Pump Up Your Mind
By Tina Hager
Books to Share
- And the Good, Brown, Earth by Kathy Henderson.
- Bearobics: A Hip-Hop Counting Story by Vic Parker and Emily Bolam.
- Oh, Look! by Patricia Polacco.
- Sailor Boy Jig by Margaret Wise Brown.
Books to Show or Booktalk
- Bonz Inside-Out by Byron Glaser and Sandra Higashi.
- Cry Baby by Ruth Brown.
- If You Want to See a Caribou by Phyllis Root.
- Swimming Lessons by Betsy Jay.
Jump Into Reading
Use jump ropes to outline the bulletin board. Add the title “Jump into Reading.” Write titles of books that deal with jumping, hopping, or skipping, or that have these words in the title. Check the bibliography of this manual for some suggestions, but add additional titles from your collection.
Use the pattern to make barbell nametags.
Serve healthy snacks such as slices of oranges, bananas, and apples. Serve dried versions of the same fruits and have the children vote for their favorites.
The Hokey Pokey
Using the book The Hokey Pokey by Larry La Prise, Charles P. Macak, and Taftt Baker, lead the children in dancing the Hokey Pokey. After performing the original version, ask the children to come up with other versions. For example, a racehorse would put in hooves, mane, and tail and a bicycle rider would put in wheels, handlebars, and spokes. Refer to the Bilingual Programs Chapter of this manual for detailed instructions for dancing the Hokey Pokey and for the words in Spanish.
Riddles and Jokes
Q. Why did the elephants have to leave the swimming pool?
A. Because they couldn’t keep their trunks up.
Reader’s Theatre Scripts
Time To Work Out
(By Tina Hager)
- Time to work out!
- Out where?
- Where we always work out.
- Out there?
- There, by the fence, outside.
- Outside? In the sun? We should find somewhere else to work out.
- Out where?
- Where else but inside.
- Inside where it is cool? Inside is a good place to work out.
- Out by the fence is good when it is cool but when it is hot, inside is better.
- Better get started, it is getting late.
- Late? What is the time?
- Time to work out!
Use the puppet play “The Three Little Fishies and The Big, Bad Shark” in Fractured Fairy Tales: Puppet Plays and Patterns by Marilyn Lohnes. The fish get a lot of exercise in the story because they have to keep swimming away from the shark to keep from being eaten. After presenting the puppet show, ask the children if they know the name of the traditional story on which the play is based. Ask the kids to suggest additional ways to adapt the story, “The Three Little Pigs,” to involve other exercises.
A Day in the Life of Goldy and the Bears
(By Tina Hager)
A long time ago, there were three bears, who were very fit because they took daily walks in the woods and exercised. Today was no exception! Mama Bear had just finished making a big pot of soup that was too hot to eat right away. So, the bears decided that it was the perfect opportunity for them to take a walk. Little did they know that, not very far from their home, a little girl named Goldy was hopping and skipping in the woods. It did not take long for Goldy to reach the bears’ house. She knocked on the door, but since no one was home, she tried the doorknob and found it was unlocked. She walked right in and the first room she saw was the kitchen with three bowls on the table. Goldy was very hungry, so she went to the biggest bowl of soup first. It was too salty. When she tried the second bowl of soup, she found it to be too cold and greasy. When she tried the third bowl, it was just right, so she picked up the bowl and drank it all gone.
The next room she went into was the exercise room. She tried the treadmill first, but it went too fast and she was almost thrown off. She tried the exercise bike next, but it was too hard to pedal. Goldy tried the medicine ball last and was having a wonderful time rolling around until it popped and she landed smack on the floor. She quickly picked herself up and decided to take a nap because all the eating and exercising left her very tired. Goldy went upstairs and found three beds. The first bed was very hard and hurt her back. The second bed was too sloshy and almost made her sick because it was a waterbed. The third bed turned out to be just right. So, she went to sleep.
While Goldy was sleeping, the three bears came home. Papa Bear went to sit down and eat his soup when he realized someone had already tasted his soup. Mama Bear was very upset to find her soup grease had been rearranged. Baby Bear just started crying because he didn’t have any more soup left. The bears decided to work off their frustration in their workout room. Papa Bear was very surprised to find that his treadmill was running at full speed. Mama Bear was just as surprised to find that someone had tried to tamper with her exercise bike settings. All Baby Bear could do was cry because his medicine ball was scattered all over the room like a popped balloon.
Not sure what was going on, and tired after their long walk, the three bears decided to take a nap. Papa Bear noticed that his bed had gotten a little softer since he had last slept in it. Mama Bear noticed that her waterbed had sprung a leak. All Baby Bear could do was stand by his bed with his mouth open. Mama Bear and Papa Bear were wondering why they did not hear Baby Bear saying anything, so they went over to see what was going on. There the three bears found a human in Baby Bear’s bed. Suddenly Goldy woke up, because she was having a bad dream. Then she realized it was not a dream! Screaming, Goldy jumped up, sprinted down the stairs, through the exercise room and the kitchen and out the door. She ran all the way home and never went to that part of the woods again.
Games and Activities
Stuffed Animal Trampoline
Place a small stuffed animal in the middle of a blanket on the floor. Let the children take turns holding the corners of the blanket and helping the animal “jump” on the “trampoline.”
Invite a representative from an athletic or recreation center to talk about the importance of exercise. Ask the guest to lead the children through about five minutes of basic exercise moves.
E-I-E-I Yoga. (38 minutes)
- Bodies in Motion, Minds at Rest
- Many health related questions are answered
- Juggling Information Service
- Gives you all the information you need to know about juggling.
- Jump Rope Rhymes
- Words to a variety of jump rope rhymes are provided.
- Nutrition Café
- Learn about nutrition while playing games.
My Amazing Human Body.
- Fractured Fairy Tales: Puppet Plays and Patterns by Marilyn Lohnes.
- The Hokey Pokey by Larry La Prise, Charles P. Macak, and Taftt Baker.