We designate one week in February as our Heart Healthy Week. We do the following every morning of the week:

After morning announcements we ask two heart trivia questions. One is for grades K-3 and the other is for grades 4-6. The students can write down the answer to the question and put it in a "heart" box outside the gym. All students with the correct answer have a chance to have their name drawn for a small prize. (ex. Heart pencils)

Each morning, we announce the winners and ask a new heart trivia question. The students learn more about the heart this way. We then get ourselves ready for the morning warm-ups which involves the entire school. We play the music through the PA system so every classroom can hear it in their room. We teach the dances in class previous to this week so everyone knows them. All classes join in, including the classroom teachers.

This has become such a tradition at our school, that now when we do the Locomotion or Conga, the students come out into the hallways and we do it in one big school line. The kids start asking in September when are we going to do morning warm-ups.

Teaching Suggestions/Tips:

Have the students teach the teachers the dances, or choose music that the teachers are familiar with. This gets the classroom teacher involved. The students love to see their classroom teacher joining in. Have someone run the music while the PE teacher goes around to the different classrooms and joins in.

Email this best practice!