One of my favorite games!

For the past 2 months, we have been working on catching and throwing skills in P.E. class.  Today we played a game which involved a lot of catching and throwing, and it happens to be one of my all time favorites!  I call this game "Battleship".  I got the idea from pecentral.org.  They call the game "Sink the Ship".  I have made a few  changes to this game.  If you would like to view the details of my throwing unit, please click here.  If you would like to view my catching unit, please click here.

Battleship - video - 3rd grade:  This video shows the Lifeboats (scooters) bringing cannonballs back to their ships.


Battleship - video - 5th grade: This video shows what the players do if their ship SINKS. (If all their bowling pins get knocked down). The "crew" sinks to the bottom of the ocean (the end of the gym), they all do ABC Push-ups, then they come back to their ship, set UP their pins and begin playing again.


Battleship - video - 2nd grade: This game is great for many grade levels. I even taught this to my Fab Five class last year!


Battleship - Video - 2nd grade: In this video, the student are setting UP for another round of the game. I give them 60 seconds to get a ball, set up pins, and choose a new person to ride their lifeboat. The groups who are ready in under 60 seconds earn a squad point (a reward system I use). I always give a TIME LIMIT for students to clean up/set up. This way they move quickly and no time is wasted! 60 seconds is generous.....usually kids can get ready in 30-45 seconds!


5th graders playing:


This team's ship sunk, so they are standing at the bottom of the ocean doing 10 jumping jacks. When they come back they may set their pins up again.

Fun P.E. Games - Pin Kickball and Battleship

Oct. 24th = After two weeks of fitness testing, I decided to rewarded my 5th grade classes with a day of fun games! They played Pinball, Pin Kickball and Battleship. Below are some video clips!

Oct. 31st = This week our school had a Halloween "Multi-age" day, so with those events going on the students did not have P.E. class. The Kindergarten class joined the activities in the gym during their P.E. time which included dances such as Monster Mash, Thriller, Chicken Dance, and "Who Let the Ghosts Out?".

Video of Battleship:


Battleship - This time I allowed two teams to join together as one fleet - a suggestion from one of my students! They enjoyed this version as well!


This video shows how teams have to begin most games we play - lined up with their team with a ball between their feet. Teams are rewarded points if they are able to get ready in 30 seconds or less (for each round). This ensures we don't waste any of our valuable P.E. minutes!


Playing Pin Kickball - kicking the balls to knock down the pins instead of rolling them like we do in the game "Pinball".

Elementary PE Lesson - Batting/Tball, Sink the Ship "Battleship", Couch Potato Tag, and Puppy Tag

Last week the students said goodbye to Mr. Gietzen, our student teacher.  He did a great job and we wish him the best!  Thank you Mr. Gietzen!

The last few weeks of PE have consisted of the following activities:
1)  T-ball / Batting practice (see pics below).  This worked great for all of my classes - we set up "batting cages" for students and the kids got lots of individual practice.
2)  "Battleship"/Sink the Ship (Throwing/Catching/Rolling game) - TK and K played this game.
3)   Dr. Mario -2nd grade
4)  Review of first semester skills
5)  I hope to play "Capture the Flag", or Parachute Games with 2nd graders on Monday, and also pass out PE Certificates.

Puppy Tag - 2nd Grade - with MUSIC "Who Let the Dogs Out".
Students are "puppies" and start the game in their "cage" (the floor mats).  The "dog catchers" are the taggers.   They have a noodle piece used for tagging.  If a puppy is tagged, they go back to their cage.

Mr. Gietzen's (student teacher) last day teaching.....the staff at ECC had a luncheon and he brought his super sweet girlfriend.  Thanks for all of your help this semester! We will miss you!

TK class played "Sink the Ship/Battleship".

Student in her "batting cage" practicing hitting a ball off a tee with a lollipop paddle.

Batting cage set up for 2nd graders - We had 3 students per group.  One hitter (gave 3 swings), one catcher, one outfielder.  They rotated very nicely and each player had several turns playing all 3 positions.

Picture of 2nd grade student batting.

Another view of the batting cage set-up for 2nd graders.

Lollipop paddles and medium/tall cones work great for teaching batting to young children!  Each child had their own "batting cage".  We stood up tall mats to accomplish this, which worked great to give each child their own space and protection.

Videos of COUCH POTATO TAG with Mr. Gietzen (student teacher). Tagged players had to go be a "couch potato" and sit on a mat and wait for the helper to bring them a foam fruit or veggie. Between rounds of this game we took a minute to talk about good nutrition and identified what is a fruit or vegetable.


TK class playing "SINK THE SHIP", AKA. BATTLESHIP

My Friday Classes

We sure keep busy during our 55 minute P.E. class. Yesterday's agenda was 1)Warm-Up (Switcharoo) 2) Thanksgiving Match Game and 3) Battleship.

My Friday classes really enjoyed the Thanksgiving Match Game, and we took a few minutes to sneak in a nutrition lesson! We discussed the difference between proteins, carbohydrates, fruits and vegetables and what each one does to help our bodies. We also identified everything on our "plate" (game board) and classified each item as protein (turkey), carbohydrate (stuffing), vegetables (mashed potatoes, green beans, corn) and fruit (cranberry sauce).

At the end of class during our review time, many of my 3rd graders agreed that they would try some new foods this Thanksgiving (maybe something they didn't like last year)! We talked about how our taste buds change as we get older and many of them gave me examples of things they like to eat now, but didn't like before. But, of course, some still cringed their noses at the thought of eating green bean casserole. :-)

We concluded the lesson with Battleship which is a game which involves a lot of catching and throwing.  We've been practicing both of those skills since early October.  Below are several videos of my Friday classes playing Thanksgiving Match Game and Battleship.

3rd graders playing the Thanksgiving Match Game:



Another 3rd grade clip:


2nd graders playing Thanksgiving Match Game:


2nd grade Battleship: Towards the end of the video, the one team's ship sunk (all their bowling pins were knocked down), so the "crew" sunk to the bottom of the ocean to do ABC Push-ups, then they will come back to set up their pins again and continue playing.


The kids on the scooters are "lifeboats" and they bring "cannonballs" back to their ship. The team on the blue mat just sank, so they were doing their push-ups, then came back to set up their pins.

Thank you KHEF!

I am writing today to say THANK YOU to the KHEF for fulfilling my grant request this year!  The

KHEF has been incredibly generous to the Physical Education department the past several years!  I have been able to purchase much needed equipment, and have enjoyed being able to get these items in "rainbow sets".  The rainbow sets include equipment in each color of the rainbow.  They are fantastic because they help with classroom management, and they look terrific.  The student's eyes LIGHT UP when they walk in the gym and see this awesome equipment that they get to use!  I have been organizing my class by rainbow colors for the past 10 years, and it works very well!

This year I was granted funds to purchase the rainbow set bowling pins from Gopher.  I was lucky enough to receive this two weeks before the Covid-19 school closure.  I am so glad the students were able to enjoy the bowling pins this year.  I am looking forward to using them for many MANY years to come!

Check out the activities we had time to do before the school closure:

Guard the Castle Game:

Bowling with Pre-K class:

Battleship Throwing Game:

Red pins were used for an obstacle course during the Kids Heart Challenge event on Valentine's Day.

I love the white mat that comes with each set of pins.

All set up for the game!

Ready to play Battleship.

Last year I received the purple and orange MATS to complete my rainbow set for mats.

Student playing defense during the game Battleship.

Students playing defense during the game Battleship.

Playing Guard the Castle.

Coordinating poly spot and ball for bowling.

Please check out my other links: My Teachers Pay Teachers Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Carly3 My Webpage: http://carlyspegames.weebly.com/ My Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/carly3ify My Pinterest Page: https://www.pinterest.com/carlyglanzman/carlys-pe-games/

Thank you KHEF!

I am writing this post to say THANK YOU to the KHEF!  They fulfilled my grant request again this year for more physical education equipment.  They are so generous and eager to support teachers in our district!

For several years, I have been organizing my P.E. classes by rainbow colors.  I enjoy purchasing equipment in rainbow sets.  This makes classroom management a breeze.  The students are able to quickly locate and clean up equipment.  This year I was able to purchase an ORANGE and a PURPLE mat, which completed my rainbow set of mats!  I have been wanting these mats for a long time, and it's so great to have them now!  I'm sure these mats will be used and enjoyed by students for many many years to come.

Gym mats are used for a LARGE variety of skills and activities in P.E. class.  Not only are they used for tumbling and gymnastics skills, but also for games involving throwing and catching skills.  Mats can be used as "walls", "ships", "houses", and much more!  It's fun to be creative while teaching elementary P.E.

The students were so excited the first time they walked into the gym and saw the mats set up.  Because of a coupon deal from the company, I was also able to purchase equipment for the game which I call, "SORRY!".  Please see pictures and videos below for a glimpse of how I've used this equipment this year.

SORRY!  Game Videos - Explanation Video, Student Demonstration Videos (video one and two)
Sink the Ship Videos - Explanation Video, Student Demonstration Video (video one and two)
Battleship Game - Video of Student Demonstration
Tumbling Videos - Body Bowling, Log Rolls, Forward Rolls

The ORANGE team finally has their own color mat for the game "SINK THE SHIP".

The PURPLE team finally has their own color mat for the game "SINK THE SHIP".

Another way to set up the game "SINK THE SHIP".

Set-Up for the game "SORRY".

Stur-Tees which I call "SORRY" pieces with matching color Stur-Tee Balls.

The kid's eyes were SO big when they walked in the gym and saw "Battleship" set up!

The kid's eyes were SO big when they walked in the gym and saw "Battleship" set up!

Please check out my other links: My Teachers Pay Teachers Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Carly3 My Webpage: http://carlyspegames.weebly.com/ My Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/carly3ify My Pinterest Page: https://www.pinterest.com/carlyglanzman/carlys-pe-games/

Overhand and Underhand Throwing Lesson Ideas for Elementary Students

Throwing Unit

Throwing - Instruction (cue words used to teach proper form)
Underhand throw = Tick, Step, Tock
Overhand Throw (K-2nd grade)= T position, Bend (elbow), Twist
Overhand Throw (3rd-5th grade) = T, Tilt, Bend, Twist

T- position= Both arms are extended so the body looks like the letter T.  Non throwing arm is pointing to the target.  

Tilt - tilt body back so your non-throwing arm and foot come up (foot comes off the floor).  The tilt gives more power to your throw.

Bend - Bend elbow of throwing arm.

Twist - twist body as your bend your elbow.

Throw - release ball and follow through. 

Throwing Practice - individual (overhand throw):
I give each student a foam or yarn ball.  They stand behind the side line and aim for the opposite wall.  You can hang targets on the wall (big papers, hula hoops, or maybe there are already painted targets on the walls) for them to aim at. 

We practice individually this way for about 5-6 minutes each class period during the throwing unit.  This gives me a chance to give feedback and help students who need reminders about their form.  You can also use this time for assessment. 

Throwing Games:

Star Wars:  I make one huge spaceship (with 4-5 mats) or many separate spaceships.  Mats are set up as ships against the wall, standing tall.  Players throw foam or yarn balls into spaceships.  Mark 3 different colored lines running down the length of the gym for this game.  Depending on grade level, students must stand behind the line while throwing.   Specify underhand or overhand throw.  Good time to pass out sparkle notes for good form or distance of throws into the spaceship. 

I choose 4-5 kids to be the “astronauts”.  They stay inside the ship and throw balls back out. 

Battleship:
This is one of my favorite games ever! See pecentral.org for the  instructions - search for “Sink the Ship”.
Video of Battleship - 2nd graders

Search pecentral.org for the folllowing games:

Beginner Games:
Freezamania
Two Pass Catching
Hot Potato Tag
Throw and Catch Medley
6 and Switch with partner
Sink the Ship (Battleship) - all grades enjoy this game

Intermediate:
Birthday Cake - good for underhand throw
Throw Everything
Healthy Eaters
Catch 100 with partner
Wishing Well
Indoor Snowball
Bean Bag Battle - good for 3rd-5th grades

P.E. Activities - First week of December

This week's agenda was:
1. Warm-Up Centers
2. Battleship - click here for videos of us playing!
3. Christmas Tag games - click on the game title for videos of each: Reindeer Tag, Christmas Tree Tag, Candy Cane Tag

Each month I like to teach a new warm-up activity and begin a new unit. This week, however, we played Battleship again because I wanted to make sure all the students had a turn to be the "lifeboat person". Therefore, parachute games will begin next week! This month's new warm-up activity is called "Warm-Up Centers". For details on this activity, please click the link "Warm-Up Centers."

Videos of Warm-Up Centers will be posted next week!

For the month of December, our unit of focus is Parachute Games and possibly beginning jump rope activities if time allows. I spend a few months on jump rope skills so if I do not have time this month we will focus on that in January and February.

I try to save the last 5-10 minutes of class for playing fun Christmas Games such as Reindeer Tag, Christmas Tree Tag, Candy Cane Tag, and the Christmas Match Game (link to this will at the end of the month).

Because of the snow, this was the first week many students forgot to bring their gym shoes. :-( If you would like to read about my no shoes policy, please click on the link: "No Shoes Worksheet".

Here is a video of 5th grade students doing their "No Shoes Worksheet".

Top 5 Favorite Games for Physical Education

I can't believe it's been almost a year since my last post.  What a crazy year it has been with the Covid-19

pandemic.  I'm so thankful that I've still been able to teach PE in person most of this school year.  

I recently had someone ask me, "What are your top 5 favorite games for PE?".  I figured this would be a great blog post, so here goes!  When the students walk into the gym and see these games set up, their eyes LIGHT UP with excitement!

5. Rockets and Satellites - This is a great game to practice volleyball hits, or you could also make this a throwing/rolling game.  Instructions for the game are in the video!

4.  SORRY! - Since taking this video, I have purchased another set of the Stur-Tee balls from Gopher.   I call this game SORRY because the bases look like the pieces from the board game SORRY.   Great way to practice throwing, catching and defense.  Instructions are described in the video!

3.  Battleship -  Great game for throwing, catching, and defense.  This is like the board game Battleship.  There are two teams and they try to guess where the other team's ships are, and sink them by throwing balls over the mats.  The bowling pins are the ships.  If a ball is caught out of the air when it comes over the mats, that player can take the caught ball over to the other team's side and throw the ball (but must stay on the outside of the black line).  K-2nd graders may stand the pins back up, and 3rd-5th graders can play more competitively and not stand the pins back up (play until a team wins and knocks down all of the pins). 

2.  Rainbow Wars - Similar to SORRY, but I'm using a variety of my rainbow set equipment as targets.  Students can earn points for knocking down different items.  Instructions are in the video!

1.  Sink the Ship - Awesome game for throwing, catching, defense, teamwork, and scootering.  Click here for game directions.

Bonus- Guard the Castle - This is a quick and easy game to teach and play.  The set up is very quick!  Click here for printable instructions for the game.

There they are!  Hope you all have a GREAT time playing these with your students!

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Jump Rope, Catching, and Testing Your Skills Activity

I try to post at least once a month,
but November got away from me!  How is time flying by SO

Student showing READY HANDS for catching.

fast!?  I am having lots of fun, that is how!  My students have been busy learning a variety of skills this month.  Check out some pictures and video demonstration links below!

3rd-5th Grades

1.  Jump Rope Skills - After students have mastered basic jumping (at least 20-30 in a row), they begin working on tricks.  The students who master the most tricks will perform in our Jump Rope for Heart Assembly in January.  Tricks include the side swing pattern, continuous criss cross or regular criss cross, hopping, scissor or jack feet, forward to backward, pretzel, doubles (continuous doubles or doubles with basic), cartwheel, 360, walk the dog, partner tricks such as switching handles, 2 in 1 rope, 1 twirls.  To master a trick means the student performed it for me 10 times without missing.  Click here to see how I teach basic jumping.

2.  Catching and Throwing games  - such as Battleship and Sink the Ship.

3.  Thankful Tag (K-5th)

4.  BBall Shooting - Lightning Game, with a focus on teaching them how to use the backboard!

PreK - 2nd Grades  -

1.  Locomotor Skills - PreK-2nd grade students have been focusing on locomotor skills such as running, galloping, skipping, hopping, leaping and animal walks.  They did an activity I call "Test Your Skills".  Click to see the teacher demonstration of this game, and also the student demonstrations.

2.  Basketball - dribbling and shooting

3.  Catching and throwing - I taught the students READY HANDS and played the game "Catch Everything".  Check out this student demonstration by my 5th grade recess helpers, and also a 2nd grade class playing this game.  We also did a catching activity I call CATCH, THROW and RUN.

During the holiday season, I enjoy playing lots of fun holiday games.  Here is a link to my blog posts with Christmas games. I especially like the Feed the Reindeer Relay!

Playing catch with a partner.

READY HANDS for the game Catch Everything!

READY HANDS for the game Catch Everything!

READY HANDS for the game Catch Everything!

Please check out my other links: My Teachers Pay Teachers Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Carly3 My Webpage: http://carlyspegames.weebly.com/ My Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/carly3ify My Pinterest Page: https://www.pinterest.com/carlyglanzman/carlys-pe-games/

P.E. Games - Healthy Eating / Fruit and Vegetable Tag

This past month has flown by!  Here is what the students have been working on:

Early Childhood Center:
Basketball Skills - dribbling
Soccer Skills - dribbling/trapping/kicking
Nutrition - Fruits and Vegetables
Review of Throwing Skills - "Star Wars" game

Zinser - 2nd Grade:
Basketball Skills - dribbling
Soccer Skills - dribbling/trapping/kicking
Spring Fitness Testing
Review of Throwing skills - "Battleship" game

Check out a few videos below: (Sorry Zinser folks.....I'll try to get some videos of 2nd grade next week!)


Mr. Gietzen's DRIBBLING FRENZY game - practicing dribbling soccer balls and basketballs. Students have a partner to switch balls with occasionally.

Fruit and Veggie Tag - Students who were tagged had to sit down and wait for someone to bring them a fruit or vegetable. Then they had to CLASSIFY and SORT their food into the bucket labeled "FRUIT" OR "VEGGIE"

Video of FRUIT AND VEGGIE WARM-UP

FRUIT AND VEGGIE TAG - TK CLASS

FOR TEACHERS - Here is a video explanation of my "Mini-Obstacle Course Warm-Up".

November and December Physical Education: Basketball, Jump Rope and Choice Time Activities

Here I am trying to catch up on sharing some information and videos.  The past few months have flown by, and we did so many great things in PE class!

Warm-Up:  Daily Dozen - 12 exercises choreographed to the song "Dynamite" and Jump Rope Routine choreographed to the song "Jump" by Van Halen.

Skills we practiced:
Basketball - dribbling, shooting, passing, ball handling drills
Jump Rope Skills - Video Demonstration and Long Rope Jumping
Scooters, Roller Racer Cart, Other Choice Time Activities

Videos:
Bean Bag Dribbling Game
Knockout Basketball Game
Red Light Green Light Dribbling Game
Winter PE Activities
Guard the Floor Beach Volleyball Game
Battleship Game




Please check out my other links: My Teachers Pay Teachers Store: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Carly3 My Webpage: http://carlyspegames.weebly.com/ My Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/carly3ify My Pinterest Page: https://www.pinterest.com/carlyglanzman/carlys-pe-games/