This full body animal-themed warm-up will prepare kids for any PE activity or workout you plan to jump into.
Note: If you are unfamiliar with any of these exercises, YouTube is a great resource and has video explanations of most of these movements. Some of the more obscure movement videos have been included here for your reference (along with explanations), but others can simply be found by searching "[insert name here] exercise" on YouTube.
PART 1: Have students begin with a "buffalo run" (as a group, run to a marker and back)
PART 2: Dynamic Movement Portion. Pick 5 or more of these exercises and do 20 meter lengths of:
Crab Walk
Bear Crawl
Gorilla Walk (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQ4ZHxEItW0)
Duck Walk
Crocodile Roll (ie. log roll)
Lizard Walk (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uknpT9f0lGo)
Kangaroo Jumps (ie. straight legged hops)
Frog Jumps (ie. low squat into a tall horizontal jump)
Horse Gallop (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GmQ868ArAw)
Cougar Leaps (ie. maximum distance horizontal jumps)
Starfish jumps (in place, do 20-30 repetitions) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8vQrqEmAfo)
Cheetah run (short sprint + jog back)
PART 3: Static Portion. Do 1 cycle of:
10 Cat Cow
10 Downward Dog to Cobra
10 Scorpion
You are now warmed up and ready to go! For an added element of fun and creativity, ask students to create their own animal movements based on other animals not included here.
Comments