it has been a great expereince so far. Teachers and staff have been very nice and very helpful". Coach Viau will be here until December so we hope to get to know him much better. He says "Good luck on the fitness test!"

WEEK 6: FLAGS & MORE BODY!

We have completed the throwing unit for the upper grades and will be doing a "Chasing Fleeing Dodging" unit for about 2 weeks. We will utilize flags to teach our students to become more agile, have greater balance and be quick...we will learn to avoid an attacker! Second through fifth grades will participate in this unit. The day will start with a "Partner Flag Tag" game where partners battle each other and try to pull the opponents flag off, switching partners. This game will be followed by "Flag Tag" where all students will play against each other in a defined area. As the game starts if a student loses their flag, they have to come out to the side and do 10 situps before returning to the game. To end this we will have an elimination game for a class champion. To end class, we will play "Sharks and Minnows". Two team will line up on each end of the playing area, the ocean. Students will have ten seconds to swim to the other side but WATCH OUT, everyone is a shark and as you cross you may get eaten by someone on the other team. If you are eaten or do not make it across in ten seconds, then you will grab a scooter and become a minnow in the ocean, helping your team by sneaking up on the unsuspecting sharks crossing.
First and Kindergarten will continue their body and spatial awareness unit. We will do another "Freeze Game" and again emphasize knowing what is going on around you at all times. We will study the term "going around the cone" in a quick learning session for future use. Continuing on, we will talk about finding our own space from last week and practice. We will identify body parts, blance beanbags on different body parts, and then use cue cards to balance on those body parts. Class will be concluded with a "Snow Ball War" with nerf balls!
REMINDER!!!!
Next week will start the Pre-Fitness Test. If the weather is good we will do the Mile Run and Pull Ups. If the weather is rainy or hot, we will do Sit & Reach and Sit Ups. Please wear the correct clothing!

WEEK 5: Football Throw and the "Body"

Third through fifth grades will be wrapping up throwing instruction with the football throw. Students will use the same throwing motion but hand work will be different. Emphasis will be put on the grip of the ball with one or two fingers behind the laces. We will talk about a spiral and how sliding the hand down and under will help lead to a spiral. Students will work as partners to practice the footbal throw and then come together to play "TD Ball". The class will be split into two teams and try to score goals into the other teams endzone by throwing the football from hula hoops situated all around the court. A point is scored if the football goes over the cross bar in the opposing teams end zone. Students can go wherever they please on the court but can only score if the football is thrown over the opposing teams cross bar. A five point bonus if a student throws the footabll into the basketball goal.

Second grade will continue the baseball throw. They will review the four throwing steps and then play "Battleball". For an explanation of this game refer to week 4, 3rd through 5th grade.

Kindergarten and first grades will be exploring their body this week. Do you ever wonder why young children can't run or walk without bumping into someone? Or why they always have to stand so close together? We will be working on spatial awareness with our activities. We will do a freeze game. All games will emphasize touching no other students. We will use polyspots to explore our "own" space. We will move around the spots to understand how far apart your "own" space is. We will have a moving spots contest where students will race to get to their "own" space. We will move the spots to a circle and use colors this time to move. On a color call, those students will move quickly to a different spot of the same color. Next that color will grab a beanbag. Be careful of the all color call! We will end with "5 Corners".

WEEK 4: THROW GRADE & BATTLEBALL

3rd through 5th grades will continue throwing this week. We will take a few minutes to review the throw parts: turn, ball behind head, slide step, then twist and throw. Next we will partner up and throw across the court to each other. While this is done, students throws will be graded. After grades have been recorded, students with "A's" will play "Battleball". Students with grades other than "A's" will get extra practice to get the throw to "A" standard, at which time they will be sent to the "Battleball" game. "Battleball" is a game played with two teams, starting on opposite sides of the court and divided by a center line (a tug of war rope). Each team will have 15 cones topped by a tennis ball and surrounded by a hula hoop. The object of the game is to throw gator=skin balls at the opposing teams tennis balls and knock them all off before the other team knocks theirs off. Students may guard a cone with a ball but they cannot go inside the hula hoop. Rules are watched carefully and if a player touches a tennis ball with the hand, steps over the middle line, or throws at head level, that student does a penalty (30 situps). 2nd grade will do the same but as they are on a different schedule it will not start until the end of the week.
Kindergarten and 1st grades will continue the throw practice, concentrating on what hand to throw with and turning to the side to start the throw. At the end of the week, classes will begin a spatial awareness unit so they can move around without running in to each other!!! We will work in depth with poly-spots and moves all over the place. If they don't know their colors and numbers, this is a chance to learn them. We will end with an exciting game of "5 Corners"!

WEEK 3: GETTING THE THROW DOWN

Students in 3rd through 5th grades will learn the proper technique of the throw this week. The throw will be broken down into 4 parts: The side turn, the ball behind head, the slide step, and the twist and throw. Students will be assessed and helped by throwing without the ball and with the ball. Throw emphasis will be to get a low and powerful throw, like a baseball pitcher. After the practice time, we will use our skills to play "Target Ball". Six teams of two or three students, each with a crate of tennis balls, will take aim and throw to a large target, trying to hit it or knock it down. Students will go one at a time to make sure they are still using the proper technique but the short line will almost move non-stop. After this game, we will regroup for the same game but all students will throw constantly from their crate of balls to the new target, a bowling pin.

Students in Kindergarten through 2nd grades will continue last weeks lesson beacuse of the K-2 wheel. On Thursday they will start throwing. The same lesson will be taught to second grade using the four steps, groups will have only 2, and the targets will be closer. Kindergarten and first grades will being throwing by learning their throwing hand and starting the throw by turning the correct way. Students will throw for power and distance and then aim at bowling pins about 15 feet away. Everyone will thow together so students will gets lots and lots of throwing attempts!

WEEK 2: COOPERATION/GROUP DAY

Our 2nd through 5th grades will continue working on cooperation and group games/activities. We will review our lines and spots, do some stretching and then do a "Run 4 the Stars". This will explained in detail to your children but every PE day, our students will do something physical for the first five minutes of class, most of the time a different type of run/walk. They will be given a challenge to meet and if they succeed, they will get a star. At the end of the year, the two or three students in each class with the most stars will get a "Star Award".
Upon completion of the "Run 4 the Stars" we will jump into small groups of 4 and play "Circle Tag", one student, the tagger, tries to tag the taggee, but the taggee is linked in a circle with two other students, the protectors. They turn circles and hold on tight to keep that tagger from tagging the taggee, taking turns in each position. Next, we will change into groups of 3, so that they will be with all new teammates. They will play "Circle Tag" this time with only one protector. We will switch group again to groups of 5 or 6 (only in 2nd grade) and play "Hoop Line" where students must try to pass a hoop down their line linked by holding hands without busting the line. There may be a race involved! "Circle Toss" with groups of 7 or 8 will follow, students will keep a circle and they must throw the ball to each person one time but can never throw it to anyone beside them. If time is left, "Club Grab" and/or "Scramble" will be played at the end.
Kindergarten and first grades will use the parachute once again. Students will practice sitting on their blue warm-up spots by playing "Switch Spots". "Dog Tails" will follow where half the class are dogs holding a long rope for their tails. The Dog Catchers will chase them and step on their tails to transform themselves into dogs. The dogs will of course become the Dog Catchers. A few Parachute games will ensue and a "Snow Ball War" will end class!

WEEK 1: GETTING READY WITH PARACHUTES

Grades K through 5 will be learning the PE rules, grading guidelines and other necessary information for the upcoming school year. Of course we have to make it fun and active so we have several activities planned to integrate into learning those rules. We will start class with some "Parachute Games" like: waves, building a tent, the igloo, and the magic carpet. Jumping out of parachute games, our 2nd through 5th grade classes will be assigned a warmup line position, commonly called spots. To create a little team building within our class, students will be asked a series of questions where they will have to correspond with the other students in the class to sit with their classmates who answer the questions the same! Then, we will practice going back to our spots (to see if we remembered) and then jump quickly into a few more parachute games. These will include merry go round, parachute pass, over under, and popcorn. If there is time, we will get locomotor active and end with some "5 Corners".