Pre-school PE Lesson Ideas

Conduct this activity in a large indoor or outdoor space with marked boundaries so that children know where they can and cannot move. Before beginning the activity scatter the jump ropes or hoops throughout the space so they lay flat on the floor.

• Explain to the children that they are taking a walk in the woods and may need to cross a stream or river. Ask children to walk throughout the space and when they come to a river (rope, hoop, or tape line on floor) they need to jump over the river without getting their feet wet. Children should work independently of their classmates during this activity.

• To assist children in learning the fundamentals of jumping, teachers should initially ask children to takeoff on two feet and to swing their arms forward when they jump.

• When landing, children should land on two feet spreading their feet about shoulder width apart so they have a wide base of support when they land. After landing children should proceed to and jump over the next river.

• Emphasis should be placed on landing on both feet at the same time without falling over.

• Give children plenty of time to move throughout the space and jump over all the rivers.

• For safety reasons, suggest that children not get closer than two giant steps from each other, especially when they are swinging their arms to take off and when landing.

• After 3 to 5 minutes of jumping children may need a brief rest period (30 to 60 seconds) before continuing the activity.

• More experienced children may like the challenge of clapping their hands as the fly through the air, or turning in the air before they land. Whatever the variation, teachers and children should not lose sight of the main objective of landing in a balanced position.

• Do not feel limited to only jumping over hoops or jump ropes. This can be a great classroom integration activity and can have many variations. For example, ask children to draw or paint their own rivers on large sheets of paper. Make sure they draw fish, trees, and other objects in and alongside their river. Tape children's drawings to the floor and pretend that the class is going on a trip. When children reach the different rivers scattered throughout the room they must swing their arms and jump over the river, landing on the other side without falling over.

• Teachers may also want to integrate this idea with a book they read to children about rivers or ways people travel.

• More experienced children may want the challenge of taking off from one-foot and landing on two-feet, or jumping off of one-foot and landing on one-foot. The focus should still be the same-swing arms when jumping and land without falling.