Educational Gymnastics—Level I
At Level I of movement skill development in educational gymnastics, it is important for children to acquire body control through a series of lessons designed to enhance their locomotor and stability skills. At Level I, children’s performances are sometimes exaggerated (too big or too small), uncoordinated, and lacking in rhythmical timing; and they often have parts of the skill missing. Therefore, developing children’s space awareness (e.g., personal space and general space; using different pathways, levels, and range of motion) and effort awareness (e.g., starting and stopping with control) is essential. The following lists examples of a variety of learning environments for facilitating skill development in Level I.
- Moving individually
- Moving with others
Leading/following
Mirroring
Meeting/parting
Emphasizing effort
Changing speeds
Sudden stops and starts
Moving to an external beat
Light versus strong energy
Emphasizing space
Along different pathways
In different directions
Moving in combination
Gallop and turn (on any body part)
Skip, hop, walk along a curved pathway
Run, jump from one to two feet, stretch, make a twisted shape on one foot
Run and leap
On small and large apparatus
In and out of hula hoops
Over ropes placed on the floor or elevated
On low foam shapes or benches
Off low obstacles: foam shapes, jumping boxes, benches
Educational Gymnastics Lesson #1—Level I
Lesson Time Allotted: 30 minutes
Skill Theme:Locomotor patterns, transfer of weight
Movement Concepts:Space—pathways
Relationships—meeting/parting, following/leading, matching
Equipment Needed:Open movement area, grab bags of locomotor patterns
Learning Outcomes:
1.Students will perform a variety of locomotor patterns as they do the following:
a)Match a partner and travel through general space along a straight pathway
b)Meet and part with a partner and travel through general space along a straight pathway
c)Follow and lead a partner and travel through general space along a straight pathway
d)Meet and part with a partner and change the pathway while meeting or parting
e)Change directions while meeting and parting (forward to backward)
Episode #1: Locomotor Patterns, Matching a Partner
Teaching Style: Practice Style; Inclusion Style
Time Allotted: 15 minutes
Managerial Task: Assign students to partners. Several cones are distributed around the movement area. Each cone has a minimum of three laminated task cards that are taped onto it or attached by Velcro. The task cards may also have pictures of the locomotor pattern on them.
Introductory Task: With their partner, students are ask to perform one of the locomotor patterns drawn or described on a task card. Children should perform this locomotor pattern through space along a straight pathway as they match their partner (assigned by teacher) or as they move inunison side by side.
Lesson #1—Level I
Extending Task(s): Ask the children to choose a new locomotor pattern, described on a different task card, and to match their partner once again as they move along a straight pathway; repeat for practicing a third locomotor pattern.
Application Task: Have students perform three different locomotor patterns as they match their partner and travel along a straight pathway (can be student or teacher determined). Have children change the locomotor pattern being performed whenever they hear a drumbeat.
Alternate Extending Task: Ask students to change the pathway they travel along. “Boys and girls, what are some other pathways that we can travel along?” “Yes . . . zigzag or curved!”
Teaching Tip: You could have children come together and review pathways by drawing them on a large chalkboard, using different colors of chalk. Or, you could have pathways already drawn on the chalkboard or a poster board. Another option is to have children use long jump ropes to construct the pathway along which they will travel to meet their partner.
Episode #2: Locomotor Patterns, Meeting/Parting With a Partner
Teaching Style: Practice Style
Time Allotted: 10 minutes
Introductory Task: Beginning a specified distance away (five giant steps), children meet while performing one locomotor pattern and part as they perform the locomotor pattern. The patterns are performed in a forward direction.
Refining Task: “Be sure that you meet, but do not touch each other!” You can also provide feedback on proper performance of individual locomotor patterns. For example, “Try to straighten your legs as you leap in the air!”
Extending Task: “Now, let’s vary the pathway you travel along as you meet and part. So, as you travel to meet your partner use one pathway and as you part, travel along a different pathway.”
Teaching Tip: In Practice Style, demonstrate this task with a student, or have two students demonstrate as you verbally guide them through the task.
Managerial Task: You could have children change partners two or three times during the lesson or within this episode.
Extending Task: “Can you meet while traveling in a forward direction and part traveling backward?”
Lesson #1—Level I
Closure: Circle the word or words that describe what we did in our physical education class today. (Have prepared a half sheet of paper listing words.)
Educational Gymnastics Lesson #2—Level I
Lesson Time Allotted:30 minutes
Skill Theme Locomotor patterns, rolling
Stability—body shapes
Movement Concepts:Space—pathways, general/personal space
Equipment Needed:Gymnastics mats
Learning Outcomes:
1.While traveling on the gymnasium floor, students will perform a variety of locomotor patterns, along curved, zigzag, diagonal, and/or straight pathways.
2.Students will perform a variety of locomotor patterns along different pathways so that brief pauses (or stops) are included. During the pauses, children will perform
a)stretched, bent, curled, or twisted body shapes with feet as a base of support, and then different body parts for their base of support;
b)a stretched body shape and then a rolling action, thus creating a movement
sentence composed of three different “words” or movement patterns (i.e., locomotor, stability, roll).
Body of Lesson
Managerial Task: Students should be in a scattered formation throughout the movement area. If students have difficulty maintaining their personal space, polyspots could be placed on the floor. You could then ask students to stand on a polyspot as you provide verbal directions and to move around the polyspots when performing locomotor patterns.
Episode #1: Performing Locomotor Patterns Along Different Pathways
Teaching Style: Inclusion Style (children choose locomotor pattern); Practice Style (teacher moves among children and provides individual, specific feedback; a model for correct performance is also provided)
Time Allotted: 10 minutes
Introductory Task: Using music or a percussion instrument to accompany children’s movement, ask children to perform a gallop, sideward slide, or skip as they travel along curvy pathways throughout general space.
Refining Task: You should verbally comment on the execution of locomotor patterns, thus providing children critical cues:
Gallop—“Kick your forward foot out of place! Try to push off of the ground into the air as you gallop!”
Skip—“Lift your knees high!”
Lesson #2—Level I
Slide—“Keep your side leading the action. Bend your knees to push off of the ground. Bring your feet together as you push off of the ground during your sideward slide!”
Extending Task: Ask children to change the locomotor pattern they are practicing and to perform patterns along a zigzag, then a diagonal pathway.
Extending Task: Ask children to perform a different locomotor pattern along each different (i.e., curved, zigzag, diagonal) pathway.
Teaching Tip:In Practice Style, children are reproducing already known information; therefore, you should provide a model. You may demonstrate, or have a student demonstrate, the proper execution of a specific locomotor pattern and/or pathway.
Extending Task: “Now I would like you to move your arms together with your locomotor pattern. You might choose to circle your arms or move your arms in and out as you travel.”
Episode #2: Including Pauses in Movement With Body Shapes
Time Allotted: 7 minutes
Introductory Task: Ask students to pause and perform a stretched shape using their whole body and two feet as their base of support. Children can choose their own pathway, or you can ask students to move along a specific pathway.
Managerial Task: Pauses can be elicited by stops in music or percussion instrumentation.
Extending Task: Students perform chosen locomotor pattern along a chosen pathway and, during imposed pauses or stops in motion, create curled body shapes.
Extending Task: Students perform chosen locomotor pattern along a chosen pathway and during imposed pauses or stops in motion, create twisted body shapes.
Refining Task: “Good job, boys and girls. I see very clear pauses in your motion and very straight (curled/twisted) shapes with your bodies!”
Episode #3: Locomotor Patterns, Pauses, Body Shapes, and Rolling
Time Allotted: 10 minutes
Introductory Task: “Boys and girls, how we are going to perform rolling actions within our movement sentences? Your rolls should be performed on the gymnastics mats positioned throughout our movement space. You will perform the rolling actions during the pauses in your movement sentence.”
Lesson #2—Level I
“First let’s review what you have learned so far today. You have created movement sentences using different locomotor patterns, and during the pauses, you have made different body shapes. Is that correct?” (You could have one or two students demonstrate for the rest of the class.)
“Now we are going to add a rolling action. When you hear the music stop, pause and perform a stretched body shape at a low level; then carefully and with control, perform a roll. You may choose any of the rolls we practiced in previous lessons.” “Are you ready? Let’s begin!” (Have students begin according to a specified protocol, such as type of sticker they were given at the beginning of the lesson; by squad number; by hair color; by month of birthday, etc.)
Teaching Tip: Review with children the rolls that have been learned (Practice Style) in previous lessons. These rolls may include, but are not limited to, sideways straight roll (log roll) and rounded body shape or sideways roll (safety or egg roll). If you choose, you can have children practice rolls before integrating them into the movement sentence.
Verbally direct children through first two movement sentences. “Here we go! When you hear the music I would like you to travel along a curvy pathway . . . ready, go! Now travel to a gymnastics mat and pause. As you pause, perform a stretched body shape at a low level; then perform a roll across your mat. Great!” “Let’s try again!” Repeat directions. Then have children perform a movement sentence with a pause, body shape, and roll on their own. Move among children and provide verbal feedback on any aspect of their movement sentences.
Closure: Gather children together for class discussion and review. “Today we created a three-part movement sentence. What were the three parts that we emphasized in our sentence?” Allow time for students to respond. (Answer: travel, pause and create a body shape, and roll.) You may ask students what was the easiest part of the movement sentence or the most challenging. You could also ask what aids in controlling a roll. (Answer: gradually lowering weight to the mat by absorbing force through arms, etc.)
Educational Gymnastics Lesson #3—Level I
Lesson Time Allotted: 30 minutes
Skill Theme:Locomotor patterns
Movement Concepts:Relationships—to small apparatus
Equipment Needed:Jump ropes, hula hoops, cones, low benches, Styrofoam shapes, music, CD/tape player
Learning Outcomes:
- Students will execute locomotor patterns in and out of, around, alongside, under/through, and over small equipment so that locomotor patterns are performed with control, to an external beat, and so that children maintain a safe personal space.
- Students will learn to follow a leader while performing locomotor patterns throughout general space and in and out of, around, alongside, under/through, and over small equipment.
Learning Environment: Different pieces of equipment are scattered throughout the general movement space.
Episode #1: Moving Around, Alongside
Teaching Style: Divergent Production Style
Time Allotted: 15 minutes
Managerial Task: Upon entering the gymnasium, children are asked to find their own personal space next to, but not touching, equipment.
Lesson #3—Level I
Introductory Task: Ask children to move around or alongside the different pieces of equipment scattered throughout general space. Music can be played and children can be asked to move to the beat of the music.
Extending Task: Then ask children to find ways to travel through or under the equipment.
Refining Task: “Try not to touch the equipment as you move through or under it!”
Extending Task: “Now, at the next piece of equipment please try to move back and forth across the equipment. Try to do this repeatedly or over and over.”
Managerial Task: Gather children together for a group discussion.
Clarifying Questions/Student Demonstration:5 minutes
Q: What pieces of equipment can you safely leap over?
A: Yes, the rope on the floor and the rope suspended from the cones!
D: Can someone demonstrate a leap over this rope?
Q: What pieces of equipment can you jump in and out of?
A: Yes, the hula hoop placed on the floor!
Q: What piece of equipment can you travel over by transferring your body weight from your hands to your feet?
A: Yes! The foam trapezoid shape.
Application Task: “Now, boys and girls, I would like to see you connect three different locomotor patterns by traveling from one piece of equipment to another.”
Managerial Task: “You may need to pause or wait a few minutes if you choose the same piece of equipment as a classmate.”
Refining Task: “Are you making your locomotor patterns smooth . . . as large as they can be . . . as small as they need to be?” “Are you changing your locomotor pattern from one piece of equipment to another?”
Episode #2: Movement Sentences in Small Groups—Follow the Leader!
Teaching Style: Divergent Production Style
Time Allotted: 10 minutes
Managerial Task: Organize the children into groups of three to four students.
Lesson 3—Level I
Introductory Task: Ask the small group to choose three different pieces of equipment to travel over, under, through, around, or alongside. Each child in the group takes a turn at being a group leader. The leader chooses the locomotor pattern and the way she will relate to the equipment, and all other group members follow. Each child takes a turn leading and making up his movement sentence.
Closure: 5 minutes.“Good job today, boys and girls! What was one of the most unusual ways your group found to use the equipment?” (Provide time for children to describe ways.) Have two or three children demonstrate their unusual methods of traveling over, under, through the equipment.
Assessment Tool: To assess different locomotor patterns and students’ knowledge of them, you can depict various locomotor skills and have students identify them, draw them, and/or perform them, and observe their performance. In the example here you could ask students to circle the correct name of the locomotor skill.
What is Sara doing as she moves over the rope?
JUMPINGLEAPINGHOPPING
Educational Gymnastics Lesson #4—Level I
Lesson Time Allotted: 30 minutes
Skill Theme:Jumping and landing
Movement Concepts:Body—shape
Relationships—unison movement
Effort—strong/light movement
Equipment Needed:Mats (one for every four students), three or more benches, six foam shapes, six jump ropes, 12 cones, six hula hoops, 18 Styrofoam® hoop holders, two springboards
Learning Outcomes:
- Students willperform a variety of different jumps, within their own personal space, on a gymnastics mat and in a different learning environments according to the following criteria.
Criteria for Success:
- Arms are used for gaining height by swinging them from low to high.
- Students push off of both feet simultaneously or off one foot to a simultaneous two-foot landing.
- Knees are bent to absorb force upon landing.
- Arms are out in front of body or to the side to maintain balance upon landing.
- Students stay in own personal space.
2.Using one of the learning environments, students will choose two to three jumps and practice them with a partner so that they attempt to move in unison. Criteria for success are the same as in objective #1.
Body of Lesson
Instant Activity: 5 minutes
Puzzle cards: With a partner, students put together puzzles. When put together, each puzzle spells a dynamic, rhythmic limbering activity such as the following (students would already know how to properly perform these exercises):
- Lunges—moving from side to side (keeping right angle at knee joint/shoelaces over metatarsal arch)
- Leg swings—forward and back
- Tiny jumps
- Ankle circles
Lesson #4—Level I
Episode #1: Jumping/Landing