For my physical education placement–Halloween edition–I incorporated two spooky-themed fitness activities alongside two activities we had already been focusing on which involved jump ropes. The routine for transitioning from the classroom to the field always started with the activity Drill Sergeant, where a student lead the rest of the class doing a marching drill, collecting individual jump ropes as they marched on to the field. After that, the same student leader lead out in stretches, using the jump rope like a resistant band. After the whole body stretches, students practiced their listening positions while I explained for the first spooky-themed activity, they would play Tag the Witches, with one student as the witch who flew around on their broomstick (jump rope) to tag their flying monkeys. Following this cooperative activity, students stood again in listening position while I introduced the final activity, Pumpkin Patch. Students jump roped to the center pumpkin patch, picked a pumpkin, completed the number on the back, and then jump roped back to their home (hula hoop) to decorate it with their collected pumpkins.

This lesson not only incorporated listening skills, but also cooperative and gross motor skills. They had to follow directions and work together–especially with Tag the Witches. Most of these activities included the use of jump ropes, which was the focus of this unit. The students continued to improve their jump roping skills while participating in fun themed, cooperative activities. The first two activities–Drill Sergeant and full body stretches–has been the routine for the entire unit, which was a reinforcement of listening skills and preparation for the following activities. The final two spooky-themed activities focused on cooperation and practicing their jump roping skills. 

Especially with the holidays, incorporating themes into physical education activities engage students. Even my nervous student participated in the final two activities, working on their gross motor skills. I received positive feedback from the students and my mentor teacher–who had been observing the entire time–reinforced the positivity of student participation, especially with the nervous student. The main fix that I thought of–and my mentor teacher agreed with–was to create an actual perimeter all around rather than just setting up cones every couple of feet since most students went out of bounds more times than not.