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5 IDEAS ON HOW TO ADD VARIETY TO GYMNASTICS AT SCHOOL
2023-05-08
Is your group of children bored during sports activities at school? Are you wondering what you can do to encourage them to be physically active and make gymnastics more diverse? When teaching PE classes, it is easy to fall into a routine and offer the same exercises over and over again. This makes classes no longer attractive to pupils. Discover 5 ideas to make gymnastics interesting again.
Movement is essential for the proper development of children. However, not every child likes to move. The reluctance to play sport is due to various factors, one of which is boring sports activities. If your lessons are not appealing, pupils start to avoid them, often take redundancy or are reluctant to take the initiative. This can easily be changed!
TRY OUT NEW ACCESSORIES
Basic school equipment includes ladders, benches, medicine balls, bags of rice and sometimes ropes. Although these accessories can be used for many attractive exercises, they can eventually become boring. This is why you should offer students new equipment every few classes.
Gymnastic rings
They are intended for mounting on a rod attached to a ladder. The rings are suitable for training the arm and back muscles, which play a key role in gymnastics. In addition, they are ideal for stretching the spine.
GYMNASTIC RINGS adjustable — a simple but extremely useful gadget
You can just grab them and relax your back and abdominal muscles for a while. A pleasant feeling of space between the vertebrae will appear immediately.
Plyometric box
A wooden box in the sports hall is sure interest many children! It is worth using it to improve the fitness of pupils, especially runners.
PLYOMETRIC GYMNASTIC BOX for strengthening legs — perfect for adding variety to your gymnastics!
There are many plyometric exercises with a box to help strengthen the leg muscles.
Trolley with four castors
A simple gadget that will make a lot of pupils laugh! It can be used to improve children's motor coordination, all through play.
GYMNASTIC TROLLEY FOR EXERCISES on your stomach — brings some fun into your classes!
Use this model and the children won't even feel that they are exercising.
Other accessories
Remember that you can also reach for accessories to add variety to your current gym equipment. A good choice, for example, is a gymnastic balancing platform with a clip that can act as a slide. Simply mount it to the ladders. There is no better way to encourage children to climb than with the vision of a joyful slide down!
ORGANISE ACTIVITIES OUTSIDE THE GYMNASIUM
Sports activities do not have to be organised only in the gymnasium. Hand out cross mats for the children to play on and then take them outside!
Exercising outdoors is a great way to loosen up the school atmosphere a bit. In addition, contact with nature has a positive impact on the wellbeing of the pupils. This way, they will be oxygenated after class and return for the next lessons in good spirits.
TEST NEW TECHNIQUES
Many exercises can be varied to make them more appealing and engage new muscle parts. It is a good idea to replace, for example:
• classic squats with lunges, e.g. on a slight rise. They engage the gluteal and leg areas. It is easier to maintain the correct posture when performing them. You can also reach for, e.g. canvas school sashes. Ask pupils to hold them upright while doing a squat, and in this way they will practise balance skills;
• sit-ups with ab contractions, plank or hip raises. These exercises also engage the so-called core muscles, but are not as demanding as classic sit-ups. This makes the children more willing to perform them and they have no problem doing all the repetitions.
In order to find ideas for new versions of exercises, it is useful to take part in various training courses, as well as attending group classes such as the gym. The coaches have lots of interesting ideas for making training more interesting.
INTRODUCE DIFFERENT EXERCISES IN EACH CLASS
If you don't want children to yawn in boredom during your lesson, surprise them with something different every time. This could be:
• new sports accessories – kids will happily to try them out!
• unusual exercise routines – e.g. instead of a classic warm-up, do some exercises in pairs;
• a different class formula – abandon the classic blocks with a fixed number of repetitions. Try, for example, workouts that are timed or without repetitions.
Remember! If there is something different going on in the sports activities each time, pupils will be eager to come to lessons curious about what is going to happen.
PUT THE MUSIC ON
Nothing puts you in a good mood like music! So don't forget it during sports activities. If you don't know what songs your pupils like, you can ask them to make a playlist with the latest hits. They will be happy to share their favourite music, so you get to know them a little better.
Music has a positive effect on mood and also stimulates activity. As a result, children will not only move more nimbly, but also with a smile on their lips.
A physical education teacher cannot rest on their laurels! Your pupils' health and fitness depend on you. Therefore, be sure to test the ideas above and get the children moving more.