Badminton in January

Badminton is coming to an end this month.  We are going to end the sport of the month with a badminton tournament for our 4th - 6th graders.  They have had plenty of practice with serving and rallying, now it is time to put it all together.  They have learned how to keep score and how to rotate when playing with partners.  I like ending the unit with a small tournament because it puts together all the pieces that we have learned.  Not just serving, hitting, keeping up with the scores, but also teamwork, using strategies, and problem solving.  The concepts we learn can also be applied to life, not just sports.  These are life skill that everyone needs to practice.  We are also doing our fitness checks this month.  1st - 6th graders will be tested on their: sit ups, push ups, shuttle run, and timed on 5-8 laps running.  We are looking to improve from our last test which was in October.  The students are tested 3 times during the school year so they can chart their improvements.  

Pre-K and Kindergarten have learned how to turn and jump a long jump rope.  Kindergarten will be demonstrating their talents with the jump rope at Grandparent's Day in February.  I am very proud of our Pre-K and Kindergarten classes, they are working hard and having fun learning how to jump.  The get so excited when they jump past their highest number.