Work It, Work OUT!

I read some terrifying research by the Journal of Medicine and Sport that found that “the more time kids in Grade 1 spent sitting and the less time they spent being physically active, the fewer gains they made in reading in the two following years. In first grade, a lot of sedentary time and no running around also had a negative impact on their ability to do math.” Not on my watch! I decided to come up with a fun way for students to take ownership of their learning AND get their bodies moving!

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On Fridays, I try to do something fun. I also LOVE empowering students and showing them ways to take charge of their own learning. This resource does both of those things! Whatever I’ve had out for practice that week is open for extra practice. I ask them to think about the stations or activities that they felt that they hadn’t mastered. Then, they fill out their boards, practice, reflect, and WORK OUT! I love this because some students are practicing math, some are practicing spelling, and some are reading…but ALL are having fun!

A few ideas for implementation:

There are 15 boards. You could do 1 board a week and then cycle back through. Print one for each child and cover the exercise with a sticky note (optional, but fun!) Pass them out and have them select the skills that they need to work on (OR- students can keep them in a folder throughout the week and record stations/centers that were difficult along the way!). I like to have them reflect on their learning as well. There is a sheet included for this! When they finish, they may grab a timer (sand timers, hand timers, iPad timers- all great ideas!) and complete their workout task. You can decide how much time you give students to get through the board. You might even signal every 10-15 mins to tell them to move on to the next circle so that they move along! You could also put your students into groups and print a different board for each group. They could work on their skills individually but workout together!

Also- I’ve provided two versions of the board- one with 4 skills circles and one with 2 because some need more practice than others. . I teach kindergarten, so I allow my students to pick their board. You might decide that your class all needs one or the other! I will also sit down with my struggling learners and help them select their activities based on my noticings from the week. I hope your students enjoy this!