A busy week at USM. Not only did we have all the excitement of Homecoming, we also worked hard in PE to develop skills and have fun doing it!!
Senior Kindergarten
By far the best part of this week might have been the fun run with our 3rd grade running buddies. I sure noticed lots of smiles and hard work and cooperation with the SK running buddies. I know these buddies are always special - and as well for the third graders!
Where is Willy? Willy the Wildcat that is, was the theme of our obstacle course activity this week. The children had a chance to practice some of the skills we will be working on during this school year, like balancing (the beams were placed in diagonal pathway), tossing a ball at a target (in this case it was a picture of Willy when he was a young wildcat), balancing on the rungs of the ladder and also on the river stones before going through a small tunnel, bouncing and catching a ball, using cup stilts to move in a clockwise or counter-clockwise direction and finally tossing and catching a ball with a long tail (maybe is should be called a wildcat tail ball!).
Next week we will be working on tossing and catching scarves - like in juggling. It will be our first opportunity at crossing the mid line as we toss and catch the scarves. Crossing the body’s midline also support a child’s development of fine motor skills, ability to use tools, and ability to visually track a moving object. So, this would be a good activity for your child to practice at home - if you don't have any lightweight scarves for your child to use, you can use those light weight grocery bags. They move slowly and allow your child to grab the bag before they hit the ground.
1st Grade
We continued working this week on striking a ball with an open hand against a wall. We also have been playing some games where the children are tossing and catching the ball over the volleyball net. Both of these activities work on eye hand coordination which uses the eyes to direct attention and the hands to execute a task.
The children also learned how to perform partial curl ups that we will be testing next week for our first attempt at the Presidential Physical Fitness Tests. The children have been encouraged to practice doing these at home each night so they become easier with practice.
2nd Grade
Our volleyball striking unit has focused on the underhand serve and the children have really been improving their performance of this skill along with their ability of getting it successfully over the net. We have played several games that allow then to get the ball over the net and for the children on the other side to work on their catching. On Friday we will play what usually becomes one of their favorite volleyball type games called Kings (or Queens) and Knights. In this game - each team will have a "secret" King or Queen who when they catch a ball earn 100 points for their team, along with 2 "secret" knights that when they catch a ball they earn 50 points for their team, then of course the rest of the players who are the townspeople who every time they catch the ball earn 10 points for their team. The fun in the game is keeping the King or Queen and knights a secret so that the other team doesn't know who these players are. I am the official score keeper and each time students catch a ball they earn points for their team. When a team reaches 500 points the game is over and we all come together and try and guess who the "secret" players are on each team. The children really enjoy the strategy of keeping the secret throughout the game.
3rd Grade & 4th Grade
The third and fourth graders continued their work on the forearm pass. Their technique sure has shown improvement this past week. We also started to learn how to do the overhead pass known as a set using beach balls. The lighter balls allowed the children to be successful moving the ball back and forth with their partner. It also makes sure that the children learn the technique without hurting their fingers. Thursday and Friday this week we learned about rotation for a volleyball game and began playing a lead up volleyball game that allows throwing and catching, hitting the ball off a bounce and initiating play with the underhand serve. It was fun to see the children start to play a game that looks a little bit like the "real" game.
We also learned about our second muscle this week - the triceps muscle. We talked about how muscles work in pairs. We will do five different exercises that work the triceps muscles, however this week we only had time to work on two - kickbacks and seated rows. Some of the children said they were practicing some of our muscle exercises at home. Please make sure your child isn't using weights heavier than 3 lbs.. We are using 1 pound weights so that we can learn the exercise using the correct movement without hurting their muscles when they are young.
Up and Coming
Ice Skating will be starting for our first and second graders on Tuesday, Oct. 13th. Please make sure your child is ready to go by having skates that fit, and good laces, a helmet and snow pants, and gloves or mittens. See the flyer attached on the Friday Folder! Please also consider volunteering to help the children get their ice skates on and tied so that they can have their full time on the ice.
4th Graders will be starting an interactive computer program produced by the Children's Health Education Center called Drug Defense: Get UR Facts to help introduce our students to the topic of drug abuse prevention. This program has been developed in conjunction with Children's Hospital and Health Systems. You will be able to access the program at home and we will be sending this information to you via e-mail. I believe the program will be a wonderful learning experience for our fourth graders.
Finally, we also had a chance to rock out at our F day assembly (on Tuesday) that focused on Homecoming and what it means to be an athlete and what it takes to be part of a team. Four of the Upper School Captains from tennis, football, cross country and field hockey spoke to the children. Then we did a huge movement activity to music with all the children SK - 4th grades.
It was great seeing everyone moving and grooving to the fun tunes. Of course, the highlight might just have been seeing Willy the Wildcat! Wow - he's such a great sport fan!!
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