Gym class - Kindergarten

Just looking for some feedback here.

DD takes gym class twice a week at her school. The entire kindergarten class is in the gym class -ie four classes of kids for an approximate total of about 90 kids. There are two gym teachers and four assistants. I cannot imagine how they can get to do anything - when I ask DD what she does at gym she tells me that they stretch and she learns about different muscles in her body.

What are the numbers in your kids gym classes and what type of activities do they do?

TIA

Re: Gym class - Kindergarten

Not sure about the numbers but last year when my DS was in K, they did the Wii quite a bit believe it or not! He said there was different stations and they rotated.....

They also did a lot of group participation games ( there were names for them but cant recall what) DS loves gym !

Re: Gym class - Kindergarten

MY DH is a gym teacher and has Kindergarten kids this year. He says they do teach them about basic stretching. Its more so that they will pay attention and cop what they are doing. Also he says they do a lot of songs with dance moves ( Hookie Pookie type) and there are 2 teachers with 2 classes at a time

Re: Gym class - Kindergarten

I absolutely LOVE my daughter's Gym Teacher. She is in 1st grade and so this is our 2nd year with her.

They do quite a bit of stretching also. They do a lot of yoga in the beginning to warm up. She comes home and shows me the mountain pose, kitten pose, lion pose. I don't know if the poses are acurate since I do not do yoga but she seems pretty matter-of-fact about it!

The teacher also makes up a lot of great theme games. For example, they had a game called GO FISH that was modeled after the Dr. Seuss book last year. There was a plastic kiddie pool in the center of the gym, and 4 stations in the corners of the room. The kids would take turns using scooters to go across the room to the pond to go "fishing" for fish, that they picked up with poles that had magnets at the end of strings. There were points on each fish and the teams got points that way.

It was such a cute game and those were the kid of things they did. My DD would tell me about them when she came home from school and was always so excited about what they played.

They also had certain months where they focused on certain things. They did a hula hooping month. They did a jump roping month. They did a walking/running month where they did laps and they actually did a fundraiser for Children's Leukemia. They collected pledges for the number of laps they did in gym and the teacher kept track of them, and the money was donated to charity.

I can't say enough about how much I love this gym teacher!

Also the kids go twice a week and it is just their class that goes. She has one class at a time. It is an early childhood center (We follow Princeton Plan in my school district) so she is able to cater her lessons to the younger kids.

Perhaps since your school has so many kids in a gym period, it is hard to come up with more creative games when you have that many kids at once?

Re: Gym class - Kindergarten

I'm a phys ed teacher and we have about 25 children to 1 teacher. Sometimes we combine when there is a class in the gym next door, which the kids prefer, and then its 2 teachers to 50 children. We only have aides if theres a child who needs one.

In Kindergarten the first few weeks we stress sharing, good sportsmanship, staying healthy and go over the rules. We establish a routine of coming in and getting to work right away. We play a game they love. Bananas means run on our little track, oranges followand copy the teacher, apples sit in your special spot, watermelon - jumping jacks, pears - ABC "push ups" and we add more and more as the year goes on. We then stretch every day, normally choosing helpers to come up. This year we have played with the parachute and now bean bags. Im sorry I have to run so Ive just been rambling... I need to go teach LOL

Re: Gym class - Kindergarten

Thanks everyone - do you think it would be to forward of me to ask the teacher / principal for an outline of what they will be doing at gym this year?

Re: Gym class - Kindergarten

Re: Gym class - Kindergarten

Unfortunately my meet the teachers night was cut short so I only met her kindergarten teacher and not the gym teacher.

I really dont want to be stressing about gym class and maybe I am worried about nothing....I just think the size of the class is too large for them to have any space to spread out and cannot imagine what sort of activities they would get done ....I see it that they must have to take it in turns so they sit down while the others are running around......

Maybe I will try to press the principal and see what he says....

Thanks

Re: Gym class - Kindergarten

I would email/call the PE teacher directly and ask for the curriculum. I have taught PE for ten years and we never had more than two classes on. The gym was tight then. Now they sometimes have three classes on, but at least one can go outside in the nice weather. Their creativity in the winter is great.

I teach HS now and we have some classes with 120 kids in the gym. We have a second gym, so it helps a little. Maybe if they have a multipurpose room they can utilize that. I would definitely ask the eacher first and then maybe press the principal about the scheduling of 4 classes at one time. If the kids are standing around, then they need to rethink their schedules so you don't have 4 classes on. That's excessive.

Re: Gym class - Kindergarten

I would first call and see if your information is correct. Are you sure 90 children are in the same gym with 2 teachers? If that's the case then id go further. Gyms are all different sizes. We have maybe 53 in our biggest combined class and its just big enough IMO. Were doing jump roping with 2nd grade right now. I can't imagine thered be space for 90 kids jump roping. If they do it that way it often also means they need more equipment. I just can't imagine that would be what they're doing. That'd be crazy IMO :)

Re: Gym class - Kindergarten

Yes the facts are definitely true - there are four kindergarten classes of 24 kids per class so an average of about 90 kids per gym class.

Re: Gym class - Kindergarten

I mean the rest. Are you sure they go all at the same time with only 2 lead teachers and are taught in the same gym?