After School at Home
Week of May 18
Stretching with Mr. Ridore
Before any athletic activity or workout, it is SUPER IMPORTANT to stretch your body. These stretches below will help you feel nice and loose while you exercise and move. Let's get started, and remember to control your breathing.
- Sit with the back straight.
- Stretch both the legs as wide as comfortable.
- Hold the right knee with the right hand.
- Lift the left hand to the top of the head and lean towards the right.
- While leaning rightwards, stretch the left part of the body as much as you comfortably can.
- Keep breathing normally.
- Repeat it on the other side.
Backstretch or Child Pose
- Kneel on the mat with the hips on the heels.
- Keeping the toes together, open the knees hip-distance apart.
- Lean forward and drape the body over the thighs, so that the forehead rests on the floor.
- Stretch the arms straight to the front.
- While maintaining this pose, breathe deeply and relax.
Overhead Shoulder Stretch
- Stand straight with the shoulders slightly stretched back, feet shoulder-width apart, and chest forward.
- Raise the left arm over the head, bending the elbow and placing the hand behind the neck.
- With the right hand, grasp the left elbow and gently give it a pull behind the head.
- Hold this stretch.
- Relax the body, repeat with the other arm.
Mr. Jean-Mary's Jellyfish
Materials
- paperclips in a variety of colors
- plastic cups (Like Solo cups)
- string or plastic cord for hanging
- small screwdriver (or other tool to poke holes)
- googly eyes
- Optional: jingle bells
1. Start by making a number of different paper clip chains. You can make patterns or do each tentacle one color. If you want, try hanging bells or beads to your paperclips!
2. Have an adult use a small screwdriver (or other sharp tool) to poke holes around the top drinking edge of your plastic cup.
3. Connect each paperclip tentacle to the cup through the little holes.
4. Add some googly eyes, if you have them. If you dont, try making eyes with a permanent marker!
5. Have an adult poke a hole in the center, bottom of your cup. Place a string through hole and knot it to hang
Start by making a number of different paper clip chains. You can make patterns or do each tentacle one color. If you want, try hanging bells or beads to your paperclips.
Have an adult use a small screwdriver (or other sharp tool) to poke holes around the top drinking edge of your plastic cup.
Connect each paperclip tentacle to the cup through the little holes.
Add some googly eyes, if you have them. If you don't, try making eyes with a permanent marker.
Have an adult poke a hole in the center, bottom of your cup. Place a string through hole and knot it to hang.
A Trip to the Louvre Museum with Mr. Balkovetz
The Louvre Museum may be located all the way in Paris, France but thanks to the power of the internet, you can experience one of the world’s biggest, most beautiful museums at home. Originally built in 1190 as a military fortress, the Louvre now houses some of the world’s most incredible art, including Leonardo da Vinci’s famous Mona Lisa.
The Louvre's "Closer Look" interactive multimedia modules allow you to see the details of an artwork through a magnifying glass, while commentaries and animations give you its historical and artistic background. Take a close up look at the Mona Lisa, considered to be the world's most famous painting!
Learn more about the the virtual reality experience the museum designed which brings to life the story of the Mona Lisa, da Vinci’s most famous masterpiece.
The Square Game with Mr. Brewer
All you need for this classic game is a pen, a piece of paper, and someone to play with!
Here’s how you play:
Set up a grid of dots on a piece of paper like this.
Choose who goes first. Whoever goes first draws a line connecting two dots. It can be any two dots.
The other player then connects any two dots. You continue this back and forth.
When you get to a point where the lines look like this, draw a fourth line to complete the square. Write a letter in the square representing your name and then you get to draw a bonus line. You get to do this every time you complete a square.
Eventually, you will end up in a situation like this where you have to fill out and complete squares.
Continue until the entire grid is complete. Then add together the number of squares each person completed. The person with the most squares wins!
The L Game with Mr. Corey
Here is a really interesting video to watch first.
Materials
- 2 pennies or other markers
- A 4x4 grid board
- 2 L-shaped pieces 3 blocks high, and 2 blocks wide (at the L)
Rules
- On each turn, a player must first pick up and move their L piece to a different location, and then may optionally move one of the neutral pieces.
- It may be rotated or even flipped over but it must end in a different position from the position it started—thus covering at least one square it did not previously cover.
- To move a neutral piece, a player simply picks it up then places it in an empty square anywhere on the board.
- Pieces may not overlap or cover other pieces.
Objective
- Be the last player to be able to your L piece without overlapping any other L piece or neutral piece
This game is deceptively difficult. If both players play perfect defense, the game can go on forever.
Example game:
1. Starting
2. Blue moves and neutral piece move
3. Red rotates and neutral piece move
4. Blue rotates and chooses not to move a neutral piece
5. Red makes a mistake and moves and doesn’t move a neutral piece either
6. Blue flips over and moves without moving a neutral piece, and wins!
Be warned! Until you learn the strategies this game can go on for a LONG time.
Here are the ONLY winning end-game results. If both players move perfectly a sudden-death variant rule allows a player to move BOTH neutral pieces after moving their L.
Mr. Alford's Alphabet Scavenger Hunt
Materials
- paper
- writing utensil
- a clipboard or other flat item that can be carried easily and used as a writing surface
Age Range: 4+ years old; a parent/guardian should help set up the game and explain the rules
Players: 1 + (you can play alone or with other people)
Objective: Search for items that begin with the letters of the alphabet.
Rules
- Write down all 26 letters of the alphabet on a sheet of paper.
- Only objects and food will count as items.
- Make exceptions for “q” and “x.” Objects and food that have a “q” or “x” in their names will count.
- Designate at least one area in your home for the game. Suitable areas include living rooms and kitchens.
- You can only point to objects and food. No searching inside closets, drawers, cabinets, or the refrigerator.
- You should look for the inside your home. For example, “table” would count for “t”, but “tree” would not.
- The internet is off limits for finding items.
- Find items in whichever order you wish.
- If you find an object or food that begins with the letter you are looking for, check off the letter and write down the item's name next to the letter.
- There is no time limit for finding all of the items. Feel free to take breaks, if necessary.
Drumming Demo, May 6.mp4