During the first week of school, I have the Kindergarten students enter the gym and stand together on any line of the basketball court. I tell them that I hope they brought their imagination with them because we will be doing a lot of pretending. I tell them that we will be building a fence, and later I will give them a horse so they must be sure that they build a very sturdy fence. Next, we walk on the basketball court line pounding imaginary wood (one fist) with a hammer(the other fist). As we build the fence, I tell them what a great job they are doing and how beautiful I think their fence is. When the "fence" is built, I give each child a "horse" and we take a moment for them to name it. I ask the children how a horse moves--walk, trot, canter, gallop, etc. I ask them what sounds a horse makes. Then, I tell them to listen for the word "Go". When I say "Go!", they may ride their horse around the gym, inside of the "fence". If I see them outside of the line/fence, I call it to their attention and say something like, "Keep your horse inside of the fence". If they get tired, I remind them that horses walk and trot, so the students are able to adapt the activity to their level of ability. At the end of the activity, the children return their horse to an imaginary barn. Then, I explain to them that the fence is important because it will keep them from running into the walls, equipment, the teacher, the water fountain, etc. They really seem to understand the importance of boundaries when I present the safety aspect.

I visually observe the students to see if they are staying inside of the line. The older students have gotten to the point where they will tell me when they accidentally have gone outside of the fence. So, they are learning to be accountable for their actions.