Overview:

This active session introduces a series of fun, fast-paced starter games & activities designed to kick off lessons with energy and intentional learning links. From decision-making to body positioning to performance skills to key behaviours, this range of games and activities have the ability to connect to meaningful and purposeful learning for specific skills as well as concepts and behavioural skills.

Whether you are running net games, invasion games, movement classes, striking & fielding lessons or units with behavioural or interpersonal skills focus, these short, purposeful activities can help to create a fun and engaging start to your lesson and provide you and your students with a springboard into deeper thinking linked to exercise, sport and movement.

Key Takeaways for Participants:

• Experience a range of engaging warm-up games & activities that are easy to set up and adapt
• Demonstrating how each activity can be purposefully connected to sport-specific outcomes some key concepts or ATL skills.
• Understand how to use starter games to introduce, reinforce or review key skills (e.g. reaction time, balance, passing accuracy, team communication).
• Receive a resource pack with game instructions, descriptions and sport-specific applications

Sample of Games:

• Bounce Battle is a group or whole-class warm-up that challenges learners to move in unison focusing on agility, coordination & rhythm – helping students coordinate jumps, group movement, balance and body control. Suited for movement units – dance, athletics & invasion game units where timing, footwork & teamwork are essential – no equipment is needed.
• Bodyguard is a fun game: learners work in groups where one player protects a teammate (the target) from being hit by a soft dodgeball thrown by an opponent. It encourages spatial awareness, throwing & catching and lateral movement. This links well to sports like dodgeball, throwing & catching games like handball, netball, touch rugby, basketball, as well as striking & fielding games. One or two dodgeballs are all that is required.
• Base Breaker & Power Press are partner challenges where learners perform a specific challenge – one works on aiming to force their partner to move their feet, whilst the other works on strength and force. Improving elements such as postural strength & balance to improve effective movement & body control across a variety of sports & activities. Great for gymnastics, movement units, and sports like basketball and netball that rely on defensive stance and balance – no equipment is needed.
• Tail Tango or Pick & Pursue is a team ‘tag’ game where groups must identify and chase another opponent from a different group. It develops agility, decision-making, spatial awareness and teamwork and team coordination – all vital for invasion games. The game requires one bip for each team; apart from that, no other equipment is required.

The above are short samples of some of the games. My workshop will include a wider range of adaptable games and variations, all designed to show how purposeful starter activities can spark energy, build skill, and connect movement to meaningful learning in every lesson.