Week 9 (October 15-19)

The Final Week of Quarter 1!

First Grade
This week had the first graders working on the gymnastics mats. We spent time working on animal walks like frog hops, bear walks and alligator crawls. We also spent time working on log rolls. The whole time we have concentrated on safety while using the mats. We also continued to work on locomotor skills and throwing and catching skills when we were not using the gymnastics mats.

Third Grade
This week had the third graders working on the gymnastics mats. We spent time learning safety for tumbling skills and divided up into groups. We worked on learning the steps to a tripod (hands are shoulder width apart, head touches on the hairline, elbows are away from the body, holding a big triangle with hands and head, lifting one leg up at a time and holding the position for at least five seconds. We also worked on teaching the students the proper spotting technique (helping our partners to stay safe). The students were taught to spot from the side (not in front or in back of the partner), use one hand on the partners back and to push the partner back to their feet to help them avoid rolling over. We also spent time working on our throwing and catching skills.


Fifth Grade
This week had us working on the push up fitness test. Students were shown the FitnessGram DVD for push ups. Students were taught about the proper form (straight back and legs) and that they needed to bend their elbows to a 90 degree angle. We also had the students use little cones so that they understood how far down that they need to go to complete one push up.

The rest of the time we worked on throwing and catching skills and group balancing skills. The groups were divided up and students were asked to perform a balancing activity for two people, three people, four people and the whole group. This allowed students to make pyramids and other shapes that relied on balancing.

Sixth Grade
This week had us working on the push up fitness test. Students were shown the FitnessGram DVD for push ups. Students were taught about the proper form (straight back and legs) and that they needed to bend their elbows to a 90 degree angle. We also had the students use little cones so that they understood how far down that they need to go to complete one push up.

For the rest of the time we worked on tumbling. We spent time learning safety for tumbling skills and divided up into groups. We worked on learning the steps to a tripod (hands are shoulder width apart, head touches on the hairline, elbows are away from the body, holding a big triangle with hands and head, lifting one leg up at a time and holding the position for at least five seconds. We also worked on teaching the students the proper spotting technique (helping our partners to stay safe). The students were taught to spot from the side (not in front or in back of the partner), use one hand on the partners back and to push the partner back to their feet to help them avoid rolling over. We also spent time working on our throwing and catching skills. Students were given a peer assessment paper for the tripod. They spent two days making sure that they had the paper filled out. The assessment asked for questions on how well a student was performing the tripod and also on how the third parter was spotting.

NEXT WEEK GOALS:
First Grade: Scooter Boards and the Circulatory System
Third Grade: Scooter Boards and the Circulatory System
Fifth Grade: Frisbee Throw and the Circulatory System
Sixth Grade: Frisbee Throw and the Circulatory System